DHS inks temporary myE-Verify contract

The Department of Homeland Security tapped a subsidiary of Verizon to provide temporary support for its myE-Verify worker self-check application system.

The six-month contract for the service with MCI Communication Services will allow U.S. workers to check their work authorization status ahead of getting a job. The award has two three-month options to continue the service.

Overseen by Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Internet-based E-Verify system checks information from employees' I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification Forms against U.S. government immigration records to determine employment eligibility. The myE-Verify application will allow workers to check the biographic information included on their own I-9s to see whether the E-Verify system would confirm their eligibility.

In early October, CIS officials said they were contemplating moving data processing for myE-Verify to the cloud. The agency issued a request for information looking for ideas from commercial cloud providers to conduct back-office data checks while CIS maintained the public-facing Web presence.

According to the DHS contract posted in FedBizOpps on Nov. 6, the contract with MCI Communications, which does business as Verizon Business Networks, will provide continuity of service for CIS with minimal disruption while the requirement is re-competed. The application, it said, harnesses Verizon's Universal Identity Service.

DHS said the contract requires the company to create and deliver a production-ready self-check application, including design and integration. MCI, according to the document, must also provide hosted and managed user account services support, including a 24/7 help desk.