Mississippi Administrative Code
Title 12 - Finance and Administration
Part 3 - Bureau of Building, Grounds and Real Property Management
Chapter 2 - Rules for the Bureau of Building, Grounds and Real Property Management
Rule 12-3-2.1 - Policies and Procedures
Section 12-3-2.1-400 - CODES AND POLICIES
Section 12-3-2.1-400.6 - PROFESSIONAL SELECTION POLICY

1. At the time of request for Project Initiation or thereafter, the Executive Director, Commissioner, President, Governing Board or their authorized designee for the Using Agency or Institution requesting the Project, shall submit a list containing at least three (3) Professionals for consideration for the design of the Project. If no list is provided, or a list containing less than three (3) Professionals is provided, the Bureau shall identify additional Professionals for which the Bureau has a current M54 Architect-Engineer and Related Services Questionnaire on file until a list of at least three (3) eligible is established.

2. The Bureau shall solicit a letter of interest from each listed Professional, including the Professional's agreement to enter into a Bureau contract for the fee stipulated for this Project if selected and a current M54 Architect-Engineer and Related Services Questionnaire, and M55 Architect-Engineer Related Services for Specific Project Questionnaire form. The solicitation issued by the Bureau shall identify the scope of work as well as criteria by which selection shall be made. Should one or more identified Professionals fail to furnish a letter of interest, the Using Agency or Institution shall be requested to identify additional potential Professionals or the Bureau will identify additional Professional(s) until a list of three (3) eligible is re-established. For projects where the Bureau determines that scope of services make a fee based upon pre-defined percentage of construction cost impractical or inappropriate, following selection based upon qualifications only, the selected Professional shall be requested to provide a detailed Proposal identifying proposed scope, deliverables, schedule, and cost. The Proposal shall be reviewed by the Bureau and evaluated to determine if services represent a fair and reasonable cost, and if not, the Bureau shall negotiate with the selected Professional until this is achieved. Should negotiations with the most qualified Professional fail to achieve a fair and reasonable cost, the Bureau may negotiate with the next most qualified Professional or restart the selection process.

3. Selection: A Selection Committee, composed of the following voting members, may, at its discretion, choose to select the Professional directly from the list of eligibles without benefit of in-person interviews, or they may hold separate in-person interview with each Professional on the list of eligibles:

4. Voting: A minimum of three (3) Selection Committee members constitute a quorum; and if for any reason a tie vote results, the Director of the Bureau of Building will decide between the two (2) Professionals receiving the most votes based solely upon the scoring criteria identified in the solicitation.

5. Omitting In-Person Interviews: If the in-person interview process is omitted, one of the following shall take place prior to selection:

6. Motion to Reconsider: The Director of the Bureau may, at his discretion, rule that the Selection Committee's decision will be held on a motion to reconsider and reconvene the Selection Committee normally within five (5) working days after the Selection Committee's initial decision. At this reconvened meeting, the Committee may allow the first vote to stand, or the Committee may throw it out and take another vote.

7. Emergency Project: Where project is initiated to address emergency repairs, preceding process will not be followed, and selection of Professional will be made based upon recommendation of the Director of the Bureau.

8. Continuation Project: Where project is initiated as a continuation of a previous appointment for a directly related Bureau administered project, preceding process will not be followed, and selection of Professional will be made based upon recommendation of the Director of the Bureau.

9. Adoption Project: Where project is initiated as a continuation of a previous appointment for a project administered by an Institution, Agency or Department, preceding process may not be followed if initial selection process used by Institution, Agency or Department was done using a similar qualifications-based selection process.

The interviews, if held, are open to other representatives of the Institution, Agency or Department; however, they will not participate in the selection voting. The Bureau of Building, Grounds and Real Property Management is responsible for establishing any evaluation criteria when needed for each submission. This may change according to Project need.

1. Project Initiation: After a Project has been initiated by the Bureau, the need for professional services for the Project will be made public. The Request for Qualifications for Professional Services shall include numerical scoring criteria for both short list and final selection, fee type, project scope, and submission requirements for consideration. The method of announcement will be one, or more, of the following:

2. Response: Any individual, firm or corporation desiring to respond to the publication and provide Professional services for a Project must give the Bureau written notification of interest. This response must be received at the Bureau's office on, or before, the date established in the public notice. The response is to be as follows:

3. Short List: A Pre-selection Committee will review all letters of interest and related data or information submitted. The Committee selects from all the submissions a short list for consideration. The short list must have at least three (3) names unless fewer than three (3) are received, in which case all submissions will be considered. The Pre-selection Committee is composed of the following representatives:

4. Attendance: A minimum of three (3) Pre-selection Committee members constitute a quorum for the pre-selection process. The Deputy Director of the Department of Finance and Administration who is responsible for the Bureau of Building, Grounds and Real Property Management may elect to substitute for any voting member of the Pre-selection Committee previously noted in 3.c or 3.d. The Bureau of Building staff members are responsible for eliminating all submissions not meeting the project qualifications prior to the Pre-selection Committee's meeting. This pre-selection process may be handled by committee meeting, conference call, or a telephone poll.

5. Notification: After a short list has been established by the Pre-selection Committee, those selected for interviews will be notified by the Bureau.

6. Selection: The Selection Committee composed of the following voting members, may, at its sole discretion, choose to select the Professional directly from the short list without benefit of in-person interviews, or they may hold separate in-person interviews with each Professional on the short list:

7. Voting: A minimum of three (3) Selection Committee members must be present; and if for any reason a tie vote results, the Director of the Bureau of Building will decide between the two (2) Professionals receiving the most votes based solely upon the scoring criteria identified in the solicitation. The Deputy Director of the Department of Finance and Administration who is responsible for the Bureau of Building, Grounds and Real Property Management may elect to substitute for any voting member of the Pre-selection Committee previously noted in 6.c or 6.d.

8. Delegation of Vote: Any voting member of the Selection Committee previously noted in 6.a, 6.b, 6.c or 6d, may designate another party to cast their vote. This Designee may be a representative of a local or non-traditional public entity, or a party having a special expertise regarding the area in which the facility will serve. The Selection Committee Member will request the records of the proceedings state their vote has been designated and indicate the Designee.

9. Omitting Interviews: If the in-person interview process is omitted, the following shall take one of the following shall take place prior to selection:

10. Motion to Reconsider: The Director of the Bureau may, at his discretion, rule that the Selection Committee's decision will be held on a motion to reconsider and reconvene the Selection Committee normally within five (5) working days after the Selection Committee's initial decision. At this reconvened meeting, the Committee may allow the first vote to stand, or the Committee may throw it out and take another vote.

11. Emergency Project: Where project is initiated to address emergency repairs, preceding process will not be followed, and selection of Professional will be by the Director of the Bureau.

12. Continuation Project: Where project is initiated as a continuation of a previous appointment for a directly related Bureau administered project, preceding process will not be followed, and selection of Professional will be made based upon recommendation of the Director of the Bureau.

13. Adoption Project: Where project is initiated as a continuation of a previous appointment for a project administered by an Institution, Agency or Department, preceding process may not be followed if initial selection process used by Institution, Agency or Department was done using a similar qualifications-based selection process.

The interviews, if held, are open to other representatives of the Institution, Agency or Department; however, they will not participate in the selection voting. The Bureau of Building, Grounds and Real Property Management is responsible for establishing any evaluation criteria when needed for each submission. This may change according to Project need.