2-RFP GMU-ER0415-26 Insurance Broker.docx

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

GMU-ER0415-26

ISSUE DATE: April 21, 2026

TITLE: Insurance Broker/Risk Management Consulting Services

QUESTIONS/INQUIRIES: Submit all inquiries through George Mason’s Bonfire Portal, no later than 4:00 PM Eastern Time (ET) on April 30, 2026. All questions must be submitted through George Mason’s Bonfire portal. Only submit one question per entry. Do not include your name or the name of your firm/company in the Question Subject/Title or the Question Description. For assistance with technical questions related to Bonfire, contact Support@GoBonfire.com or visit Bonfire’s Help Forum. Responses to questions will be posted to George Mason’s Bonfire portal and by 5:00 PM ET on May 5, 2026.

PROPOSAL DUE DATE AND TIME: May 19, 2026 @ 2:00 PM ET. ATTENTION: PROPOSALS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED VIA EMAIL, MAIL, THROUGH eVA OR IN PERSON. SEE SECTION XII.A.1 FOR DETAILS ON ELECTRONIC PROPOSAL SUBMISSION.

IMPORTANT! All communication with Offerors will take place in Bonfire, to include negotiations. George Mason can only message individuals at your organization that have interacted in Bonfire for this specific RFP. Please ensure the appropriate person to handle negotiations and other RFP communication has individually logged into the system and either downloaded documents, submitted your proposal or asked a question.

In Compliance With This Request For Proposal And To All The Conditions Imposed Therein And Hereby Incorporated By Reference, The Undersigned Offers And Agrees To Furnish The Goods/Services In Accordance With The Attached Signed Proposal Or As Mutually Agreed Upon By Subsequent Negotiations.

Name and Address of Firm:

Legal Name: Date:

DBA:

Address:

By:

Fax No. Title:

Email: Telephone No.

SWaM Certified: Yes: No: (See Section VII. SWaM CERTIFICATION for complete details).

SWaM Certification Number:

Check the box next to the option that applies to your proposal submission. See section IV. Final Contract for additional information.

Purchasing Department 4400 University Drive, MS 3C1, Fairfax, VA 22030 Phone: 703.993.2580; http://fiscal.gmu.edu/purchasing/

☐ Option 1: Full Acceptance:

1. We have reviewed George Mason’s Standard Contract and all related documents.

2. We have no proposed changes.

3. We understand that if we are advanced to negotiations, no contract exceptions, redlines, vendor documents, or additional terms will be considered, unless proposed by George Mason.

☐ Option 2: Proposed Exceptions and/or Additional Documents Submitted:

1. We have reviewed George Mason’s Standard Contract and all related documents.

2. We have included a list of proposed exceptions and/or redlined contract documents with our proposal.

3. We understand that if we are advanced to negotiations, no additional contract exceptions, redlines, vendor documents, or additional terms will be considered beyond what has been submitted with our proposal, unless proposed by George Mason.

This public body does not discriminate against faith-based organizations in accordance with the Governing Rules, § 36 or against a Bidder/Offeror because of race, religion, color, sex, national origin, age, disability, or any other prohibited by state law relating to discrimination in employment.

OFFEROR PROPOSAL SUBMISSION CHECKLIST

Offerors responding to this RFP should use this checklist to ensure all requested documents are completed and submitted with their proposal.

· RFP Cover Page, accurately filled in and signed with checked off box confirming your proposal contains any exceptions to George Mason’s Standard Contract and all terms and conditions or subsequent Statements of Work that could apply over the life of any resulting contract.

· All addenda, if any were issued and a signature line is included.

· Attachment A - Small Business Subcontracting Plan. This is a requirement for all Offerors.

· Exceptions (if any) to George Mason’s Standard Contract.

· Any Statements of Work or supplemental document(s) George Mason may be required to sign or that could potentially be incorporated into a final contract or apply during the term of a resulting contract.

· Any agreement that George Mason would be required to sign with a third party.

· State your payment preference as required in Bonfire. Only select one payment option.

· If your proposal contains proprietary information, you must submit a second copy in accordance with Section XII.A.1. General Requirements and Section XII.A.2.d. that outlines the specific submission format.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

