2-RFP-20-26-DC Unclaimed and Indigent Cremation Services.pdf

Bernalillo County

Request for Proposal # 20-26-DC

Unclaimed and Indigent Cremation Services

Non-Mandatory Pre-proposal MS Teams Meeting: Wednesday, October 1, 2025 2:00 pm (local time)

Deadline for Receipt of Proposals: October 10, 2025 at 4:00 p.m. (Mountain Daylight Time)

The County eProcurement System will not allow Proposals to be submitted after this date and time.

Prepared by:

Bernalillo County

Purchasing Section September 2025

TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE

I. INTRODUCTION

A. PURPOSE OF THIS REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS 3

B. SUMMARY SCOPE OF WORK 3

C. PROCUREMENT MANAGER 3

D. DEFINITION OF TERMINOLOGY 3

II. CONDITIONS GOVERNING THE PROCUREMENT

A. SEQUENCE OF EVENTS 6

B. EXPLANATION OF EVENTS 6

C. EVALUATION PROCESS 7

D. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS 8

III. RESPONSE FORMAT AND ORGANIZATION

A. NUMBER OF RESPONSES 13

B. PROPOSAL FORMAT 13

C. PROPOSAL ORGANIZATION 13

IV. SCOPE OF WORK 16

V. SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS 17

VI. EVALUATION CRITERIA 19

VII. PROPOSED DRAFT AGREEMENT 21

APPENDIX A - RANKING INFORMATION 29

APPENDIX B - APPLICATION OF PREFERENCES 30 - 31

EXHIBIT A - COST RESPONSE 32-33

ATTACHMENT A - SECTIONS 24-12-1 to 24-13-7 NMSA 1978 34-38

ATTACHMENT B – CREMATION AUTHORIZATION FORM 39-40

APPENDICIES BELOW ARE REFERENCED IN THIS RFP AND UPLOADED SEPARATELY

APPENDIX C - SUBMITTAL LETTER FORM

APPENDIX D - CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION DISCLOSURE FORM

APPENDIX E - UNFAIR BUSINESS PRACTICES DISCLOSURE FORM

I. INTRODUCTION

A. PURPOSE OF THIS REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

The Purchasing Section (“Purchasing” or Purchasing Section”) of the Bernalillo County Procurement and Business Services Department is soliciting proposals for the cremation and burial services of unclaimed and/or indigent decedents in accordance with 24-12-1 to 24-13- 7 NMSA 1978, attached hereto as Attachment A.

B. SUMMARY SCOPE OF WORK

The Bernalillo County (“County”) Purchasing Section is soliciting proposals from Offerors for retrieval, storage, cremation and burial of deceased individuals who are indigent and/or unclaimed as provided for by NMSA 1978, Section 24-12-1 to Sections 24-13-3 and as directed by the County and further described in Section IV. For the purpose of this solicitation, unclaimed bodies are those bodies identified by NMSA 1978, Section 24-31-1. Indigents are defined as deceased individuals whose estate is insufficient to cover the cost of burial or cremation.

Bernalillo County has averaged 260 indigent and unclaimed bodies per year since 2023.

C. PROCUREMENT MANAGER CONTACT

Any inquiries or requests regarding this procurement should be submitted in writing to the designated Procurement Manager listed below. Attempts to contact anyone other than the Procurement Manager that the prospective Offeror believes can influence the procurement decision, i.e., Elected Officials, County Manager, Evaluation Committee Members, etc., may lead to immediate elimination from further consideration. All responses will be in writing and will be distributed to all potential Offerors who receive a copy of this Request for Proposals.

David Conkle, Purchasing Administrator Bernalillo County Purchasing 415 Silver Ave. SW, 6th Floor Albuquerque, New Mexico 87102 Telephone: (505) 364-3481 E-mail dconkle@bernco.gov

D. DEFINITION OF TERMINOLOGY

This Section contains definitions that are used throughout this Request for Proposals (RFP), including appropriate abbreviations.

“Addendum” means a change, addition or supplement to the information provided in this RFP document.

“Agreement” means a duly executed and legally binding contract.

“Contractor” means successful Offeror.

“Confidential” shall mean confidential financial information concerning Offeror’s organization and data that qualifies as a trade secret in accordance with the Uniform Trade Secrets Act NMSA 1978 57-3-A-1 to 57-3A-7 or as provided by the Confidential Materials Act (14-3A-1, 1978 14-3A-2 NMSA 1978), and as otherwise provided by law. As one example, no information that could be obtained from a source outside this request for proposals can be considered confidential information.

“County” shall refer to the County of Bernalillo, New Mexico.

“Central Purchasing Office” means the County Purchasing Section.

mailto:dconkle@bernco.gov

“County Purchasing Section” means the purchasing agent for the County of Bernalillo, New Mexico, or a designated representative thereof.

“Desirable” means the terms “may”, “can”, “should”, “preferably”, or “prefers” identifies a desirable or a discretionary item or factor for the Department to determine.

“Determination” means the written documentation of a decision of a procurement manager including findings of fact required supporting a decision. A determination becomes part of the procurement file to which it pertains.

“Evaluation Committee" means a body appointed to perform the evaluation of Offerors’ proposals.

“Evaluation Committee Report” means a report prepared by the Procurement Manager on behalf of the Selection Committee that contains all written determinations resulting from the conduct of a procurement requiring the evaluation of competitive sealed proposals.

