3-RFP GMU-CM0918-26 Intercollegiate Athletics (ICA) Bus Services Final.pdf

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

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

GMU-CM0918-26

ISSUE DATE: October 30, 2026

TITLE: Intercollegiate Athletics (ICA) Bus Services

PRIMARY PROCUREMENT OFFICER: Chris Mullins, Senior Buyer SECONDARY PROCUREMENT OFFICER: Katherine Sirotin, Director

QUESTIONS/INQUIRIES: Submit all inquiries through George Mason’s Bonfire Portal, no later than 4:00 PM Eastern Time (ET) on November 11, 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.procurement@eunasolutions 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 November 20, 2026.

PROPOSAL DUE DATE AND TIME: December 3, 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:

Signature

FEI/FIN No. Name:

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.

☐ 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.

https://gmu.bonfirehub.com/ mailto:support.procurement@eunasolutions https://procurement-help.eunasolutions.com/hc/en-us

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.

□ Attachment B - Standard Contract. Submit in a Word document with tracked changes of contract exceptions (if any) for

George Mason’s consideration. Note: no additional contract exceptions, redlines, or additional terms will be considered beyond what has been submitted with the Offeror’s proposal, unless proposed by George Mason.

□ 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.

□ Respond to the following as required through Bonfire:

☐ State your payment preference. Only select one payment option.

☐ Respond to the questions below as required through Bonfire:

• 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.

□ 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.

□ Complete and upload pricing/Bid Table, in the requested format, as required in Bonfire.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

GMU-CM0918-26

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 8

XIII. INITIAL EVALUATION CRITERIA AND SUBSEQUENT AWARD 11

XIV. CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION 11

XV. PAYMENT TERMS/METHOD OF PAYMENT 12

XVI. SOLICITATION TERMS AND CONDITIONS 12

XVII. RFP SCHEDULE 13

ATTACHMENT A SMALL BUSINESS SUBCONTRACTING PLAN 14

ATTACHMENT B STANDARD CONTRACT 16

ATTACHMENT C SAMPLE INVOICE FORMAT 27

ATTACHMENT D PRICING SCHEDULE ATTACHMENT

I. PURPOSE: The purpose of this Request for Proposal (RFP) is to solicit proposals and establish one or more contracts through competitive negotiations with qualified vendors to provide transportation services, including associated marketing and signage opportunities, for the Intercollegiate Athletics (ICA) Department of George Mason University. George Mason University (hereinafter referred to as “George Mason,” “Mason,” or the “University”) is a public institution of higher education and an agency of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

It is the University's preference to award contracts to multiple vendors, likely two to three, to ensure adequate coverage and flexibility in meeting its needs. However, the University reserves the right to award more or fewer contracts as deemed necessary. The University is not interested in establishing an exclusive agreement with a single contractor

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.

https://vascupp.org/

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 four (4) successive one-year renewal options (or as negotiated).

X. BACKGROUND: George Mason University is the largest public research university in the Commonwealth of Virginia with over 40,000 students from all 50 states and 130 countries. The primary purpose of this RFP is to identify a single provider of bus transportation service for our intercollegiate sports teams to transport them locally and regionally. Signage and marketing will be an additional component, as there is a need to increase Mason brand awareness. Intercollegiate Athletics serves 500 student-athletes in 22 NCAA Division I sports. We are a proud member of the Atlantic 10 Conference with 17 Conference Championships, NCAA Championships in Women’s Soccer and Men’s Indoor Track, an NCAA Final Four appearance with Men’s Basketball, and over 30 individual National Champions.

The current incumbent service provider is Academy Express, LLC under contract ID GMU-1760-22 which expires on June 30, 2027. It is a mandatory requirement that the new contract awardee be able to commit to a contract start date of July 01, 2027. The information below is provided for historical reference purposes ONLY and is not indicative of future spending, minimum commitment, or budget. Nothing herein shall be construed as a commitment or obligation of minimum spend.

