The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Division of Marine Fisheries

(617) 626-1520 | mass.gov/MarineFisheries

Maura T. Healey

Governor

Kimberly Driscoll

Lt. Governor

Rebecca L. Tepper

Secretary

Thomas K. O’Shea

Commissioner

Daniel J. McKiernan

Director

ISSUE DATE: 9/9/26

Purchasing Department Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries

Address Annisquam River Marine Fisheries Station, 30 Emerson Ave

City, State Zip Code Gloucester, MA 01930

Procurement Contact Person Neil McCoy

Telephone Number (978) 290-8128

Fax Number (617) 727-3337

E-Mail Address neil.mccoy@mass.gov

RFR Name/Title Massachusetts Recreational Saltwater Fishing Guide – Publication and Delivery

RFR Number DMF - 26036

COMMBUYS Bid Number RQ-27-1046-DMF-FWE20-629347

1. Description or Purpose of Procurement:

The Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) seeks a contractor with experience working with state fish and wildlife agencies to design and produce a magazine-like printed publication containing the laws and regulations regarding saltwater fishing in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as general information about recreational saltwater fishing. In addition to the print product, the contractor will also create an accessible interactive Adobe Acrobat PDF of the guide for digital distribution.

A portion of the funding necessary to produce the Guide by the Contractor shall be generated through advertisements placed in the Guide by the Contractor. All external advertisement content must be approved by DMF before being placed in the final layout of the Guide.

http://www.mass.gov/marinefisheries

REQUEST FOR RESPONSE

Massachusetts Recreational Saltwater Fishing Guide – Publication and Delivery

DMF RFR- 26036

2. Applicable Procurement Law

Check Appropriate

Box (“X”):

Type of Purchase Applicable Laws

Executive Branch Goods and Services

Goods and Services MGL c. 7, § 22; c. 30, § 51, § 52; 801

CMR 21.00

Human and Social Services MGL c. 7, § 22, § 22N; c. 30, § 51, § 52;

801 CMR 21.00; 808 CMR 1.00

Legal Services MGL c. 30, § 51, § 52 and § 65; c. 7, §

22; and 801 CMR 21.01(2) (b)

Grants MGL c. 7A, § 7; St. 1986 c. 206, § 17;

815 CMR 2.00

3. Acquisition Method:

Check All Applicable (“X”): Category

Fee-For-Service

Outright Purchase

Rental (not to exceed 6 months)

Term Lease

License

Other:

4. Whether Single or Multiple Contractors are Required for Contract:

Check One (“X”):

Single Contractor

Multiple Contractors

a. Estimated Number of Awards

The target maximum number of Contractors is one; the Purchasing Department may award more or fewer contracts, if it is in the best interests of the Commonwealth to do so.

b. Adding Contractors after initial Contract Award

If, over the life of the contract, the Purchasing Department determines that additional Contractors may be added, these may be drawn from qualified companies that responded to this Solicitation and not awarded Contracts. If necessary to meet the requirements of the Commonwealth, the Solicitation may be reopened to obtain additional Bids.

5. Entities Eligible to Use the Resulting Contract

Check One (“X”): Eligible Entities

Limited User Contract – Restricted to Use by Defined Entities Only. Any Contract(s) resulting from this Bid will be open for use by the issuing Purchasing Department and the following other entities:

Limited User Contract – Restricted to Use by Issuing Entity Only.

6. Expected Duration of Contract (Initial Duration and any Options to Renew):

Contract Duration

Number of Options Number of

Years/Months Instructions

Initial Duration

3 years The Contract will be executed in October of FY 27 and will run for three years through 06/30/2029

Renewal Options

Three (3) 1 year each There will be three (3) options to renew for one year each

Total Maximum Contract Duration

6 years Six (6) years

7. Anticipated Expenditures, Funding, or Compensation:

Estimated Value of Procurement: $132,000 for total maximum contract

The maximum annual payment to be made by DMF to the contractor to produce and deliver the

Guide shall be $22,000. Therefore, for the three (3) year duration of the Contract, the source of all other compensation to the Contractor necessary for development of the Guide by the Contractor shall be from the placement of advertising in the Guide. All advertisements to be placed in the Guide by the Contractor shall be approved by DMF prior to publication of the Guide.