“Finalist” is defined as an Offeror who meets all the mandatory specifications of the RFP and whose score on evaluation factors is sufficiently high to qualify that Offeror for further consideration by the Selection Committee.

“Local Business Preference” means a business that holds a valid Resident Business/Contractor certificate issued by the State of New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department and maintains an office and place of business in Bernalillo County, which is staffed and open to the public on a regular basis. If necessary, the County may seek additional information or proof to verify eligibility for the Local Business Preference, pursuant to §13-1-22 NMSA 1978 and Ordinance §2-367.

“Mandatory” means the terms “must”, “shall”, “will”, “is required”, or “are required”, identify a mandatory item or factor. Failure to meet a mandatory item or factor may result in the rejection of the Offerors proposal, without exception.

“Minor Technical Irregularities” means anything in the proposal that does not affect the price quality and quantity or any other mandatory requirement.

“Notice of Award” shall mean a formal written notice by the Purchasing Section.

“Offeror” is any person, corporation, or partnership who chooses to submit a proposal.

“Ordinance” means the Bernalillo County Procurement Ordinance, Chapter 2, Article V, Division 1 – 3 (§2-356 through 2-402).

“Pay Equity Preference” means any business that maintain a zero percent (0%) deviation between the salaries paid to men and salaries paid to women for comparable positions, as reported in the Pay Equity Reporting form that has been submitted by the Offeror.

“Preference Limitations” means the total amount of all preferences applied including the applicable State of New Mexico preferences, for the purchase of Tangible Personal Property, Services or Construction in any single award shall not exceed 15%, with the limit on State of New Mexico preferences as set forth under the New Mexico State Procurement Code. When applying the Bernalillo County preferences as set forth in Ordinance §2-367, the total dollar amount of Bernalillo County preferences shall never exceed $150,000.00.

“Procurement Manager” means the person or designee authorized by the Purchasing Section to manage or administer procurements requiring the evaluation of competitive sealed proposals.

“Purchase Order” means the document, which directs a contractor to deliver items of tangible personal property or services pursuant to an existing Agreement.

“Request for Proposals” or “RFP” means all documents, including those attached or incorporated by reference, used for soliciting proposals.

“Resident Business Preference” means a business that has a valid resident business certificate issued by the New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department pursuant to §13-1- 22 NMSA 1978 and Ordinance §2-367 but does not include a resident veteran business.

“Resident Veteran Business Preference” means a business that has a valid resident veteran business certificate issued by the New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department pursuant to §13-1-22 NMSA 1978 and Ordinance §2-367.

“Responsible Offeror” means a business entity or individual who has the ability to fulfill the solicitation expectations and requirements, including but not limited to financial and technical capacity to perform the requirement of the solicitation and subsequent Contract.

“Responsive Offer” or “Responsive Proposal” means an offer or proposal which conforms in all material respects to the requirements set forth in the request for proposals, including all mandatory requirements and all of its requirements including all form and substance.

“Selection Committee” means a team established to evaluate proposals, conduct interviews, and assist with negotiations during proposal evaluation for a specific product or services.

Teams typically represent the functional areas to be addressed in the discussions. The Procurement Manager shall provide only technical assistance requested by the committee.

“Small Business Preference” means a business that has a Local Business Preference eligibility documentation as well as an affidavit from a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) affirming that the business employs an average of fewer than 50 full-time employees in a calendar year. Ordinance 2-367.

“User Department” means a County department, office, unit or staff member for which procurement services are provided.

II. CONDITIONS GOVERNING THE PROCUREMENT

This section of the RFP outlines and describes the major events of the Selection Process and specifies general requirements.

A. SEQUENCE OF EVENTS

The Procurement Manager will make every effort to adhere to the following schedule:

Action Responsibility Date

1. Issue of RFP County Purchasing Section September 21, 2025

2. Non-mandatory conference Via MS Teams

Purchasing, /Selection Committee, Offerors October 1, 2025

3 Deadline to Submit Questions, due 10:00 a.m.

Potential Offeror October 3, 2025

4. Response to Written Questions/RFP

Purchasing, /Selection Committee October 6, 2025

5. Submission of Proposal Offerors October 10, 2025

6. Proposal Evaluation Selection Committee Week of Oct. 13, 2025

7. Status Notification of Finalist(s)/Non-Finalist(s)

Purchasing Section Week of Oct. 20, 2025

8. Interviews (if applicable) Selection Committee, Finalists Week of Oct. 20, 2025

9. Contract Negotiations Purchasing /Selection Committee Week of Oct. 27, 2025

10. Award Bernalillo County Commission TBD

B. EXPLANATION OF EVENTS

1. Distribution of RFP Document - This RFP is issued by the Purchasing Section in accordance with the provisions of Ordinance §2-365 and 2-395. The Purchasing Section is the only organization who is authorized to make copies and/or distribute this RFP in any format. A distribution list of those who receive the RFP will be maintained throughout the procurement process and will become part of the procurement file. Receipt of a Proposal from Offerors not included on the distribution list shall result in immediate disqualification and Proposal shall be rejected. Additional copies of the RFP can be obtained from the Procurement Manager.

