The Social Security Administration (SSA) has a continuing requirement to provide comprehensive training, technical support to organizations awarded a WIPA cooperative agreement, certain Social Security staff, organizations providing services under a Social Security Research, and Demonstration project, Employment Networks (EN) and other select community partners, and the Help Line.

President Clinton signed P.L. 106-170, the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act, into law in 1999. The law authorized SSA to fund community services to provide work incentives counseling to Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries interested in work or self-employment. Section 1149 of the Act, as amended by section 121 of P.L. 106-170, required that the Commissioner of SSA establish a community-based program: currently, The Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) program.

Many Social Security beneficiaries receive support from a variety of programs, each with their own eligibility and entitlement requirements that may be sensitive to earned income. With new earned income, beneficiaries may experience an unexpected loss of essential supports, which may derail, or discourage work.

There are complex rules intended to support a beneficiaries’ return to work. These rules, called work incentives, allow beneficiaries to work without immediate loss of essential income or health care supports. Many beneficiaries do not understand these rules. Armed with accurate information, beneficiaries can achieve better economic security and a better quality of life. WIPA provides this accurate information to disability beneficiaries about federal and state work incentives programs, health insurance protections, and other employment supports designed to help a successful transition to work.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) requires the services outlined in this Statement of Work (SOW) for a National Training and Data Center (NTDC) to provide accurate and comprehensive training, certification testing, data management, and technical assistance to the WIPA program. Successful training participants will, in turn, give beneficiaries accurate and timely information about SSA programs and programs of other federal, state, and local agencies and services that assist people with disabilities towards greater economic stability through work

Pending availability of funding, SSA intends to support one NTDC contract. The successful contractor shall provide comprehensive training and technical assistance on a variety of benefit and disability-related topics to individuals who meet participation requirements and who are:

• Staff at agencies awarded a WIPA cooperative agreement.
• Benefit Support Specialists (BSS) and other staff at the Ticket to Work Help Line (Help Line) call center. SSA provides this call center through the Ticket Program Manager (TPM) contract.
• Employment Network (EN) staff providing benefits counseling services under a Ticket to Work (TTW) program agreement with SSA.
• State Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) staff.
• Other SSA staff or select community partners as determined, space permitting, in consultation with the SSA Contracting Officer Representative (COR) or Alternate Contracting Officer Representative (ACOR). For the sake of simplicity, we will refer to both the COR and ACOR collectively as CORs.

• Task 1: Communicating with SSA
• Task 2: Developing and Updating Initial and Supplemental Training Materials for WIPA and Community Partners
• Task 3: Delivering Initial and Supplemental Training to WIPA and Community Partners
• Task 4: Providing Technical Assistance to WIPA and Community Partners
• Task 5: Supporting the Ticket to Work Help Line
• Task 6: Create, Maintain and Update a Website
• Task 7: Evaluate Training and Technical Assistance
• Task 8: Accommodation and Accessibility
• Task 9: Report-Writing Software
• Task 10: Distribute, Track and Manage Encrypted Storage Devices
• Task 11: Provide Support Staff
• Task 12: Paperwork Reduction Act Clearance from the Office of Management and Budget
• Task 13: Data System and Analysis
• Task 14: Create and Maintain System Security Plan
• Task 15: WIPA STAR Database SSP
• Task 16: WIPA Services Delivery Model
• Task 17: End of Contract Transition – Transition Out