GMU-ER0415-26

SECTION DESCRIPTION PAGE

I. PURPOSE 4

II. PURCHASING MANUAL/GOVERNING RULES 4

III. COMMUNICATION 4

IV. FINAL CONTRACT 4

V. ADDITIONAL USERS 4

VI. eVA BUSINESS-TO-GOVERNMENT VENDOR REGISTRATION 5

VII. SWaM CERTIFICATION 5

VIII. SMALL BUSINESS SUBCONTRACTING PLAN 5

IX. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE 5

X. BACKGROUND 5

XI. STATEMENT OF NEEDS 5

XII. PROPOSAL PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS 7

XIII. INITIAL EVALUATION CRITERIA AND SUBSEQUENT AWARD 10

XIV. CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION 10

XV. PAYMENT TERMS/METHOD OF PAYMENT 11

XVI. SOLICITATION TERMS AND CONDITIONS 11

XVII. RFP SCHEDULE 12

ATTACHMENT A SMALL BUSINESS SUBCONTRACTING PLAN 13

ATTACHMENT B STANDARD CONTRACT 15

I. PURPOSE: The purpose of this Request for Proposal (RFP) is to solicit proposals to establish a contract through competitive negotiations with one or more qualified vendors to provide represent George Mason University in the commercial insurance marketplace and provide an insurance program to support George Mason University’s risk management goal to provide comprehensive coverage at the least possible cost and complement the services provided by the underwriters. George Mason University (herein after referred to as “George Mason,” “Mason,” or “University”) is a public institution of higher education and agency of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The selected vendor should meet the following requirements: (1) possess the degree of skill and knowledge requisite to the responsibilities of the contract, (2) exercise good faith and reasonable skill, care and diligence in the execution of the responsibilities required by the contract, (3) possess sufficient knowledge of the available policies, terms and conditions of coverage in lines of insurance required by the contract, and (4) procure any coverage requested or as soon as possible notify George Mason of the inability to do so.

II. PURCHASING MANUAL/GOVERNING RULES: This solicitation and any resulting contract shall be subject to the provisions of the Commonwealth of Virginia Purchasing Manual for Institutions of Higher Education and their Vendor's, and any revisions thereto, and the Governing Rules, which are hereby incorporated into this contract in their entirety. A copy of both documents is available for review at: https://vascupp.org

III. COMMUNICATION: Communications regarding the Request for Proposals shall be formal from the date of issuance until a contract has been awarded. Unless otherwise instructed offerors are to communicate with only the Procurement Officers listed on the cover page. Offerors are not to communicate with any other employees of George Mason.

IV. FINAL CONTRACT: ATTACHMENT B to this solicitation is George Mason’s standard two-party contract. It is the intent of this solicitation to base the final contractual documents off of George Mason’s standard two-party contract and George Mason’s General Terms and Conditions as outlined in Attachment B – Standard Contract. Any exceptions to our standard contract and General Terms and Conditions must be denoted in your RFP response. Other documents may be incorporated into the final contract, either by way of attachment or by reference, but in all cases this contract document and George Mason’s General Terms and Conditions shall jointly take precedence over all other documents and will govern the terms and conditions of the contract.

As a public institution of higher education and agency of the Commonwealth of Virginia, George Mason cannot agree to any of the following terms in any documents:

A. An express or implied waiver of sovereign immunity.

B. An agreement to indemnify, defend or hold harmless any entity.

C. An agreement to maintain insurance.

D. An agreement providing for binding arbitration.

E. An agreement providing for the payment of attorneys' fees, costs of collection, or liquidated damages.

F. Waiver of jury trial.

G. Choice of law or venue other than the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Contracts will only be issued to the FEI/FIN Number and Firm listed on the signed cover page submitted in your RFP response. Joint proposals will not be accepted.

Note: The Offeror must include any and all terms and conditions, additional documents, and/or statements of work that could potentially be incorporated into a final contract or apply during the term of a resulting contract. As outlined in Attachment B – Standard Contract, Statements of Work (“SOW”) for specific engagements may only include the work to be performed during scope of the specific engagement. Additional terms and conditions will not be accepted on any SOW submitted during the course of the contract. All SOW’s must be on a form approved by George Mason prior to the start of the contract.

In addition to the above note, the Offeror must submit with their proposal any agreement that George Mason would be required to sign with a third party.

V. ADDITIONAL USERS: It is the intent of this solicitation and resulting contract(s) to allow for cooperative procurement. Accordingly, any public body, public or private health or educational institutions, or affiliated corporations may access any resulting contract if authorized by the contractor.

Participation in this cooperative procurement is strictly voluntary. If authorized by the Contractor(s), the resultant contract(s) will be extended to the entities indicated above to purchase goods and services in accordance with contract terms. As a separate contractual relationship, the participating entity will place its own orders directly with the Contractor(s) and shall fully and independently administer its use of the contract(s) to include contractual disputes, invoicing and payments without direct administration from the University. No modification of this contract or execution of a separate agreement is required to participate; however, the participating entity and the Contractor may modify the terms and conditions of the contract to accommodate specific governing laws, regulations, policies, and business goals required by the participating entity. Any such modification will apply solely between the participating entity and the contractor.

The University may require the Contractor provide semi-annual usage reports for all entities accessing the contract. The University shall not be held liable for any costs or damages incurred by any other participating entity as a result of any authorization by the Contractor to extend the contract. It is understood and agreed that the University is not responsible for the acts or omissions of any entity and will not be considered in default of the contract no matter the circumstances.

Use of the resulting contract(s) does not preclude any participating entity from using other contracts or competitive processes as needed.