2. Pre-Proposal Conference - A Non-Mandatory pre-proposal conference will be held as indicated in the sequence of events beginning at 2:00 p.m. Mountain Standard Time/Daylight Time on MS Teams only To participate, join the meeting by phone, (Dial-in Number): 1-505-225-7962 Conference ID: 789 990 742# or by video https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-teams/join-a-meeting?rtc=1. Meeting ID:

265 070 437 841 8 Password: WX9DB7Bw.

Attendance at the pre-proposal conference is not a prerequisite for submission of a proposal.

3 Questions/Clarifications Prior to Pre-Proposal Conference - Potential Offerors are encouraged to submit written questions in advance of the conference at https://bernco.bonfirehub.com/Opportunities. Perspective Offerors must register with the County’s public purchasing portal at https://bernco.bonfirehub.com (the “Portal”) and initiate the communication electronically through the Opportunity Q&A at https://bernco.bonfirehub.com/Opportunities. The County will not accept any communications by any other means, except as specifically stated in this RFP.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-teams/join-a-meeting?rtc=1 https://bernco.bonfirehub.com/Opportunities https://bernco.bonfirehub.com/ https://bernco.bonfirehub.com/Opportunities

The identity of the perspective Offeror submitting the question(s) will not be shared. All written questions will be addressed at the conference. A public log will be kept of the names of perspective Offerors that attended the conference.

2. Response to Written Questions - An Addendum will be issued in response to written questions. If the RFP requires a time extension, the proposal submission date will be changed as part of the written Addendum. Any Addendum issued prior to the submittal deadline shall become a part of the RFP.

3. Deadline to Submit Additional Written Questions - Prospective Offerors may submit additional written questions via the County’s public purchasing portal at https://bernco.bonfirehub.com (the “Portal”) and initiate the communication electronically through the Opportunity Q&A https://bernco.bonfirehub.com/Opportunities until 10:00AM Mountain Standard Time/Daylight Time as indicated in the sequence of events. Questions shall be clearly labeled and shall cite the Section(s) in the RFP or other document which form the basis for the question.

4. Response to Written Additional Questions - An Addendum will be issued in response to additional written questions and will be distributed to all recipients of the original RFP. If the RFP requires a time extension, the proposal submission date will be changed as part of the written Addendum. Any Addendum issued prior to the submittal deadline shall become a part of the RFP. The identity of the perspective Offeror submitting the question(s) will not be shared.

7. Submission of Proposal – All Offeror proposals must be received for review and evaluation, no later than 4:00 PM Mountain Standard Time/Daylight Time October 10, 2025. Submit your complete Proposal including all forms, attachments, exhibits, Technical Proposal, Cost Proposal, etc. using the eProcurement System at https://bernco.bonfirehub.com/login. If you do not have a username and password, please register as this is the only method to submit electronically at https://bernco.bonfirehub.com. on the Portal.

All proposals must be received by the County’s Purchasing Section as specified herein.

Failure to comply with the submission requirements shall be cause for the County to deem the proposal submittal nonresponsive.

C. EVALUATION PROCESS

The Evaluation Process section contains specific information about the process of evaluating Offeror proposals.

1. Notice of Non-Responsiveness - For any proposal submitted which is deemed non-responsive the Offeror will be notified in writing of such determination by the Purchasing Section.

2. Selection Process - The Selection Committee will review each Offerors proposal. Points will be allocated, as outlined in Section VI of this RFP, by each member. Each member’s point totals will be translated into a numeric ranking of all proposals. The individual member rankings will be totaled together to determine the overall ranking of proposals.

During this time, the Procurement Manager may initiate discussions with Offerors who submit responsive or potentially responsive proposals for the purpose of clarifying aspects of the proposal through oral presentations (interview) or the provision of information (either orally or written) deemed necessary to assist in the evaluation process. However, proposals may be accepted and evaluated without such discussion.

Discussions SHALL NOT be initiated by the Offerors. Offerors are advised that the Selection Committee, at its option, may enter into the negotiation process with the highest ranked Offeror on the basis of the evaluation of the written proposals only, and may not require discussion and/or interviews. Upon completion of the selection process, https://bernco.bonfirehub.com/ https://bernco.bonfirehub.com/Opportunities https://bernco.bonfirehub.com/login https://bernco.bonfirehub.com/ the Selection Committee shall recommend award of contract to the County Commission or their designee for approval. Each responsive Offeror will be notified in writing as to their status following the selection process.

3. Status Notification of Finalists/Non-Finalists – Each responsive Offeror will be notified in writing about the status of their proposal. This notification will include information regarding whether or not their proposal has been selected for the interview, negotiation process or award. Finalists will be those Offerors whose proposals have been selected to continue in either the interview, negotiation process or award. Non-finalists are those Offerors whose proposals have not been selected to continue in either the interview, negotiation process or award.

4. Best and Final Offers – Offeror(s) may be asked to submit revisions to their proposals for the purpose of obtaining best and final offers. Revisions may be for clarification of the proposal or to get the best price or for both. When applicable, the notification to Finalist(s) who have been selected to submit a best and final offer will include the date and time, the best and final offer must be submitted.

5. Interviews with Finalists – If applicable the notices for the Finalists who have been selected for interviews, will include the interview date and time. The interview location is at the discretion of the Selection Committee. Interview questions will be sent to finalists prior to interview by the Purchasing Section. Interview scoring will total 100 points. Each member’s point totals will be translated into a numeric ranking of all interviewed Finalists.

