RFP No. 902703 Transactions (Sales) and Use Tax Audit Services

It is the intent of these specifications, terms, and conditions to describe transactions (sales) and use tax audit services being requested by the County.

The County intends to award a three-year contract (with the option to renew for two years) to the Bidder selected as the most responsive and responsible Bidder whose response conforms to the RFP and meets the County’s requirements.

Background

The County of Alameda has a continuing need to recover lost tax revenues by auditing Transaction (sales) and Use Tax revenues, and currently uses a contractor to locate and correct distribution and allocation errors, and to prepare and submit information to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA).

The County Administrator’s Office (CAO) deems it necessary for authorized representatives of the County to examine confidential sales and transactions, and use taxes collected by CDTFA for the County pursuant to requirements and conditions for the disclosure of CDTFA records as set forth in Section 7056 of the California Revenue and Taxation Code.

In Fiscal Year (FY) 2024-25, the County of Alameda collected over $25,000,000 in Transactions (Sales) and Use Tax revenues.  The County of Alameda currently uses a contractor to perform audits to locate and correct distribution and allocation errors, including contacting businesses where a probability of error exists, and to prepare and submit information to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (formerly the State Board of Equalization) to correct any Transactions (Sales) and Use Tax allocation errors identified.  Services will include preparation of custom reports organized by County-defined parameters on major sales tax producers by rank and category, including trends, growth/decline, and aberrations for each type of tax.  Reports shall also include historical growth comparisons with the State, other Bay Area counties, and Consumer Price Indices (CPI).

The awarded Contractor will work with and advise County staff, and others as appropriate, in order to increase tax collections.  The Contractor will provide historic transactions (sales) and use tax information and projections for County budgeting purposes and specific projects.  The Contractor will prepare and provide quarterly reports on sales tax performance within the unincorporated areas of the County, and also on performance of the Public Safety Sales Tax (Proposition 172), Alameda County’s Essential Health Care Services Tax (Measure A) (http://www.acgov.org/health/indigent/measureA.htm), Alameda County’s Temporary Sales Tax Increase (Measure W), and Alameda County’s Children’s Health and Child Care Initiative  (Measure C).  In addition, the Contractor should be able to generate other reports and/or programs that enhance the collection of Transactions (Sales) and Use Tax as appropriate.

Project Details

• Reference ID: 902703
• Department: General Services Agency-Procurement
• Department Head: Detra Dillon (Purchasing Administrator)

Important Dates

• Questions Due: 2026-04-21T00:00:00.000Z
• Pre-Proposal Meeting: 2026-04-17T17:00:00.000Z — Microsoft Teams meeting Join: https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/27002927369460?p=qoe8ehUpAwcHxZ1nTH Meeting ID: 270 029 273 694 60 Passcode: jc9DA2jX Dial in by phone: +1 415-915-3950 Phone conference ID: 429 007 876#

Addenda

• Official Notice #1: RFP 902703 Attendess List (released 2026-04-21T22:43:35.710Z)
• Official Notice #2: Revised RFP 902703 Attendees List (released 2026-04-22T01:07:18.089Z)

Evaluation Criteria

• Completeness of Response (1 pts) —

  Responses to this solicitation must be complete.  Responses must address all the requirements identified within this solicitation and all related documents, including any Addenda. Failure to meet the Bidder Minimum Qualifications may also be considered an incomplete response and may result in the disqualification of the Bidder.

• Debarment and Suspension (1 pts) —

  Bidders, its principal, and named subcontractors are not identified on the list of Federally debarred, suspended, or other excluded parties located at www.sam.gov/SAM.

• Cost and Budget Detail (75 pts) —

  The points for Cost will be computed by dividing the amount of the lowest responsive and responsible bid received by each Bidder’s total proposed cost.

