Notice Of Emergency Procurement By:

Vendor Name:

Contract Amount:

78000.00

Notice Publish Date:

February 9, 2024

Agency Procurement Manager:

Email:

Telephone:

The Agency hereby provides notice that it entered into an emergency contract per S.C. Code Ann. §11-35-1570 with Vendor for the following supplies, services, information technology, or construction:

Emergency Vendor: First Orion
Agency has contracted with or plans to contract with Emergency Vendor for the supplies, services, information technology, or construction described below per S.C. Code Ann. §11-35-1570 and S.C. Regulation 19-445.2110, Emergency Procurement.
Describe the nature of the emergency condition and the resulting immediate threat to public health, welfare, critical economy and efficiency, or safety that this procurement responded to:
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamp Program, serves as the foundation of America's national nutrition safety net by working to end hunger and improve the health of low-income households. SNAP helps eligible households buy the food they need for a nutritionally adequate diet. In South Carolina, many households depend on SNAP each month to get the food they need to ensure good health. Families, people living alone, people living with roommates, and/or people who are homeless may be eligible for SNAP. To receive SNAP benefits, clients must participate in an interview either in person or over the phone. Conducting interviews over the phone is the preferred method as it provides our clients with flexibility while enabling us to provide Quality Control in a more efficient manner. Phone interviews allow the agency to complete more case reviews in less time and administer the program more effectively. At this time, the agency has sufficient staff to answer 57% of the call volume in respect to SNAP eligibility that translates to an inability to interview and provide benefits to ⁓ 1,400 people a day.
Description of the facts and circumstances giving rise to the above-described emergency condition and threat:
The agencies call volume has increased leading to a 57% answer rate, which means that we are not able to conduct the interview required to provide benefits to ⁓ 1,400 people a day. Additionally, 98.5% of our call volume (⁓ 3,450 calls a day) is outbound (Eligibility Workers calling clients) and the agency must find a way to increase our answer rate.
Basis for Selection of the Vendor – include a description of competition Agency conducted or will conduct, if any, and explain why more extensive competition was/is not practical under the circumstances:
There are only three companies who can do Call Branding in the United States: First Orion, Neustar, and Hiya. DSS requires providers to work with Amazon Connect and only two of the three companies have done so (First Orion and Neustar.) DSS reached out to both companies and only First Orion was responsive to our request. DSS is planning to issue a solicitation for these services in the future.
Description of supplies, services, information technology, or construction:
‘INFORM’ by First Orion, a ‘Branded Text Display’ solution that will allow DSS to display a 32- character message to the person we are calling thus increasing DSS’s answer rate (for example, ‘SNAP Interview’ rather than just a toll-free number the client does not recognize.)

Agency's justification for this emergency procurement may be viewed or obtained at:

Corinna Aiken - Corinna.aiken@dss.sc.gov

PROTESTS:
Any actual or prospective bidder, offeror, contractor, or subcontractor aggrieved in connection with the intended award or award of this emergency contract, shall notify the appropriate chief Procurement officer in writing of its intent to protest within five (5) business days of the date this notice is posted. Any actual or prospective bidder, offeror, contractor, or subcontractor who is aggrieved in connection with the intended award or award of this emergency contract and has timely notified the appropriate chief procurement officer of its intent to protest, may protest to the appropriate chief procurement officer in the manner set forth below within fifteen days of the date this notice is posted; except that a matter that could have been raised as a protest of the solicitation may not be raised as a protest of the award or intended award of a contract.
A protest must be in writing, filed with the appropriate chief procurement officer, and set forth the grounds of the protest and the relief requested with enough particularity to give notice of the issues to be decided. The protest must be received by the appropriate chief procurement officer within the time provided above. Days are calculated as provided in S.C. Code Ann. §11-35-310(13).

Any notice of intent to protest and protest must be addressed to the chief procurement officer:

Materials Management Officer

(a) by email to:

Protest-MMO@mmo.sc.gov

(b) by post or hand delivery to:

1201 Main Street, Suite 600, Columbia, SC 29201

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