VI. eVA BUSINESS-TO-GOVERNMENT VENDOR REGISTRATION: The eVA Internet electronic procurement solution, website portal www.eVA.virginia.gov, streamlines and automates government purchasing activities in the Commonwealth. The eVA portal is the gateway for vendors to conduct business with state agencies and public bodies. All vendors desiring to provide goods and/or services to the Commonwealth shall participate in the eVA Internet eProcurement solution by completing the free eVA Vendor Registration. All bidders or offerors agree to self-register in eVA and pay the Vendor Transaction Fees prior to being awarded a contract. Registration instructions and transaction fees may be viewed at: https://eva.virginia.gov/

VII. SWaM CERTIFICATION: Vendor agrees to fully support the Commonwealth of Virginia and George Mason’s efforts related to SWaM goals. Upon contract execution, eligible vendors (as determined by George Mason and the Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity) shall submit all required documents necessary to achieve SWaM certification to the Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity within 90 days. Vendors currently SWaM certified agree to maintain their certification for the duration of the contract and shall submit all required renewal documentation at least 30 days prior to existing SWaM expiration. https://www.sbsd.virginia.gov/

VIII. SMALL BUSINESS SUBCONTRACTING PLAN: All potential offerors are required to fill out and submit Attachments A with their proposal.

Note: Invoices shall only be submitted to George Mason by the entity awarded a contract. Subcontractors cannot submit invoices to George Mason under any resulting contract.

IX. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: One (1) year from Effective Date of contract with six (6) successive one-year renewal options (or as negotiated).

X. BACKGROUND: George Mason University is a leading public research university committed to advancing knowledge, expanding opportunity, and preparing students to lead in a rapidly changing world. Our work strengthens communities, drives innovation, and contributes to a more just and prosperous society. To achieve our goals at the highest level, we engage with vendors who bring expertise, creativity, and excellence to help George Mason meet our mission. Visit gmu.edu/about for more information about the university.

The information below is provided for historical reference purposes ONLY and is not indicative of future spending or budget. Nothing herein shall be construed as a commitment or obligation of minimum spend. A copy of the previous contract award, GMU-1603-20 is available on George Mason’s Contract Portal.

XI. STATEMENT OF NEEDS: George Mason seeks a contractor to provide comprehensive insurance brokerage and risk management consulting services. The contractor should be capable of performing all insurance and risk management services described herein on a worldwide basis to George Mason and its affiliated entities. George Mason strongly prefers a contractor that can provide on-site services at any George Mason campus within the Commonwealth of Virginia with no more than twenty-four (24) hours’ notice when requested. Demonstrated experience in providing insurance brokerage and risk management services to research institutions of higher education with a global presence including the ability to support international operations, programs, and activities is strongly preferred. The contractor should possess the technical expertise, global brokerage capability, and insurer market access necessary to support the University’s diverse academic, research, operational, and international risk exposures.

The contractor should provide services that meet or exceed acceptable levels of service quality and performance including but not limited to the following:

A. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS: Act as insurance broker and risk management consultant with respect to various lines of insurance “as needed” and loss control, including the following services:

1. Placement Services:

a. Determine George Mason’s particular needs by scheduling fact-finding meetings, auditing current coverages, ascertaining long-term goals, and recommending coverage changes based on those goals.

b. Solicit quotes from insurers and assist in evaluating the options received from insurers.

c. Make a diligent effort to place insurance at the lowest possible price consistent with adequate limits, breath of coverage and stability of insurers.

2. General Services:

a. Deliver confirmation of coverage, once it is placed.

b. Follow up with insurance carriers to obtain policies and/or endorsements.

c. Review policies and endorsements for conformity with agreed terms and coverages.

d. Provide answers to George Mason and obtain clarification from insurers, underwriters, or adjusters regarding coverage.

e. Administer insurance policies, including a formal review and analysis of the policy terms, conditions and coverage.

f. Following policy renewal or placement, provide coverage documents to George Mason in a timely manner.

g. Issue certificates or memoranda of insurance.

h. Review premium and exposure audits, rating adjustments, dividend calculations and loss data.

i. Provide invoices, except in the case of direct billing by insurers. Remit premiums to insurers and, where applicable, remit taxes and fees to the relevant authorities.

j. Monitor published financial information of George Mason’s current insurers and alert George Mason when one of those insurers falls below minimum financial guidelines.

k. Develop a strategy for any upcoming renewal to be presented in writing to George Mason at a minimum of 90 days before expiration. Include and identify any intent intermediaries used in the quote process.

l. Provide annual renewal quotes on all annual policies three (3) months prior to renewal date, and three (3) months prior to expiration of any multiyear policies.

m. Disclose additional and coverage restrictions on all renewal quotes in a chart format as compared to the expiring coverage. Seek newly available enhancements to any policy and change, augment or amend any policy, if possible, after it is bound or before it is renewed in the best interest of George Mason.

n. Provide or arrange for training in a variety of exposure areas, as requested.