The individual member rankings will be totaled together to determine the overall ranking of Finalists.

Rankings for the evaluation of written proposals are weighted 45% and ranking from the interviews are weighted 55% in determining the final selection as shown in Appendix A.

The Offeror with the highest combined ranking (lowest numerical score) from the interview shall be recommended for award.

6. Negotiations – The County will begin negotiations with the highest ranked Offeror(s) following Finalist notification. Actual fees shall be negotiated based upon specific services, reimbursable expenses, and specific successful Offeror requirements. If negotiations are successful, the County shall prepare an Agreement for approval by the County Commission or its designee. If an agreement on terms cannot be reached within a reasonable time the County shall terminate negotiations and begin negotiations with the next firm on the ranking list. This process will continue until an Agreement has been negotiated with one of the firms on the ranking list. If an Agreement cannot be negotiated with the firms on the ranking list, the County may choose to negotiate with other qualified Offerors scored by the Committee or to terminate negotiations.

D. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

The General Requirements section contains specific information about the process, general conditions, and instructions, which govern this procurement.

1. Protests - In accordance with Procurement Ordinance, §2-385, §2-367 and applicable procurement regulations, any Offeror who is aggrieved in connection with a solicitation, application of preferences and or award of an Agreement may protest to the Procurement and Business Services Director. The protest must be submitted in writing within fifteen (15) calendar days after knowledge of the facts or occurrences giving rise to the protest to:

Annie Baca, Procurement and Business Services Director Purchasing Section, 6th floor 415 Silver Ave. SW Albuquerque, NM 87102

Protests must include the name and address of the protestant, the solicitation number, and a statement of grounds for protest, including appropriate supporting exhibits.

Protests received after the deadline will not be accepted.

2. Incurring Cost - Any cost incurred by the Offeror in preparation, transmittal, or presentation of any proposal or material submitted in response to this RFP shall be borne solely by the Offeror.

3. Application of Preferences - To ensure adequate consideration and application of Preferences pursuant to §13-1-21, NMSA 1978 and Ordinance 2-367, Offerors must include a copy of their State of New Mexico preference certificate and any additional documentation required for the County preferences with their proposal. Offerors are not eligible to receive both a Resident Business/Contractor Preference and a Resident Veteran Business/Contractor preference. The Preferences shall not apply when the expenditures for this RFP includes federal funds. See Appendix B for explanation and application for Preference eligibility.

4. Pay Equity Documentation - All Offerors shall include with their proposal submittal, a Pay Equity Reporting Form, or valid Pay Equity Business Certificate, which can be accessed at www.bernco.gov/general-services/pay-equity.aspx.

Offerors who are located out-of-state or have no facilities and no employees working in the State of New Mexico are not required to report pay equity data but must verify their out-of-state status on the Pay Equity Reporting Form. Failure to provide a Pay Equity Reporting Form at the time of submission may result in the Offer being deemed nonresponsive. The County may allow for a revised Pay Equity Reporting Form to be submitted by the Offeror within 24 business hours of the proposal due date and time if;

(i) the originally submitted form requires a technical change; or (ii) the Offeror fails to include a Pay Equity Reporting Form at the time of submission, provided that the Offeror submits the Pay Equity Reporting Form within the 24 hour business period.

NOTE: THE REQUIRED PAY EQUITY REPORTING FORM IS NOT A PAY EQUITY

BUSINESS CERTIFICATE, NOR DOES IT QUALIFY AN OFFEROR FOR THE PAY

EQUITY PREFERENCE. FOR QUESTIONS ON HOW TO OBTAIN A PAY EQUITY

BUSINESS CERTIFICATE AND QUALIFY FOR THE PREFERENCE, PLEASE

CONTACT THE PAY EQUITY ADMINISTRATOR BY TELEPHONE: (505) 364-3481 OR

EMAIL: dconkle@bernco.gov.

5. Subcontractors - The successful Offeror is responsible for performance by any subcontractor providing Services in connection with this RFP; payments to a subcontractor(s) is the responsibility of the successful Offeror. The successful Offeror is solely responsible for fulfillment of the contract agreement resulting from this RFP.

6. Amended Proposals - An Offeror may submit an amended proposal before the deadline for receipt of proposals. Such amended proposals must be complete replacements for a previously submitted proposal and must be clearly identified as such in the transmittal letter. Purchasing Section personnel will not collate or assemble proposal materials.

7. Right to Reject Proposal - The County reserves the right to reject a proposal from any Offeror who has previously failed to perform properly, has caused the County to incur unreasonable costs or expense, failed to complete on time an agreement of a similar nature, or who is not in a position to perform the work governed by this RFP.

8. Offerors Rights to Withdraw Proposal - Offerors will be allowed to withdraw their proposals at any time, prior to the deadline for receipt of proposals. The Offeror must submit a written withdrawal request signed by the Offerors duly authorized representative addressed to the Director of the Purchasing Section. The approval or denial of withdrawal requests received after the deadline for receipt of the proposals is http://www.bernco.gov/general-services/pay-equity.aspx mailto:dconkle@bernco.gov at the discretion of the Director of the Purchasing Section.

9. Disclosure of Proposal Contents - A public log will be kept of the names of all Offerors which submitted proposals. The proposals and documents pertaining to the proposals will be kept confidential throughout the duration of the procurement process and until a contract is awarded. At that time, all proposals will be open to the public, except for the material, which has been previously noted and deemed as proprietary or confidential.