8. Contract Performance and Business Specifications:

Scope of Services:

Contractor will provide the following at a minimum. All requirements must be part of base bid price. Bidders must submit an itemized price sheet detailing all costs associated with providing the requested services. The price sheet must clearly identify the cost of each service or line item, as well as the total proposed cost

Booklet Specifications (see example of cover in Appendix A)

a. Quantity: 65,000 copies total (5,000 Show Edition, 60,000 Final Edition)

b. Size: Booklet must be 8 x 10.5 inches

c. Booklet to be 52 total pages (48 plus front and back covers)

i. 42 pages of copy

ii. 10 pages of advertisements

d. Stock for the body of Guide must be 40# coated paper or better

e. Front and back covers must be 70# coated paper or better

f. Ink requirements – full color

g. Binding – saddle stitch or equivalent

h. Editorial – DMF will provide editorial copy in a digital format

i. Layout and Design – Contractor will compose, lay out, and design the document and incorporate the previously noted material. Contractor will prepare for DMF approval the design, layout, advertising, and editorial copy.

j. Art – Contractor is responsible for artwork. Images from DMF files will be made fully available to Contractor. All artwork must be approved by DMF by the second proof.

k. DMF will provide all attributes on all agency graphics

A. Digital Versions

a. A high-resolution Adobe PDF version of the Guide

b. An interactive PDF version (with clickable links) of the Guide for the DMF website.

c. Contractor must produce an accessible web-based version of the guide for the public to access that is easy to update and change to reflect possible in-season changes once paper-copies have been produced (see current version). The online version must meet the Information Technology Division’s Enterprise Web Accessibility Standards. Please review Procurement of Accessible Digital Products and Services for guidance.

https://www.eregulations.com/massachusetts/saltwater https://www.mass.gov/guides/procurement-of-accessible-digital-products-and-services

B. Advertising

a. Contractor will be responsible for soliciting and obtaining advertisements

b. DMF must approve all advertising in writing exactly as it will be displayed before placement in the proof

c. DMF must be given five business days to approve the advertising

d. All advertising must be in place by the second proof

e. Advertising cannot be on the following pages (with the exception of DMF advertising if requested by DMF)

i. Front cover

ii. Inside cover

iii. Back cover (unless approved by DMF)

f. At least 15% of advertising must come from Massachusetts-based businesses

g. The Contractor must submit a summary report of all advertising information on a yearly basis including, but not limited to, advertiser’s name, address, size of ad, and amount paid

C. Proofs/Production

a. Copy will be sent to Contractor in Microsoft Office documents

b. Designed content will be sent to Contractor as Adobe PDFs or other file formats requested by Contractor

c. Contractor must provide digital copy (format to be determined) and 3 hard copies for all proofs

d. Error rate must be 0.5% or less on first proof

D. Delivery

a. Option for two deliveries

b. One printing of 5,000 copies of a “Show Edition” will be ready by January 15, 2027 and for the following years

c. Second printing of remaining 60,000 will be delivered by April 30, 2027 with changes to the fishing regulations table, minor content updates, and removal of “show edition” label on cover

d. Show Edition will be delivered to the Gloucester office

e. The second printing will be split and delivered to both Gloucester and New Bedford offices

f. Inside delivery will be at the ground level to a facility without a loading dock at both locations

g. Cartons must be labeled “Guide (insert year)”

h. Cartons must weigh 35 lb. or less

E. Copyright/Ownership

a. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, acting through DMF, is the sole owner of all the products and related information developed by the selected contractor pursuant to this RFR and the resulting contract with DMF, including but not limited to, the original design files and all associated artwork and images. The selected contractor is, therefore, prohibited from seeking copyright protection for any such contract work.

b. In the case of Contract default, DMF retains the right to all work done from the contract start date. Including, but not limited to, layout, design, digital design files, proofs, and DMF images.

c. At the end of each contract year, the Contractor will provide DMF with the full package of original design files and all associated artwork and images.

9. Small Business Purchasing Program

Program Background

The Massachusetts Small Business Purchasing Program (SBPP) was established pursuant to Executive

Order 523 to increase state contracting opportunities with small businesses having their principal place of business within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Pursuant to the SBPP, it is the intention of the issuing department to award this Small Procurement to one or more SBPP participating business(es) as described below.

SBPP Award Preference

While all businesses, no matter the size or principal place of business, may submit responses to this solicitation, should an SBPP participant respond and meet the best value criteria as described in this solicitation, the SBPP participant shall be awarded the contract. The Strategic Sourcing Services Team

(SSST) will not evaluate submissions from non-SBPP participants unless no SBPP Bidder meets the

SSST’s best value evaluation criteria.

