TSA selects eight vendors to bid on TWIC

The Transportation Security Administration has announced a final group of eight companies that will bid on the contract to manage key components of the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) program.

TSA published an initial solicitation for qualified contractors in May and announced earlier this month that the final group includes BearingPoint, Computer Sciences Corp., EDS, IBM, Integrated Biometric Technology, Lockheed Martin, Maximus and Motorola.

TSA issued the request for proposals to the winning contractors on Sept. 1, and they must file responses by Oct. 2.

The final winner will operate TWIC’s identity management system and enrollment and help-desk services, the final implementation phase of one of the TSA’s critical credentialing programs.

The TWIC program will provide biometric security credentials for all federal transportation workers throughout the United States.

A notice of proposed rule-making also published in May would make port workers and merchant mariners the first to use the new biometric security credential program. TSA plans to issue 850,000 cards.

DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff has said earlier that the department intends to start implementing the TWIC program this fall.