10. Confidentiality/Public Records - Confidential data is normally restricted to confidential financial information concerning the Offerors organization and data that qualifies as trade secrets in accordance with the Uniform Trade Secrets Act, 57-3-A-1 to 57-3A-7 NMSA 1978, or as provided by the Confidential Materials Act (14-3A-1, 1978 14-3A-2 NMSA 1978), and as otherwise provided by law. With the exception of the aforementioned, information and materials received by the County in connection with this RFP response shall be deemed to be public records, subject to public inspection, upon award of the RFP and execution of an Agreement by the County Commission or their designee. If the Offeror believes any of the information contained in its response is exempt from the Inspection of Public Records Act (NMSA 1978, Chapter 14, Article 2), then the Offeror must identify the material deemed to be exempt and cite the legal authority for the exemption. Any pages of a proposal on which the Offeror has stamped or imprinted “proprietary” or “confidential” must be readily separable from the proposal in order to facilitate public inspection of the non-confidential portion of the proposal.

The County’s determination of whether an exemption applies shall be final, and the Offeror agrees to defend indemnify and hold harmless the County elected officials, employees and agents against any loss or damages incurred by any person or entity as a result of the County’s treatment of records as public records.

11. Cancellation - This RFP may be canceled at any time and any and all proposals may be rejected in whole or in part when the Director of the Purchasing Section determines such action to be in the best interest of the County.

12. Sufficient Appropriation - Any Agreement awarded as a result of this RFP process may be terminated if sufficient appropriations or authorizations do not exist. Such termination will be effective by sending written notice to the Contractor. The County’s decision as to whether sufficient appropriations and authorizations are available is in the sole discretion of the County and shall be final and binding upon the Contractor.

If the determination is made that there is insufficient funding to continue or finalize the services the Contractor will be compensated to the level of effort performed, as authorized by the County prior to that determination.

13. Code of Conduct - The successful Offeror shall abide by the Code of Conduct (http://www.bernco.gov/code_of_conduct) of the County as it applies to the successful Offeror’s interactions with the County. Any violation of the Code of Conduct shall be considered a breach of the Agreement (a draft of the proposed Agreement is included in Section VII).

14. Acceptance of Conditions Governing the Procurement - Offerors must indicate their acceptance of the Conditions Governing the Procurement, Section II, in the Submittal Letter Form. Submission of a proposal constitutes acceptance of all conditions contained herein including the evaluation factors contained in Section VI.

15. Standard Agreement - A draft copy of the proposed Agreement to be entered into is included in Section VII. However, the County reserves the right to negotiate with the successful Offeror provisions in addition to those contained in this RFP. The contents of this RFP, as revised and/or supplemented, and the successful Offeror's proposal will http://www.bernco.gov/code_of_conduct be incorporated into and become part of the Agreement.

16. Offeror Qualifications - The Selection Committee may make such investigations as necessary to determine the ability of the Offeror to adhere to the requirements specified within this RFP. The Selection Committee will reject the proposal of any Offeror who is not a responsible Offeror or fails to submit a responsive offer as defined in Ordinance §2-358 (oo) and (pp).

17. Right to Waive Minor Irregularities - The Purchasing Section reserves the right to waive minor irregularities. The Purchasing Section also reserves the right to waive mandatory requirements if all of the otherwise responsive proposals failed to meet the same mandatory requirements and the failure to do so does not otherwise materially affect the procurement. This right is at the sole discretion of the Purchasing Section.

18. Notice - The County Ordinance and the New Mexico criminal statutes impose felony penalties for bribes, gratuities and kick-backs.

19. Release of Information - Only the County is authorized to release information covered by this RFP. The Offerors must refer to the County any requests to release any information that pertains to the work or activities covered by any action or award related to this RFP.

20. Ownership of Documents - Any specifications, and other project documents are the property of the County.

21. Costs Incurred in Responding - This solicitation does not commit the County to pay any costs incurred in the preparation and submission of proposals or in making necessary studies or designs for the preparation thereof, nor to procure or contract for services.

22. Proposal Firm Offer - It is anticipated that an Agreement will be awarded within 90 days after receipt of proposals. Responses to this RFP will be considered firm for that time frame. The anticipated Agreement term is for four (4) years with the option to renew for four (4) years. The entire Agreement shall not exceed eight (8) years, including all renewals.

23. Insurance Requirements - Insurance is required of the Contractor in the limits identified in the Proposed Draft Agreement, Paragraph 15, attached hereto.

24. Proof of licensing - The County reserves the right to request proof of licensing for which licensure by the State of New Mexico, or another agency is required, (e.g., Professional Architect/Engineer Number, State Bar Member Number, Contractor, etc.).

25. W-9 Information - Pursuant to Federal Tax Law (Internal Revenue Code, Section 6041), the County is required to obtain a Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) and a completed W-9 from the successful Offeror; according to Federal Income Tax Law (Internal Revenue Code, Section 3406), failure to furnish this information promptly and correctly (within 30 days) may result in a $50.00 penalty imposed by the Internal Revenue Service. In addition, the Internal Revenue Service may require the County to withhold 28% or payments made, if the information is not furnished by the successful Offeror.