SBPP Participation Eligibility

To be eligible to participate in this procurement as an SBPP participant, an entity must meet the following criteria, and be marked as an SBPP-registered business in COMMBUYS:

1. Have its principal place of business in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts;

2. Been in business for at least one year;

https://www.mass.gov/sbpp https://www.mass.gov/executive-orders/no-523-establishing-the-massachusetts-small-business-purchasing-program https://www.mass.gov/executive-orders/no-523-establishing-the-massachusetts-small-business-purchasing-program https://www.commbuys.com/bso/

3. Employ a combined total of 50 or fewer full-time equivalent employees in all locations, or employees work less than a combined total of 26,000 hours per quarter; and

4. Have gross revenues, as reported on appropriate tax forms, of $15 million or less, based on a three-year average.

Non-profit firms also must be registered as a non-profit or charitable organization with the MA

Attorney General’s Office and be up to date with all filings required by that office and be tax exempt under Section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code.

SBPP Compliance Requirements

It is the responsibility of the Bidder to ensure that their SBPP status is current at the time of submitting a response and throughout the life of any resulting contract. Misrepresentation of SBPP status will result in disqualification from consideration, and may result in debarment, contract termination, and other actions. To learn more about the SBPP, including how to apply, visit the SBPP

Webpage.

Program Resources and Assistance

Bidders and Contractors seeking assistance regarding SBPP may visit the SBPP webpage, http://www.mass.gov/sbpp, or contact the SBPP Help Desk at sbpp@mass.gov.

10. Environmentally Preferable Products

Products and services purchased by state agencies must be in compliance with Executive Order 515, issued October 27, 2009. Under this Executive Order, Executive Departments are required to reduce their impact on the environment and enhance public health by procuring environmentally preferable products and services (EPPs) whenever such products and services perform to satisfactory standards and represent best value, consistent with 801 CMR 21.00. In line with this directive, all Contracts, whether departmental or statewide, must comply with the specifications and guidelines established by OSD and the EPP Program. EPPs are products and services that help to conserve natural resources, reduce waste, protect public health and the environment, and promote the use of clean technologies, recycled materials, and less toxic products. Bid responses must identify how a contractor meets these goals.

11. Evaluation Criteria

Contractors must submit responses that meet all the submission requirements of the RFR. Only responsive proposals that meet the submission requirements will be evaluated, scored, and ranked by http://www.mass.gov/sbpp http://www.mass.gov/sbpp http://www.mass.gov/sbpp mailto:sbpp@mass.gov https://www.mass.gov/executive-orders/no-515-establishing-an-environmental-purchasing-policy?_ga=2.237660352.1741219494.1633353146-758386467.1632336759 the evaluation team according to the evaluation criteria. Additional information may be requested for evaluation purposes. Please see RFR attachment “Evaluation Criteria” for the scoring matrix and detailed evaluation descriptions. DESCRIPTION OF EVALUATION CRITERIA: Demonstrated experience with similar products is preferred. Samples of past work may be mailed to: Annisquam River Marine

Fisheries Station, 30 Emerson Ave, Gloucester, MA 01930

12. Instructions for Submission of Responses:

Only electronic quotes submitted via COMMBUYS will be accepted in response to this RFR. Responses must be sent via the “Create Quote” functionality in COMMBUYS. For instructions concerning how to submit a Quote, please see Appendix B. Any submission that fails to meet the submission requirements of the RFR will be found non-responsive without further evaluation unless the evaluation team, at its discretion, determines that the non-compliance is insubstantial and may be corrected. In these cases, the evaluation team may allow the vendor to make minor corrections to the submission.

Bidders must submit an itemized price sheet detailing all costs associated with providing the requested services. The price sheet must clearly identify the cost of each service or line item, as well as the total proposed cost. All pricing must be inclusive of any applicable fees, labor, materials, and other costs necessary to fully perform the services described in this RFR. Please provide detailed information on your company’s experience designing and producing comparable printed guides and soliciting and obtaining advertisements. You must also include information on your ability to meet the required production and delivery schedule for the Show and Final versions of the guide.

13. Estimated Procurement Calendar

Procurement Activity Date Time

Bid Release Date September 9, 2026 12:00 PM EST

Deadline for Submission of Questions through COMMBUYS “Bid Q&A”

September 16, 2026 5:00 PM EST

Official Answers for Bid Q&A published

(Estimated)

Published continuously until

September 17, 2026

Deadline for Quotes/Bid Responses

(“Bid Opening Date/Time” in

COMMBUYS)

September 30, 2026 5:00 PM EST

Notification of Apparent Successful

Bidder(s) (Estimated)

October 5,2026

Estimated Contract Start Date October 9, 2026

Bidders are required to monitor COMMBUYS for changes to the procurement calendar for this Bid.

a. Online Questions (Bid Q&A)

Written Questions must be entered using the “Bid Q&A” tab for the Bid in COMMBUYS no later than the “Online Questions Due” date and time indicated in the Estimated Procurement Calendar (above).

