Subject:
Title
Permission to Issue Annual Supply Bids, Proposals and Requests for Qualifications (FY 2021/2022) and/or Negotiate Competitive Agreements
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Fiscal Impact:
Minimizing administrative costs by reducing and consolidating Board actions for competitive annual procurement of commodity and services; ensures efficient use of available funds and the timely provision of commodities and services. Establishment of costs associated with these commodities and services is allocated to individual agencies’ funding sources. Funds will be encumbered through user-initiated purchase orders.
Dept/Office:
Central Services / Purchasing Services
Requested Action:
Recommendation
It is requested that the Board grant Purchasing Services approval to perform the following actions regarding the attached list of commodities and services for Fiscal Year 2021-2022.
• Solicit competitive bids, quotes, and/or negotiated competitive agreements and award to the lowest responsive, responsible and most qualified vendor(s).
• Solicit competitive proposals and requests for qualifications, establish selection and negotiation committees approved by the County Manager (or designee); and award contracts and/or purchase orders with the highest ranked proposer(s).
• Exercise renewal options upon evaluation of supplier performance and recommendation from user departments/offices. This establishes that continuance of the contract is favorable prior to renewal of the agreement.
• Authorize the BOCC Chair to execute all contracts, contract renewals, contract amendments and any necessary contract extensions that exceed $100,000.00 in total aggregate value, upon review and approval by the County Attorney’s Office, Risk Management, and Purchasing Services.
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Summary Explanation and Background:
The use of term agreements is one of the methods utilized by Purchasing Services to implement strategic sourcing and take advantage of economies of scale. Purchasing Services estimates the annual needs of the County for items or groups of items where there is an opportunity to achieve savings by using formal competitive processes (formal bids, quotes proposals, and requests for qualifications). Annual competitions establish a source, a firm price and a performance period on high-volume, repetitive materials and continuing services.
Approval of this action will eliminate repetitive Board action granting permission to purchase routinely used items and services, and eliminate an estimated several thousand individual purchase order transactions. Also, to expedite the award process, the Assistant County Managers currently have Board authorization to solicit, award and execute contracts up to $50,000.00 and the County Manager up to $100,000.00. Award recommendations will be made by a selection committee consisting of user agency representatives approved by the County Manager, or designee, for evaluation of proposals, and Purchasing and user agency staff members for determining responsive and responsible bids. The competitive procurement method (competitive bid versus competitive proposal) will be determined by the individual service or commodity requirement.
Acquisition of services for recurring continuing professional consultant contracts will be solicited in accordance with Policy BCC-27 and Florida Statutes 287.055, “Consultants’ Competitive Negotiation Act”. Florida Statute 287.055 allows the County to enter into continuing contracts for professional services for projects in which the estimated construction cost of each individual project under the contract does not exceed $4 Million, if the professional services under the contract do not exceed $500,000.00. Firms providing professional services under continuing contracts shall not be required to bid against one another.
Annual negotiated competitive agreements/discounts establish a firm source period, and price on high volume materials and services, significantly reducing the number of repetitive, expensive daily purchase transactions through the utilization of open purchase orders or purchase card.
The evaluation of renewal options utilizes factors such as market data, level of competition available, inflation and vendor performance. The using agencies and Purchasing Services will document recommendations of exercising renewal options in the official bid or proposal files.
Formal contract renewals will be in accordance with AO-29, Contract Administration.
Minimizing administrative costs by reducing and consolidating Board actions for competitive annual procurement of commodities and services ensures efficient use of available funds and the timely provision of commodities and services. Establishment of costs associated with these commodities and services is allocated to individual agencies’ funding sources. Funds will be encumbered through user initiated purchase orders.
Clerk to the Board Instructions:
None