New Jersey Administrative Code
Title 5 - COMMUNITY AFFAIRS
Chapter 34 - LOCAL PUBLIC AND PUBLIC SCHOOL CONTRACTS LAWS
Subchapter 10 - DESIGN-BUILD CONTRACTS
Section 5:34-10.9 - Statements of proposal; award of contract

Universal Citation: NJ Admin Code 5:34-10.9

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 18, September 16, 2024

(a) The RFP shall require the submission of a sealed statement of proposal in two separate parts: a technical proposal and a price proposal. The technical and price proposals shall be evaluated separately, in accordance with the evaluation factors and process set forth in the RFP.

(b) In addition to such drawings, specifications, data, calculations, or other submittals as the contracting unit requires to be submitted with the technical proposal, or the bidder is otherwise required by law to submit with their statement of proposal, a bidder's technical proposal shall include:

1. A list of each person to whom the bidder as design-builder proposes to delegate obligations under the design-build contract, including key team members;

2. Pursuant to the provisions at N.J.S.A. 40A:11-22 or 18A:18A-25, as applicable, a surety company bond or guarantee, as specified in the RFP;

3. Acknowledgment of receipt of revisions or addenda to the RFP;

4. A statement that the bidder is in compliance with all laws applicable to the project, including the New Jersey Prevailing Wage Act, P.L. 1963, c. 150 (N.J.S.A. 34:11-56.25 et seq.), the Public Works Contractor Registration Act, P.L. 1999, c. 238(N.J.S.A. 34:11-56.48 et seq.), and the Construction Industry Independent Contractor Act, P.L. 2007, c. 114(N.J.S.A. 34:20-1 et seq.);

5. If required by the contracting unit, a certificate pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:11-20 or 18A:18A-23, as applicable, showing that the design-builder and construction members of the proposed design-build team own, lease, or otherwise control all the necessary equipment required by the plans and specifications of the design-build project; and

6. Such other documentation as required by law to be submitted with a bid for a design-bid-build project.

(c) The price proposal, which shall be a separate sealed document clearly identifying the bidder's name, project number, a statement of ownership disclosure pursuant to N.J.S.A. 52:25-24.2 for the bidder and proposed key team members, a bid bond pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:11-21 or 18A:18A-24, as applicable, and other information required by the RFP, shall provide a price for all design services and construction work required to complete construction of the design-build project. The named price shall not be exceeded if the proposal is accepted by the contracting unit without change. The price proposals shall remain sealed until such time as provided at (f) below.

(d) Before the proposal submission deadline, the contracting unit may provide for a conference at a designated date, time, and location at which prequalified bidders may ask questions and seek clarification concerning any of the information, data, or documents contained within the RFP. A preproposal conference may be mandatory or optional, as stated in the RFP.

(e) The submission of technical and price proposals is conclusive evidence that the bidder has completely reviewed the RFP, along with the proposed terms and conditions of the design-build contract and fully understands and agrees to all the requirements, terms, and conditions set forth therein.

(f) Sealed technical proposals shall not be opened until expiration of the time established for submission as set forth in the RFP. The contracting unit shall make reasonable efforts to maintain the secrecy and confidentiality of all technical proposals, and all information contained in the technical proposals, and shall not disclose the proposals or the information contained therein to the designbuilders' competitors or the public except as otherwise permitted pursuant to this section and N.J.A.C. 5:34-10.12. All price proposals shall be made public once the governing body awards the contract.

(g) Before the technical review committee begins evaluating the technical proposals, the contracting unit's design professional or design official shall examine all documents required to be submitted with the statement of proposal. All statements of proposal considered by the technical review committee shall be complete and certified by the design professional or design official as responsive to each of the proposal evaluation factors established in the RFP. Any statements of proposal deemed incomplete or otherwise non-responsive shall be submitted by the design professional or design official to the technical review committee, along with the reasons for the determination. If a bidder's technical proposal, price proposal, or both, must be rejected as non-responsive, the technical review committee shall notify the bidder, in writing, of the rejection of its proposal and the reasons for the rejection within 10 business days of receiving the proposal, unless the RFP specifies a different time period for the committee to notify the bidder.

(h) The technical review committee, meeting together, may conduct interviews with each bidder prior to ranking the bidders' respective technical proposals.

(i) The technical evaluation committee shall evaluate each technical proposal, in accordance with the proposal evaluation criteria and the weight assigned to each, specified in the RFP. Once evaluated, the committee shall total and submit the scores for each technical proposal to the selection coordinator.

(j) After the technical proposals have been reviewed and scores are submitted, the selection coordinator shall assign the maximum price points to the lowest total dollar price proposal. All other responsive proposals shall be scored based upon the percentage that each price proposal exceeds the lowest price proposal. The bidder shall show all amounts in words and figures. In the event of a discrepancy between the words and figures, the amount shown in words shall govern.

(k) The selection coordinator shall determine the combined scores for each bidder based on their technical and price proposals. A minimum of 50 percent consideration shall be based on the cost of the price proposal. After the proposals have been evaluated, the selection coordinator shall prepare a report concerning the technical review committee's proposal evaluations and award recommendation. The report shall list the names of all bidders submitting a proposal and shall summarize each statement of proposal submitted , including the dollar amount of each bidder's price proposal, and include a breakdown of the evaluation scores for each bidder. The report shall rank the bidders in order of evaluation, clearly state the reasons for the committee's award recommendation, and detail the terms, conditions, scope of services, fees, and other matters to be incorporated into the contract. The bidder with the highest overall score shall be recommended to the contracting unit's governing body for an award of the design-build contract. The report shall be made available to the public at least 48 hours prior to the governing body's award of the contract or when made available to the governing body, whichever is sooner, except that the details of each bidder's respective technical proposals shall not be disclosed.

(l) A bidder may withdraw a proposal for any reason at any time prior to the contracting unit's governing body award of the contract either on a preliminary or final basis. If a bidder withdraws a proposal, the bidder shall be disqualified from submitting a future proposal on the same project, including whenever a contracting unit rejects all proposals pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:34-10.10.

(m) Before awarding a design-build contract, the governing body shall determine that there was adequate competition for the contract. The technical review committee shall have considered at least two complete and responsive proposals before the governing body can proceed with awarding the contract.

(n) If the governing body approves the recommendation and awards the contract, the contracting unit shall notify the successful design-builder, in writing, and the ownership of the drawings, specifications, and information therein, shall be determined, in accordance with the terms of the design-build contract, as permitted by law.

1. The notice of award shall be final if the governing body accepts a proposal without change, or preliminary if the governing body authorizes further negotiation with the successful bidder.

2. If the governing body preliminarily awards a design-build contract, the maximum cost in the successful bidder's price proposal may be modified by negotiated agreement between the contracting unit and the design builder if the parties agree to further modification of the proposal prior to final award. In negotiations with the successful bidder, boards of education cannot agree to a project cost higher than that authorized by voter referendum, a municipal governing body, or the board of estimate, as applicable, to the type of school district. The governing body shall authorize final award of the contract upon reaching a negotiated agreement with the design-builder. In the event the parties fail to reach a negotiated agreement, then the governing body may authorize a notice of award to be issued to the next highest-ranked bidder.

(o) Unless and until a statement proposal is accepted by the governing body, the drawings, specifications, and other information in the proposal shall remain the property of the bidder. Once a proposal is accepted by the governing body and a notice of award issued, the disclosure of the proposal and information therein, along with ownership of the drawings, specifications, and information therein, shall be determined, in accordance with existing law and the terms of the final contract.

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