3. Claims-Related Services: Promptly settle all claims for coverage; and at a minimum provide the following claims-related services, and other services that may apply:

a. Evaluate coverage applicability on all placed business.

b. Assist in the development of settlement strategies.

c. Assist George Mason with insurer negotiations.

d. Assist with the litigation management issues that impact claim settlements.

e. Prepare loss notices to insurer and notify insurers of claims.

f. Provide answers to George Mason and obtain clarification from insurers, underwriters or adjusters regarding claims questions.

g. Provide loss run reports at the end of each policy period and upon request.

4. Risk Consulting / Loss Control Services:

a. Provide risk management, and other services directly or indirectly; and other recommendations as requested by George Mason, including, but not limited to, minimization of loss potential, property or liability inspection, actuarial services, and transfer of risk techniques.

b. Provide George Mason with advice and solutions across a comprehensive range of insurable and non-insurable risk issues.

5. Support: Provide worldwide service capability and 24/7 on-call support for urgent claims, major losses, international incidents, and other time-sensitive risk management matters.

6.

7.

B. SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS: The Contractor should demonstrate experience in designing and placing insurance programs addressing complex higher education risk exposures, including but not limited to:

1. Research institution risk management, including laboratory operations, grant-funded research activities, and technology commercialization.

2. Human clinical trials and biomedical research, including clinical trial liability and participant injury coverage.

3. Artificial intelligence (AI) and emerging technology liability, including data governance, technology errors and omissions, and related professional liability risks.

4. Cyber liability and data security coverage, including privacy liability, network security, data breach response, ransomware, and business interruption.

5. Builder’s risk and construction-related insurance for major capital projects, renovations, and infrastructure development.

6. Foreign liability coverage supporting study-abroad programs, international research, global partnerships, and other overseas activities.

7. Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) / drone operations, including operational liability and equipment coverage for academic and research uses.

8. Athletic catastrophic (CAT) coverage and participant accident programs supporting intercollegiate athletics and any organized sports related activities.

9. Student arts, performances, and cultural programming, including coverage for exhibitions, performing arts events, and fine arts.

C. REPORTING AND DELIVERY REQUIREMENTS: The contractor should be able to meet the following reporting and delivery requirements.

1. Provide Coverage Recommendations: No less than sixty (60) days prior to the expiration or anniversary of any existing coverage, present recommendations concerning the renewal or anniversary.

2. Binders and Policies: Contractor should provide binder or other evidence of insurance within ten (10) working days of the effective date of any insurance policies. These should outline the coverages, including limits and deductibles. Endorsements to any policy should be delivered within thirty (30) days of the agreement on the endorsement.

3. Review Requirements: Meet with George Mason when each policy is delivered and no less than 90 days prior to the renewal/anniversary of any policy. These meetings are to review exposures, coverage, premiums, losses, and other items to verify the adequacy of insurance in anticipation of policy renewal or anniversary.

4. Loss Run Reports: Submit reports to George Mason within thirty (30) days of the completion of any survey unless otherwise agreed upon.

XII. PROPOSAL PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS:

A. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS:

1. RFP Response: In order to be considered, Offerors must submit a complete response to George Mason's Purchasing Office prior to the due date and time stated in this RFP. Offerors are required to submit one (1) signed copy of the entire proposal including all attachments and proprietary information. If the proposal contains proprietary information, then submit two (2) proposals must be submitted; one (1) with proprietary information included and one (1) with proprietary information removed (see 2.d. below for details on how to submit a redacted proposal). The Offeror shall make no other distribution of the proposals.

At the conclusion of the RFP process proposals with proprietary information removed (redacted versions) shall be provided to requestors in accordance with Virginia’s Freedom of Information Act. Offerors will not be notified of the release of this information.

An Offeror may not request any of the following be proprietary and/or confidential in their proposal:

a. Pricing or any calculation used to determine pricing;

b. A notation or footer on the bottom of every page with “proprietary and confidential;”

c. Entire contents of company history or executive summary;

d. A case study, social media post, or billboard already available to the public;

e. Name of company or firm listed as a reference;

f. Any resulting Statement of Work (SOW), Order Form, or Invoice.

ELECTRONIC PROPOSAL SUBMISSION: ATTENTION: PROPOSALS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED VIA EMAIL, MAIL, THROUGH eVA, OR IN PERSON. George Mason will only accept electronic proposal submissions via Bonfire for this Request for Proposals.