If the successful Offeror’s business is classified as a corporation, tax-exempt organization, government agency, or other exempt payee, the County will not file an Annual Information Return (Form 1088 Misc.) on your behalf. However, the law requires your TIN in addition to informing the County of payee type. If classified as an individual or sole proprietor, the TIN is your Social Security Number; otherwise, your Federal Employer Identification Number serves as your TIN.

26. Applicable Law - This procurement and any Agreement that may result from this procurement shall be governed by the laws of the State of New Mexico.

27. Unfair Business Practices - A system or pattern of acts or practices that a relevant federal or enforcement agency has made a formal finding within the last three years to be discriminatory, deceptive, fraudulent, or abusive (or similar terms) under the New Mexico Unfair Practices Act, NMSA 1978, §57-12-1 et seq, or an applicable federal or other state consumer protection law relating to the subject matter of the procurement) or that has violated a relevant criminal statute, as evidenced by a public enforcement order or judgment, settlement with the enforcement agency or other formal finding by the relevant enforcement agency with regulatory enforcement authority under the applicable consumer protection law, or criminal conviction.

The County finds that it is a priority to protect its interests and the public's trust by conducting its business with partners that are committed to and consistently demonstrate engaging in fair and responsible business practices. The general purpose and intent of the New Mexico Unfair Practices Act is to ensure to the maximum extent practicable that contracting practices support conducting government business with partners who are committed to and consistently demonstrate engaging in fair and responsible business practices and avoid conducting its business with partners that engage in criminal or systematic deceptive, fraudulent or abusive business practices.

Offerors must submit with their proposal the completed “Unfair Business Practices Disclosure Form” found in Appendix E. Failure to complete and return the signed unaltered form may result in disqualification.

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III. RESPONSE FORMAT AND ORGANIZATION

This section describes the format and organization of the Offerors responses. Failure to conform to these guidelines may result in the disqualification of the proposal.

A. NUMBER OF RESPONSES

Offeror’s may submit only one (1) proposal.

B. PROPOSAL FORMAT

Format. Each file uploaded to the eProcurement System shall be in Optical Character Recognition (OCR) searchable PDF format unless otherwise indicated. Do not encrypt files and do not password protect the documents submitted.

The proposal must be limited in format and length. Length of the Proposal shall be limited to a maximum of fifty (50) pages (printed sheet faces) of text and/or graphic material.

Material excluded from the fifty (50) page maximum count shall include and shall be limited to:

Front cover (blank on back side) Divider pages (blank except for title information) Table of Contents (one page maximum) Submittal Letter Form Cost Detail Certificate(s) of insurance Resident Business Certificate Resident Veteran Business Certificate Campaign Contribution Disclosure Form Unfair Business Practices Disclosure Form Back cover (blank on one side)

ANY SHEETS OR PAGES INCLUDED IN THE PROPOSAL, BUT NOT SPECIFICALLY

EXCLUDED, AS NOTED ABOVE, SHALL BE COUNTED TOWARDS THE FIFTY (50)

PAGE MAXIMUM.

C. PROPOSAL ORGANIZATION

The proposal is to be organized and indexed in the following format and must contain, as a minimum, all listed items in the sequence indicated.

File #1 (Mandatory)

1. Table of Contents

2. Submittal Letter Form. Proposals must be accompanied by a Submittal Letter Form

(Appendix C), which contains the following information:

A. Identity of the submitting business, including name and address of organization, firm, or Department and nature of organization (individual, partnership or corporation, private or public, profit or non-profit);

B. Identifies the name and title of the person(s) authorized by the company to contractually obligate the business for the purpose of this RFP;

C. Identifies the names, titles, and telephone numbers of persons to be contacted for clarification questions regarding this RFP and person(s) to be contacted for negotiations.

D. Acknowledges receipt of any and all Addendums to this RFP;

E. By signing the form the Offeror is explicitly indicating the following:

1. Acceptance of Conditions Governing the Procurement as stated in Section II of this RFP.

2. A concurrence to comply with the Pay Equity Reporting Requirements as stated in Section II of this RFP.

3. A commitment to comply and act in accordance with the following:

Federal Executive Orders relating to the enforcement of civil rights;

New Mexico State Statutes and County of Bernalillo Ordinances regarding enforcement of civil rights;

Federal Code, 5 USCA 7201 et. seq., Anti-discrimination in Employment;

Executive Order No. 11246, Equal Opportunity in Federal Employment;

Title 6, Civil Rights Act of 1964;

Requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 for work performed as a result of this RFP.

4. Signature on the form must be from a person authorized to contractually obligate the Offeror.

3. “Campaign Contribution Form” In accordance with APPENDIX D, Offeror’s must comply with Procurement Ordinance, Chapter 2, Article V, Division 1-3, Section 2-390 (b), pertaining to the disclosure of campaign contributions made to an applicable public official of a local public body.

Offeror(s) shall submit the “Campaign Contribution Disclosure Form” with their proposal submittal. Any Offeror who fails to comply with this requirement will be disqualified, no exceptions. NOTE: THIS FORM SHALL BE SUBMITTED

IN ITS ORIGINAL FORMAT AND SHALL NOT BE MODIFIED OR CHANGED IN

ANY WAY.

4. Proposal Summary (optional)*

5. Response to Proposal Requirements (except for cost response). See Section V

(Submittal Requirements) for further details.