The issuing department reserves the right to not respond to questions submitted after this date. It is the Bidder’s responsibility to verify receipt of questions.

It is the responsibility of the prospective Bidder and awarded Contractor to maintain an active registration in COMMBUYS and to keep current the email address of the Bidder’s contact person and prospective contract manager, if awarded a contract, and to monitor that email inbox for communications from the Purchasing Department, including requests for clarification. The Purchasing

Department and the Commonwealth assume no responsibility if a prospective Bidder’s/awarded

Contractor’s designated email address is not current, or if technical problems, including those with the prospective Bidder’s/awarded Contractor’s computer, network, or internet service provider (ISP) cause email communications sent to/from the prospective Bidder/Awarded contractor and the

Purchasing Department to be lost or rejected by any means including email or spam filtering.

Written Responses to Questions will be released on or about the “Responses to Questions Posted

Online” date indicated in the Estimated Procurement Calendar (above).

(Written questions and responses will be posted on the Bid Q&A Tab for this Bid in COMMBUYS.)

b. Bid Amendment Deadline

The Purchasing Department reserves the right to make amendments to the Bid after initial publication. It is each Bidder’s responsibility to check COMMBUYS for amendments, addenda, or modifications to this Bid, and any Bid Q&A records related to this Bid. The Purchasing Department and the Commonwealth accept no responsibility and will provide no accommodation to Bidders who submit a Quote based on an out-of-date Bid or on information received from a source other than

COMMBUYS.

c. Quotes (Bid Responses) Deadline (Bid Opening Date/Time)

See the Quotes (Bid Responses) Deadline (Bid Opening) Date and Time indicated in the Estimated

Procurement Calendar (above).

d. Estimated Contract Start Date

This is the approximate start date. The actual start date will be the Contract Effective Date which is the date the Contract is executed by the parties.

14. Required Forms

Responses to this RFR must contain the following documents:

Check if applicable (“X”)

Form/Document Notes/Instructions

(If any)

Business Reference Form Optional to submit.

Detailed pricing sheet Required at submission.

Commonwealth Terms and Conditions Will be required to complete if vendor is awarded.

Request for Taxpayer Identification Number & Certification (Massachusetts Substitute W-9 Form)

Will be required to

Standard Contract Form and Instructions Will be required to

Contractor Authorized Signatory Listing Will be required to

Authorization for Electronic Funds Transfer Will be required to

Prompt Payment Discount Form Will be required to

The above attachments are available as part of the Bid record on COMMBUYS

(WWW.COMMBUYS.COM).

http://www.commbuys.com/

15. RFR Attachments

Appendix A: Required Specifications https://www.mass.gov/doc/rfr-required-specifications-of-commodities-and-services

Following is the cover page of the 2026 Saltwater Guide as described in section 8 above:

Appendix B: Electronic Quote Submission Instructions https://www.mass.gov/doc/instructions-for-vendors-responding-to-bids https://www.mass.gov/doc/rfr-required-specifications-of-commodities-and-services https://www.mass.gov/doc/instructions-for-vendors-responding-to-bids

Appendix C: Required Specifications for Information Technology https://www.mass.gov/doc/rfr-required-specifications-for-information-technology

16. Acceptable Forms of Signature

Effective June 15, 2021, for all 1) CTR forms, including the Standard Contract Form, W-9s, Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) forms, ISAs, and other CTR-issued documents and forms, or 2) documents related to state finance and within the statutory area of authority or control of CTR

(i.e. contracts, payrolls, and related supporting documentation), CTR will accept signatures executed by an authorized signatory in any of the following ways: 1. Traditional “wet signature”

(ink on paper); 2. Electronic signature that is either: a. Hand drawn using a mouse or finger if working from a touch screen device; or Page 2 b. An uploaded picture of the signatory’s hand drawn signature 3. Electronic signatures affixed using a digital tool such as Adobe Sign or

DocuSign. If using an electronic signature, the signature must be visible, include the signatory’s name and title, and must be accompanied by a signature date. Please be advised that typed text of a name not generated by a digital tool such as Adobe Sign or DocuSign, even in computer-generated cursive script, or an electronic symbol, are not acceptable forms of electronic signature.