The following shall apply:

a. You must register with Bonfire and submit your proposal, and it must be received prior to the submission deadline, by submitting through the online Bonfire portal at https://gmu.bonfirehub.com.

b. The Offeror must ensure the proposals are uploaded and submitted through Bonfire sufficiently in advance of the proposal deadline. Plan Ahead: It is the Offeror’s responsibility to ensure that electronic proposal submissions have sufficient time to make its way through Bonfire’s submission portal. George Mason recommends you submit your proposal the day prior to the due date.

c. Submissions by other methods will not be accepted. Minimum system requirements: Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Safari, or Mozilla Firefox. JavaScript and browser cookies must be enabled.

d. Offerors should contact Bonfire at support@gobonfire.com for technical questions related to submission or visit Bonfire's Help Forum.

e. Submission materials should be prepared in the file formats listed under Requested Information for this opportunity in the Bonfire Portal. The maximum upload file size is 1000 MB. Documents should not be embedded within uploaded files, as the embedded files will not be accessible or evaluated.

f. All solicitation schedules are subject to change.

g. Go to George Mason’s Bonfire Portal for all updates and schedule changes. https://gmu.bonfirehub.com

h. All communication with Offerors will take place in Bonfire, to include negotiations. George Mason can only message Offerors that have interacted with this specific RFP. Please ensure the appropriate person to handle negotiations and other RFP notifications has submitted the Offerors proposal in Bonfire.

2. Proposal Presentation:

a. Proposals shall be signed by an authorized representative of the Offeror. All information requested must be submitted. Failure to submit all information requested may result in your proposal being scored low.

b. Proposals should be prepared simply and economically, providing a straightforward, concise description of capabilities to satisfy the requirement of the RFP. Emphasis should be on completeness and clarity of content.

c. Proposals should be organized in the order in which the requirements are presented in the RFP. All pages of the proposal should be numbered. Each paragraph in the proposal should reference the paragraph number corresponding section of the RFP. It is also helpful to cite the paragraph number, sub letter and repeat the text of the requirement as it appears in the RFP. The proposal should contain a table of contents which cross references the RFP requirements. Information which the Offeror desires to present that does not fall within any of the requirement of the RFP should be inserted at the appropriate place or be attached at the end of the proposal and designated as additional material.

A WORD version of this RFP will be provided upon request.

d. Except as provided, once an award is announced, all proposals submitted in response to this RFP will be open to inspection by any citizen, or interested person, firm or corporation, in accordance with the Virginia Freedom of Information Act. Trade secrets or proprietary information submitted by a firm prior to or as part of its proposal will not be subject to public disclosure under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act only under the following circumstances: (1) the appropriate information is clearly identified by some distinct method such as highlighting or underlining; (2) only the specific words, figures, or paragraphs that constitute trade secrets or proprietary information are identified; and (3) a summary page is supplied immediately following the proposal title page that includes (a) the information to be protected, (b) the section(s)/page number(s) where this information is found in the proposal, and (c) a statement why protection is necessary for each section listed. A statement simply noting “trade secret” is not a sufficient reason for redaction. The firm must also provide a separate attachment of the proposal with the trade secrets and/or proprietary information redacted. If all of these requirements are not met, then the firm’s entire proposal will be available for public inspection.

IMPORTANT: A firm may not request that its entire proposal be treated as a trade secret or proprietary information, nor may a firm request that its pricing/fees be treated as a trade secret or proprietary information, or otherwise be deemed confidential. If after given a reasonable time, the Offeror refuses to withdraw the aforementioned designation, the proposal will be rejected.

3. Oral Presentation: Offerors who submit a proposal in response to this RFP may be required to give an oral presentation/demonstration of their proposal/product to George Mason. This will provide an opportunity for the Offeror to clarify or elaborate on their proposal. Performance during oral presentations may affect the final award decision. If required, oral presentations will be scheduled at the appropriate time.

George Mason will expect that the person or persons who will be working on the project to make the presentation so experience of the Offeror’s staff can be evaluated prior to making selection. Oral presentations are an option of George Mason and may or may not be conducted; therefore, it is imperative all proposals should be complete.

B. SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS: Proposals should be as thorough and detailed as possible to allow George Mason to properly evaluate the Offeror’s capabilities and approach toward providing the required services. Offerors should submit the following items as a complete proposal. Proposals should be 11-point or larger and should not exceed 20 pages in length, including the procedural information, executive summary, and resumes.

1. Procedural information:

a. Return signed cover page and all addenda, if any, signed and completed as required.

b. Return Attachment A - Small Business Subcontracting Plan.

c. Exceptions (if any) to George Mason’s two-party contract, Attachment B.

d. Any SOW or supplemental document George Mason may be required to sign. See section IV. Final Contract

e. State your payment preference as required in Bonfire. (See section XV.)

f. Answer the below questions with your proposal submission through Bonfire, as required.

· Are you and/or your subcontractor currently involved in litigation with any party?

· Please list any investigation or action from any state, local, federal or other regulatory body (OSHA, IRS, DOL, etc.) related to your firm or any subcontractor in the last three years.

· Please list all lawsuits that involved your firm or any subcontractor in the last three years.

· In the past ten (10) years has your firm’s name changed? If so, please provide a reason for the change.