  Cost evaluation points may be adjusted by considering:

  1. Reasonableness (i.e., how well does the proposed pricing accurately reflect the Bidder’s effort to meet requirements and objectives?).
  2. Realism (i.e., is the proposed cost appropriate to the nature of the products and/or services to be provided?).
• Description of Proposed Services (100 pts) —

  Proposals will be evaluated considering the RFP specifications and the questions below:

  1. How well has Bidder demonstrated a thorough understanding of the purpose and scope of the project?
  2. How well does the description of proposed services depict a logical approach to fulfilling the requirements of the RFP?
  3. How well does the description of proposed services achieve all the requirements in the RFP, including the deliverables and reports the County expects it to provide?
  4. How thorough, thoughtful, and relevant is Bidder’s plan to collect data to monitor the progress of the proposed services?
  5. How well has Bidder identified pertinent issues and potential problems related to the project? 
• Relevant Experience (75 pts) —

  Proposals will be evaluated, including considering the RFP specifications and the questions below:

  1. How much experience does the Bidder have with similar projects?
  2. How much experience does the individuals assigned to the project have experience on similar projects?
  3. How extensive is the applicable education and experience of the personnel designated to work on the project? 
• References (50 pts) —

  References (See Exhibit A – Bid Response Packet)

• Understanding of the Project (75 pts) —

  Proposals will be evaluated considering the RFP specifications and the questions below:

  1. How well has the Bidder demonstrated a thorough understanding of the purpose and scope of the project?
  2. How well has the Bidder identified pertinent issues and potential problems related to the project?
  3. How well has the Bidder demonstrated that it understands the deliverables the County expects it to provide?
  4. How well has the Bidder demonstrated that it understands the County’s schedule and can meet it? 
• Methodology (75 pts) —

  Proposals will be evaluated considering the RFP specifications and the questions below:

  1. How well does the methodology depict a logical approach to fulfilling the requirements of the RFP?
  2. How well does the methodology match and contribute to achieving the objectives set out in the RFP?
  3. How well does the methodology interface with the County’s schedule? 
• Overall Proposal (50 pts) —

  Proposals will be evaluated considering the RFP specifications and the questions below:

  1. How well does the proposal fully and directly respond to all RFP requirements?
  2. How well is the proposal clear, well-structured, and easy to evaluate?
  3. How well is key information, commitments, and deliverables clearly articulated? 
• Small Local Emerging Business Preference (ADMIN SCORING) (25 pts) —

  Points equaling 5% of the Bidder’s total score for the above Evaluation Criteria will be added.  This will be the Bidder’s final score for purposes of award evaluation.

• Local Preference (ADMIN SCORING) (25 pts) —

  Points equaling 5% of the Bidder’s total score for the above Evaluation Criteria will be added.  This will be the Bidder’s final score for purposes of award evaluation.

Submission Requirements

• Submit Bid Response and Bid Form (required) —

  Please confirm that both your response and the Bid Form have been uploaded here.

• Submit Bid Response (required) —

  Please confirm that your response has been uploaded here.

• Has your response addressed all the requirements identified within the solicitation and all related documents, including any addenda? Failure to meet the Bidder Minimum Qualifications may also be considered an incomplete response and may result in the disqualification of your bid. (required)
• Your company, its principal, and named subcontractors are not identified on the list of Federally debarred, suspended, or other excluded parties located at www.sam.gov/SAM. (required)
• I certify that I have read, understood and agree to the terms in this solicitation, and that I am authorized to submit this response on behalf of my company. (required)
• Pricing (required) —
  • Choose Option 1 when you have set line items, for example:
    • This is a quote for goods or commodities.
    • This is a public works bid, with a pricing table that can be uploaded into OpenGov Procurement from an Excel spreadsheet.
    • Seeking services for hourly rate schedules.
  • Choose Option 2 when you need vendors to provide you with the line items. 
• Evaluation Committee? (required) —

  Will there be an evaluation committee to review the proposals and score them based on weights and multiple criteria?

• Procurement and/or Project Contact (required) —

  Select the information you would like display.