6. Additional Required Materials File #2 A. Complete Cost Response B. Resident Business Certificate or Resident Veteran Business Certificate (see Section

II.D.3 and Appendix B for additional information).

C. Unfair Business Practices Disclosure Form” found in Appendix E. Failure to complete and return the signed unaltered form may result in disqualification.

D. Offeror’s Additional Terms and Conditions**

*Properly tabbed divider for this section must be included in the proposal. Optional Proposal Summary is for information overview only and will not be scored. If no summary is provided, a single sheet must be included, following the tabbed divider, stating “No Proposal Summary included with this proposal”.

**If no exceptions or modifications have been included and Offeror has explicitly indicated acceptance on the “Submittal Letter” and no additional proposed Terms and Conditions are included, so state on a single sheet, following the tabbed divider.

Within each section of their proposal, offerors should address the items in the order in which they appear in this RFP. All discussion of proposed costs, rates or expenses must occur only in a separate location with the cost response form.

Offerors may attach other materials that they feel may improve the quality of their responses. However, these materials should be included as items in a separate appendix and counted towards the fifty (50)-page maximum.

IV. SCOPE OF SERVICES

Listed below (but not limited to) are the Services to be provided. The Contractor shall comply with all current and any future applicable federal, state and local laws, rules, codes, regulations, and County policies and procedures. Bernalillo County reserves the right to go beyond the scope of the contract in unusual circumstances.

When responding, Offerors should sufficiently address and provide detailed responses for each task outlined below (1 through 21).

1. The successful offeror must be a licensed Funeral Home and be able to perform Burial/Cremation Services on Unclaimed or Indigent decedents in Bernalillo County, State of New Mexico.

2. The successful offeror shall provide services related to the retrieval, storage, cremation and burial of deceased individuals who are indigent or unclaimed in accordance with the NMSA 1978, Section 24-12-1 to Section 24-13-3 (See Attachment A), and as directed by the County.

3. The successful offeror shall retrieve bodies within 24 hours (for homes, nursing homes, and hospice facilities) or not more than 5 business days (for OMI or other funeral homes) of notification, store bodies for a minimum of two weeks and a maximum of thirty days prior (unless otherwise determined) to cremation or interment unless otherwise directed by the County.

4. The successful offeror shall complete each death certificate and send to Bernalillo County to confirm accuracy. This will include obtaining doctor’s signature on the death certificate.

5. The successful offeror shall cremate bodies within 5 business days from receipt of cremation authorization unless otherwise directed by the County.

6. The successful offeror shall retrieve and record non-cash property of decedent and hold for no less than two years. Once two years of holding non-cash property expires, successful offeror will coordinate with the County on disposition of property.

7. Retain and store cremated remains for no less than two years in a manner that allows for identification of the cremated remains.

8. After the expiration of two years, assist the County in providing a notice of the place and manner of disposition of the cremated remains.

9. Burial of bodies when directed by the County. Burial Services up to an amount of $1,000.00 shall be provided per religious requirement ONLY.

10. Contribute to Bernalillo County’s annual burials; Forgotten Heroes and County Memorial.

Provide at a minimum of two (2) caskets, one plot and services for both burials, including opening and closing the grave and transportation of cremated remains.

A. Services should include but not be limited to, full memorial service, casketing of cremated remains, audit presentation, transportation of the cremated remains to the grave site and identification of the burial for the County annual burial.

B. Services for Veteran’s cremated remains should be coordinated with the Santa Fe National Cemetery, State of New Mexico Veteran Services and Bernalillo County and include but not be limited to, an annual memorial service, audit presentation, procession to the National Veteran’s Cemetery in Santa Fe, transportation of County Officials, identification of the burial for the County annual burial.

11. Provide the storage, cremation, burial services in a manner that is consistent with the standard of care for the Funeral Home Industry in the State of New Mexico.

12. Complete a Decedent Information Form for each deceased individual.

13. Complete and return the Storage of Cremated Remains Form for each deceased individual who has been cremated with the Funeral Home to include, acknowledgement of and date of cremation. An example of this form is included as part of these procedures as Attachment B.

14. The Contractor will be required to have a twenty-four (24) hour emergency phone number where he/she can be reached with no more than a fifteen (15) minute delay in call back time.

15. The Offeror will have no less than 30 to 40 body storage refrigerators available at any given time for bodies awaiting cremation under the County’s Unclaimed and Indigent Cremation Program.

16. The Offeror’s proposed cemeteries used for burials under the awarded contract will be located in Bernalillo County.

17. The Offeror will have the ability to open a grave for interment and fill it in after, also known as “open and close grave site”.

18. The Offeror will obtain an original Death Certificate when processing a Veteran Indigent that will be kept on file with the County.

19. The Offeror is licensed as a funeral director in the State of New Mexico and shall maintain said in good standing for the duration of the contract period.

Cemetery grounds:

20. If cemetery is owned offerors are to provide a written narrative describing their process for maintaining cemetery grounds, to include:

A. Preparation of graves including but not limited to, excavation of graves and burial functions (installing vaults, concrete crypts, and urns).

B. Maintenance of cemetery grounds, including but not limited to, sodding, seeding, fertilizing, monument and marker setting, operating earth moving and lawn care equipment, and cemetery cleanup.