2. Executive Summary: Submit an executive summary at the beginning of the proposal response not to exceed 2 pages.

3. Qualifications and Experience: Describe your experience, qualifications and success in providing the services described in the Statement of Needs to include the following:

a. Background and brief history of your company that includes the company size (number of personnel within the company—please designate number of full-time employees and number of contract employees)

b. Names, qualifications and experience of personnel to be assigned to work with George Mason.

c. No fewer than three (3) references that demonstrate your firm’s qualifications, preferably from other comparable higher education institutions your company is/has provided services with and that are similar in size and scope to that which has been described herein. Include a contact name, contact title, phone number, and email for each reference and indicate the length of service.

d. Provide a list of higher education schools your firm has done business with.

e. Describe your experience providing the services requested in the Statement of Needs.

f. Provide at least two brief case studies highlighting how you provided the services requested and the outcome on client objectives.

4. Describe your firm’s global presence and worldwide services and support. Specifically describe your firm’s experience consulting and providing foreign liability coverage recommendations that support study abroad programs, international research, global partnerships, and other overseas activities.

5. Specific Plan (Methodology): Explain your specific plans for providing the proposed services outlined in the Statement of Needs including:

a. Your approach to providing the services described herein.

b. What, when and how services will be performed.

c. Describe your approach to service delivery and responsiveness.

d. Outline a project request from start to completion.

6. Proposed Pricing: Identify all cost associated with providing the products and services in your proposal indicating one-time and on-going costs. Any additional fees not specifically contemplated in this RFP must be included in your proposal. George Mason will not accept undisclosed fees that are added to invoices.

Rates must include travel-related expenses if contractor is traveling within a 50-mile radius of George Mason's Fairfax campus. If the contractor is traveling from outside a 50-mile radius of the Fairfax Campus, travel can only be invoiced on a reimbursement basis in accordance with George Mason's polices, http://fiscal.gmu.edu/travel/, and GSA per diem rates. Additional hourly rates for travel will not be considered.

XIII. INITIAL EVALUATION CRITERIA AND SUBSEQUENT AWARD:

A. INITIAL EVALUATION CRITERIA: Proposals shall be initially evaluated and ranked using the following criteria:

Description of Criteria Maximum Point Value

1. Qualifications and experience of offeror in providing the goods/services 25

2. Specific plans or methodology to be used to provide the services 25

3. Global Presence 15

4. Price Offered 25

5. Offeror is certified with Virginia SBSD at the proposal due date & time. 10 Total Points Available: 100

B. AWARD: Following the initial scoring by the evaluation committee, at least two or more top ranked offerors may be contacted for oral presentations/demonstrations or advanced directly to the negotiations stage. If oral presentations are conducted George Mason will then determine, in its sole discretion, which offerors will advance to the negotiations phase. Negotiations shall then be conducted with each of the offerors so selected. Price shall be considered, but need not be the sole determining factor. After negotiations have been conducted with each offeror so selected, George Mason shall select the offeror which, in its sole discretion, has made the best proposal, and shall award the contract to that offeror. When the terms and conditions of multiple awards are so provided in the Request for Proposal, awards may be made to more than one offeror. Should George Mason determine in writing and in its sole discretion that only one offeror has made the best proposal, a contract may be negotiated and awarded to that offeror. George Mason is not required to furnish a statement of the reasons why a particular proposal was not deemed to be the most advantageous (Governing Rules §49.D.).

XIV. CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION: Upon award of the contract, George Mason shall designate, in writing, the name of the Contract Administrator who shall work with the contractor in formulating mutually acceptable plans and standards for the operations of this service. The Contract Administrator shall use all powers under the contract to enforce its faithful performance. The Contract Administrator shall determine the amount, quality and acceptability of work and shall decide all other questions in connection with the work. All direction and order from George Mason shall be transmitted through the Contract Administrator, or their designee(s) however, the Contract Administrator shall have no authority to approve changes which shall alter the concept or scope of the work or change the basis for compensation to the contractor.

XV. PAYMENT TERMS / METHOD OF PAYMENT:

PLEASE NOTE: THE VENDOR MUST REFERENCE THE PURCHASE ORDER NUMBER ON ALL INVOICES SUBMITTED FOR PAYMENT.

Option #1- Payment to be mailed in 10 days-George Mason will make payment to the vendor under 2%/10 Net 30 payment terms. Invoices should be submitted via email to the designated Accounts Payable email address which is acctpay@gmu.edu.

The 10-day payment period begins the first business day after receipt of proper invoice or receipt of goods, whichever occurs last. A paper check will be mailed on or before the 10th day.

Option #2- To be paid in 20 days. The vendor may opt to be paid through our Virtual Payables credit card program. The vendor shall submit an invoice and will be paid via credit card on the 20th day from receipt of a valid invoice. The vendor will incur standard credit card interchange fees through their processor. All invoices should be sent to:

George Mason University Accounts Payable Department 4400 University Drive, Mailstop 3C1 Fairfax, VA 22030 Voice: 703.993.2580 | Fax: 703.993.2589 e-mail: AcctPay@gmu.edu

Option#3- Net 30 Payment Terms. Vendor will enroll in Paymode-X where all payments will be made electronically to the vendor’s bank account. To sign up for electronic payments, please contact the Paymode-X Enrollment Team at 1-800-331-0974 or email enrollment@paymode-x.com. The enrollment team can assist you with any questions about the enrollment process and setting up the membership.

