{"Introduction & Overview":"The California Department of Social Services, on behalf of its Child Care Development Division and Child Care Licensing Division, has issued this RFI to gather information for child care-related system needs. The Child Care Development Division oversees state-funded child care programs and policies, while the Child Care Licensing Division manages licensing and oversight of child care, residential, adult, senior, and home care facilities across California.","Purpose":"The California Department of Social Services is seeking information from vendors for its Childcare Connect initiative, which aims to improve access to accurate and timely child care information for families and providers across California. Through this RFI, CDSS wants to understand available market solutions, best practices, implementation approaches, and estimated costs. Vendors are invited to propose platform-based, COTS, MOTS, or custom solutions to help CDSS determine the best technology approach for the initiative.","Qualification":"In this RFI, the California Department of Social Services is asking vendors to provide information about their experience, qualifications, and how their solutions meet the system requirements. Vendors must indicate whether their solution is a COTS, MOTS, custom, platform-based (low-code/no-code), or if a requirement cannot be met. They are also asked to submit product literature, technical specifications, identify any areas needing clarification, and optionally provide non-binding cost estimates to help CDSS with budget planning.\n\nProvide three client references (preferably State agencies, large cities/counties, or similar organizations) that used your services/software within the last 36 months.","Background":"The California Department of Social Services became California’s lead agency for child care programs in 2021 after responsibility transferred from the California Department of Education under the Early Childhood Development Act of 2020. CDSS must meet federal and state child care consumer education requirements under programs such as Child Care and Development Fund and Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2014. Since the current website does not fully meet compliance requirements, CDSS is exploring market solutions to develop a new online Childcare Connect portal for families, providers, and the public, as part of its technology modernization and project approval process.","Key Requirements":"Childcare Connect:\nRegulatory & Public Information\nMeet CCDF / CCDBG / AB 2960 child care consumer education requirements\nProvide State-level information (agency contacts, referral services, licensing info, KPIs)\nProvide Provider-level information (ZIP-based search, quality ratings, inspection reports, service availability)\nSupport multiple languages and accessibility for users with disabilities\n\nParent & Family Services\nInformation on child care programs and eligibility\nConnect families with local R&R agencies, providers, and APPs\nOnline eligibility screening and waitlist access\n\nTechnology & Security\nFedRAMP Moderate security\nData stored and accessed only within the U.S.\nSingle Sign-On (SSO) and Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)\nRole-based access and user management\nCalifornia accessibility compliance\n\nSystem Capabilities\nFlexible data/partner onboarding\nBatch and real-time data updates with quality checks\nAnalytics and reporting\nMulti-step workflow approvals\nDisaster recovery support","Legacy":"CDSS currently uses Mychildcareplan.org website to support provider data and licensing data coming from CDSS legacy systems. ","Integration":"The system must allow integration with external government and non-government systems (e.g., identity verification, payment gateways) through standardized APIs (REST/JSON, OAuth 2.0). ","User Base":"Approximately 50K active provider records and 5.5K parent profiles (based on MyChildCarePlan.org).","Hosting":"Vendor to propose appropriate FedRAMP-compliant cloud solution.","Support":"Ensure long-term sustainability of the Childcare Connect solution after implementation.\nEnable California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to independently operate, maintain, and enhance the system.\nProvide tools, governance, training, knowledge transfer, and mentorship.\nSupport a smooth transition from vendor-led support to State-owned operations.","Functional Requirements":"User Accounts\nAccessibility\nChildcare Search\nSearch\nConsumer Education\nUser Experience\nWebsite\nReporting\nDatabase\nRegulatory\nReferrals\nIntegration\nMaintainability\nAutomation\nData Storage","Data Migration":"Data migration will include existing provider and user records. Cleanup will be required.\nThe data migration requirements will be outlined as part of the RFO/RFP. At this time project is in PAL Stage 2 and requested details are not required.","Scalability":"The system shall support a minimum of 10,000 concurrent users (including parents, providers, and HR administrators) and be horizontally scalable to handle future growth in user base and traffic spikes without major architectural changes. ","RFP Document Folder Link":"https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1vTEePXeiOdDxTk00pJML5OtnypiL0aDk?usp=drive_link"}
Assumptions
- 1. Cardinality Solution will be hosted on AWS GovCloud for the production instance.
- 2. Hosting includes one production and four non-production instances - Development, Integration Testing, UAT and Staging
- 3. Cardinality SaaS license includes - Yearly 2 upgrades, monthly hot fixes and level 3 support
- 4. All resources would be based out of the US
- 5. The Cardinality SaaS license cost is provided for up to 100 internal users, up to 500,000 Citizen users
- 6. Cardinality will leverage the Adobe or DocuSign licenses of the Agency for e-signature
- 7. The Operations & Maintenance Support phase is assumed to start after DDI phase of 12 months followed by 3 months of Warranty
- 8. Cardinality will provide a mobile responsive application. Development of a mobile app is not part of scope of work
- 9. Cardinality will provide Level-2 and Level-3 support during the M&O Phase. Level-1 support is not part of the scope of work