C. Grass mowing, shrub pruning, tree trimming, spreading of pesticide/herbicide, and planting/maintaining of landscape.

D. Monitoring of sprinkler system.

E. Cleaning of mausoleums and statues.

21. If cemetery is not owned offerors are to provide a written narrative describing the following for contracting with a cemetery to include:

A. Offeror must have the ability to contract with a cemetery or with the County’s cemetery provider to provide the services mentioned above.

B. A geographical Bernalillo County site map of all cemeteries to be utilized under for the County’s Unclaimed and Indigent Program, including the physical addresses for each.

V. SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS

General Requirements: Each proposal submitted in response to this Request for Proposals must be complete, organized, and responsive to the requirements set forth herein. Offers will be evaluated on the submittal requirements below.

When responding, Offerors should sufficiently address and provide detailed responses for each task outlined in Section IV (Scope of Services 1-21) and Section V (Submittal Requirements) below.

1. Experience and Qualifications

Offerors are to provide a detailed summary of the Offeror’s qualifications, staffing and experience to include:

A. The names and number of years the firm has been in business under current or previous names or additional assumed business names.

B. The names and titles of each individual assigned to this project and the individual assigned to backup the primary person in his/her absence.

C, Indication of who the emergency contact is with a twenty-four (24) hour emergency phone number, and the phone number, where he/she can be reached with no more than a fifteen

(15) minute delay in call back time.

D. The firm, names and titles of each individual to be utilized as a sub- contractor, if applicable.

2. Proposed Approach to Tasks:

A. Describe in detail the Offeror’s proposed approach on how the Offeror plans to meet each task listed in Section IV (Scope of Services 1-21).

3. References

Offeror shall include a minimum of three (3) references for which the Offeror has provided services in similar size and scope as specified in this RFP. Include:

A. Type of service provided B. Contract dollar amount C. When service provided D. Names and addresses E. E-mail addresses F. Contact persons and phone numbers

4. Transition Plan Offeror shall describe in a written narrative their start-up/implementation plan or their transition plan if services are currently being provided by another Contractor (to include a timeline).

5. Cost of Services Offeror shall provide a completed cost response utilizing the Cost of Services Form (Exhibit A).

VI. EVALUATION CRITERIA

A. Selection Process: A Selection Committee that may include internal and external members has been selected for the purposes of evaluating the proposals. On the basis of the evaluation criteria established in this RFP, the Selection Committee shall submit to the Purchasing Manager a list of qualified Offerors in the order in which they are ranked. Proposal documentation requirements set forth in this RFP are designed to provide guidance to the Offeror concerning the type of documentation that will be used by the Selection Committee. Offerors should be prepared to respond to requests by the Purchasing Manager on behalf of the Selection Committee for clarification, best and final offers, finalist interviews, demonstrations or other areas deemed necessary to assist in the detailed evaluation process. Offerors are advised that the County, at its option, may award this request on the basis of the evaluation of the initial offers without conducting interviews.

B. Evaluation Criteria: A maximum total of 100 points are possible in scoring each proposal for the evaluation. A brief explanation of each evaluation criteria and the corresponding point values for each is listed below. Information in one criterion may overlap information in other criteria. Offerors are encouraged to fully address each criteria completely, as points are assigned for responses to each separately. The evaluation criteria to be used by the Selection Committee for the proposal and the corresponding point values for each criteria are as follows:

C. Evaluation Factors:

1. Experience and Qualifications 30 points

2. Proposed Approach to Tasks 35 points

3. References 10 points

4. Transition 10 points

5. Cost of Services 15 points

Cost of Lowest Offeror x Maximum Cost Score (30) = Cost Score of this Offeror Cost of this Offeror Total Possible Points 100 points

D. Interviews (applicable to Finalists only) If an interview is held, the Purchasing Manager will distribute questions and instructions to the finalists prior to scheduled interview. A maximum total of 100 points are possible in scoring each interview for this RFP. The Selection Committee may, at their discretion, request additional clarification as to the contents of the RFP submittal from any of the Offeror(s).

E. Application of Preferences (Point-Based): The preference points shall be calculated by multiplying the applicable preference percentage (see Appendix B for applicable preference percentage) by the “Total Possible Points” in Section VI. C above. Only those Offerors who provide the required preference certificate in accordance with Section II.D.3 and Appendix B, will receive additional points, which will be added to their already evaluated score.

Application of Preferences (Weight-Based): (applicable only if an interview is held):

Rankings for the evaluation of written proposals are weighted 45% and ranking from the interviews are weighted 55% in determining the final selection as shown in Appendix A.

The preference points shall be calculated by multiplying the applicable preference percentage (see Appendix B for applicable preference percentage) by the “weighted points”. Only those Offerors who provide the required preference certificate in accordance with Section II.D.3 and Appendix B, will receive additional points, which will be added to their already evaluated score.

Note: if an interview is not held, the preference points will be based on the “Total Points” of Section C only.

SECTION VII

PROPOSED DRAFT AGREEMENT

THIS AGREEMENT, made and entered into this day of ___________, 2025, by and between the County of Bernalillo, New Mexico, a political subdivision in the State of New Mexico, (hereinafter referred to as the "County"), and , (hereinafter referred to as the "Contractor").

WITNESSED:

WHEREAS, the County issued a Request for Proposals for Unclaimed and Indigent Cremation Services , RFP No.___________, attached hereto as Exhibit A; and

WHEREAS, the…