Please state your payment preference in your proposal response.

XVI. SOLICITATION TERMS AND CONDITIONS:

A. ANNOUNCEMENT OF AWARD: Upon the award or the announcement of the decision to award a contract over $200,000, as a result of this solicitation, George Mason will publicly post such notice on the DGS/DPS eVA web site (https://eva.virginia.gov/) for a minimum of 10 days.

B. BEST AND FINAL OFFER (BAFO): At the conclusion of negotiations, the offeror(s) may be asked to submit in writing, a best and final offer (BAFO). After the BAFO is submitted, no further negotiations shall be conducted with the offeror(s).

C. CONFLICT OF INTEREST: By submitting a proposal, the contractor warrants that they have fully complied with the Virginia Conflict of Interest Act; furthermore, certifying that they are not currently an employee of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

D. DEBARMENT STATUS: By submitting a proposal, offerors certify that they are not currently debarred by the Commonwealth of Virginia from submitting bids or proposals on contracts for the type of goods and/or services covered by this solicitation, nor are they an agent of any person or entity that is currently so debarred.

E. ETHICS IN PUBLIC CONTRACTING: By submitting a proposal, offerors certify that their proposal is made without collusion or fraud and that they have not offered or received any kickbacks or inducements from any other offeror, supplier, manufacturer or subcontractor in connection with their proposal, and that they have not conferred on any public employee having official responsibility for this procurement transaction any payment, loan, subscription, advance, deposit of money, services or anything of more than nominal value, present or promised, unless consideration of substantially equal or greater value was exchanged.

F. LATE PROPOSALS: To be considered for selection, proposals must be received in George Mason’s Bonfire Portal by the designated date and hour. The official time used in the receipt of proposals is the proposal due date and hour in George Mason’s Bonfire Portal. Proposals submitted after the due date and time has expired will not be accepted nor considered. George Mason is not responsible for any delays related to Bonfire’s website or vendor registration process. It is the responsibility of the offeror to ensure that their proposal is submitted by the designated date and hour.

G. MANDATORY USE OF GEORGE MASON FORM AND TERMS AND CONDITIONS: Failure to submit a proposal on the official George Mason form provided for that purpose may be a cause for rejection of the proposal. Modification of or additions to the General Terms and Conditions of this solicitation may be cause for rejection of the proposal; however, George Mason reserves the right to decide, on a case-by-case basis, in its sole discretion, whether to reject such a proposal.

H. OBLIGATION OF OFFEROR: It is the responsibility of each offeror to inquire about and clarify any requirements of this solicitation that are not understood. George Mason will not be bound by oral explanations as to the meaning of specifications or language contained in this solicitation. Therefore, all inquiries must be in writing and submitted as instructed on page 1 of this solicitation. By submitting a proposal, the offeror covenants and agrees that they have satisfied themselves, from their own investigation of the conditions to be met, that they fully understand their obligation and that they will not make any claim for, or have right to cancellation or relief from the resulting contract because of any misunderstanding or lack of information.

I. QUALIFICATIONS OF OFFERORS: George Mason may make such reasonable investigations as deemed proper and necessary to determine the ability of the offeror to perform the services/furnish the goods and the offeror shall furnish to George Mason all such information and data for this purpose as may be requested. George Mason reserves the right to inspect the offeror’s physical facilities prior to award to satisfy questions regarding the offeror’s capabilities. George Mason further reserves the right to reject any proposal if the evidence submitted by, or investigations of, such offeror fails to satisfy George Mason that such offeror is properly qualified to carry out the obligations of the resulting contract and to provide the services and/or furnish the goods contemplated therein.

J. RFP DEBRIEFING: In accordance with §49 of the Governing Rules George Mason is not required to furnish a statement of the reasons why a particular proposal was not deemed to be the most advantageous. However, upon request we will provide a scoring/ranking summary and the award justification memo from the evaluation committee. Formal debriefings are generally not offered.

K. TESTING AND INSPECTION: George Mason reserves the right to conduct any test/inspection it may deem advisable to assure goods and services conform to the specifications.

XVII. RFP SCHEDULE (Subject to Change): Go to George Mason’s Bonfire Portal for all updates and schedule changes. The schedule notated below is tentative and subject to change. Note that all Addendums, Question and Answers, and any other documentation or RFP updates will be posted and made available in Bonfire (https://gmu.bonfirehub.com) In the event of a conflict between the dates listed in this RFP and in Bonfire, the dates listed in Bonfire shall take precedence.

RFP Schedule (Subject to Change)

ATTACHMENT A

SMALL BUSINESS SUBCONTRACTING PLAN

TO BE COMPLETED BY OFFEROR

Offerors must advise any portion of this contract that will be subcontracted. All potential offerors are required to include this document with their proposal in order to be considered responsive.

Small Business: "Small business (including micro)” means a business which holds a certification as such by the Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity (DSBSD) on the due date and time for proposals. This shall also include DSBSD certified women- owned and minority-owned businesses and businesses with DSBSD service disabled veteran owned status when they also hold a DSBSD certification as a small business on the proposal due date. Currently, DSBSD offers small business certification and micro business designation to firms that qualify.

Certification applications are available through DSBSD online at www.SBSD.virginia.gov (Customer Service).

Offeror Name:

Preparer Name: Date:

Who will be doing the work: ☐ I plan to use subcontractors ☐ I plan to complete all work

Instructions A. If you are certified by the DSBSD as a micro/small business, complete Section A of this form.

B. If the “I plan to use subcontractors” box is checked, complete Section B of this form. For the proposal to be considered and the offeror to be declared responsive, the offeror shall identify the portions of the contract that will be subcontracted to any subcontractor, to include DSBSD certified small business for the initial contract period in relation to the offeror’s total price for the initial contract period in Section B.

Section A If your firm is certified by the DSBSD provide your certification number and the date of certification.

Certification Number: Certification Date:

Section B If the “I plan to use subcontractors” box is checked, populate the requested information below, per subcontractor to show your firm's plans for utilization of any subcontractor, to include DSBSD-certified small businesses, in the performance of this contract for the initial contract period in relation to the offeror’s total price for the initial contract period. Certified small businesses include but are not limited to DSBSD-certified women-owned and minority-owned businesses and businesses with DSBSD service disabled veteran-owned status that have also received the DSBSD small business certification. Include plans to utilize small businesses as part of joint ventures, partnerships, subcontractors, suppliers, etc. It is important to note that these proposed participation will be incorporated into the subsequent contract and will be a requirement of the contract. Failure to obtain the proposed participation dollar value or percentages may result in breach of the contract.

Plans for Utilization of Any subcontractor, to include DSBSD-Certified Small Businesses, for this Procurement Subcontract #1

Description of Work:

Subcontract #2

Description of Work:

Subcontract #3

Description of Work:

Subcontract #4

Description of Work:

Subcontract #5

Description of Work:

Purchasing Department 4400 University Drive, MS 3C1, Fairfax, VA 22030 Phone: 703.993.2580; http://fiscal.gmu.edu/purchasing/

ATTACHMENT B – STANDARD CONTRACT

Note: Other documents may be incorporated into this document, either by way of attachment or by reference, but in all cases this contract document shall take precedence over all other documents and will govern the terms and conditions of the contract.

This Contract entered on this ____ day of , 2026 (Effective Date) by ________________ hereinafter called “Contractor” (located at ____________) and George Mason University hereinafter called “George Mason,” “University”.

I. WITNESSETH that the Contractor and George Mason, in consideration of the mutual covenants, promises and agreement herein contained, agree as follows:

II. SCOPE OF CONTRACT: The Contractor shall provide for the of George Mason University as set forth in the Contract documents.

During the term of this Contract, Contractor may issue Statements of Work (“SOW”) to modify the scope of the engagement or otherwise change the work to be performed under this Contract. All SOW’s must be on a form approved by George Mason prior to the start of this Contract. Any SOW that does not conform to the pre-approved SOW form shall be void even if approved by George Mason. Additionally, the SOW shall be limited to modifications to the scope of the engagement or other changes to the work to be performed under this Contract; any other terms contained in a SOW shall be void and have no effect even if approved by George Mason. Other than changes to the scope of the engagement or the work to be performed under this Contract, Contractor may not change, modify, add, supersede, or remove any term from this Contract through a SOW.

George Mason may, upon written notice, terminate any individual Statement of Work (“SOW”) issued under this Contract for convenience, without terminating the Contract as a whole. Termination of a SOW shall be effective immediately after receipt of written notice. Upon termination of a SOW, George Mason shall be liable only for payment of services actually performed and accepted up to the effective date of termination, reimbursable expenses incurred prior to the effective date of termination (if applicable and in accordance with the SOW), and any non-cancellable commitments expressly authorized in the SOW. Termination of an SOW shall not affect the validity or enforceability of the Contract or any other SOWs then in effect.

III. PERIOD OF CONTRACT: One year from the Effective Date with six (6) successive one-year renewal options. (or as negotiated)

IV. PRICE SCHEDULE: The pricing specified in this section represents the complete list of charges from the Contractor. George Mason shall not be liable for any additional charges.

Negotiated price schedule will be inserted here.

V. CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION: ___________ shall serve as Contract Administrator for this Contract and shall use all powers under the Contract to enforce its faithful performance. The Contract Administrator shall determine the amount, quality and acceptability of work and shall decide all other questions in connection with the work. All direction and order from George Mason shall be transmitted through the Contract Administrator, however, the Contract Administrator shall have no authority to approve changes which shall alter the concept or scope or change the basis for compensation.

VI. METHOD OF PAYMENT: As selected from RFP Payment Term Options / Method of Payment. Contractor shall submit invoices directly to acctpay@gmu.edu and copy the Contract Administrator.