Copies of all contracts are available on George Mason’s Contract Portal. See below approximate spend for the previous contract awards (current rates and sponsorship/signing bonus payments are available in the contract documents at GMU’s Contract portal):

Contract GMU-1760-22 – Academy Express LLC

Year Total Spend

1: FY23 $526,897.40

2: FY24 $582,159.64

3: FY25 $660,840.74

4: FY26 $490,460.83

XI. STATEMENT OF NEEDS: The Contractor(s) shall furnish all necessary labor, equipment, materials, tools and supplies as necessary to fulfill all bus transportation service for Mason’s intercollegiate sports teams to transport them locally, regionally, and nationally. Mason expects the Contractor and the Contractor’s employees to maintain Mason’s group passengers’ safety to be of the highest priority. In a typical school year, the Athletic Department contracts for approximately 200 charter bus trips/airport shuttles. It is the University’s preference to award to multiple vendors (likely 2 to 3 vendors) although we reserve the right to award as many or as few contracts as necessary to meet our need. We are not open to an exclusive contract with one contractor. Contractor should provide buses with prominent signage to increase Mason brand awareness on local and regional highways. The Mason Athletics’ signage should be visible from the front, rear, and sides for purposes of passenger https://eva.virginia.gov/ https://www.sbsd.virginia.gov/ https://gmu.cobblestone.software/public/default.aspx recognition. Mason signage should be displayed to identify each vehicle

A. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS: At a minimum:

1. Contractor shall comply with all federal, state and local laws, rules, regulations, and guidelines governing the provision of public motor transportation services (i.e., public motor transportation operations, to include but not limited to: vehicle licensing; driver licensing; safety inspections; insurance requirements; condition of equipment; competency, proficiency, etc. of drivers and maintenance personnel; first aid requirements; etc.)

2. Contractor must use only their company-owned buses. No trips can be subcontracted to another bus company or individual without prior written consent of Mason. Contractor shall be totally and solely responsible to ensure that the subcontractor and the subcontractor’s employees are compliant with all the terms and conditions identified herein. In addition, Contractor is fully responsible for the actions of and services provided by the subcontractor and the subcontractor’s employees. 3. Contractor shall provide buses that are clean, serviceable, and mechanically safe, equipped with fire extinguisher, and have adequate heat and/or air conditioning. All buses shall meet all applicable Commonwealth of Virginia and city vehicle licensing, safety inspection, and insurance requirements.

B. SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS:

1. Employees & Qualifications: The Contractor shall employ only competent and satisfactory personnel and shall provide a sufficient number of employees to perform the required services efficiently and in a manner satisfactory to the University. If an authorized representative of GMU notifies the Contractor that any person employed on this contract is incompetent, disorderly, or otherwise unsatisfactory, such person shall not again be assigned without the written consent of the authorized GMU representative. Contractor shall certify and shall have sole responsibility for ensuring that drivers have sufficient training and experience to operate the equipment used to provide contracted services and to ensure that all driver’s assigned to provide contracted services are compliant with all federal, state and local laws and applicable regulations. At Mason‘s request, Contractor shall provide driver’s license, DMV record, and other documentation confirming compliance with all requirements identified herein. Drivers assigned by the Contractor to provide contracted services to Mason shall meet the following requirements:

a. Shall be fully qualified and trained professionals.

b. Possess all required certifications, including but not necessarily limited to, a valid Virginia

Commercial Driver’s License with a “P” (passenger bus) endorsement;

c. Have a minimum three (3) years driving experience;

d. Have one (1) year of licensed commercial driving experience in Virginia of passenger conveyance type vehicles seating 16 or more;

e. Maintain a driving record that reflects plus-points;

f. Maintain compliance with all federal, state and local laws and applicable regulations;

g. Not have any conviction(s) of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol or driving while intoxicated, nor assignment(s) (voluntary or judicial) to the Virginia Alcohol Safety Awareness Program (VASAP) or equivalent program within the past five (5) years;

h. Have successfully completed a background check;

i. Meet physical requirements for commercial drivers as set forth by the USDOT standards;

j. Hold certification for formal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) training in the operation of specialized equipment for the mobility impaired, including wheelchair lifts and related tie downs

k. Be neat, professional, appropriately attired and maintain good hygiene; (Drivers must wear a professional bus driver’s uniform and Contractor’s name tag at all times while transporting Mason’s group.); and,

l. Comply with rest break and hours of service requirements as established by the FMCSA.

2. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Compliance: The Contractor must be currently registered with the FMCSA, compliant with all applicable commercial and safety regulations and requirements, including valid USDOT Number and associated insurance coverage and limits, as applicable.

At a minimum,

a. The Contractor must have and maintain a “satisfactory” rating from the FMCSA

3. Insurance Requirements: See Standard Contract Attachment B, Clause CC. Insurance. Offerors shall carry, at a minimum, a total of $10 million in liability coverage, which may consist of a combination of automobile liability and general liability coverage. Please state your insurance coverage in your response.

4. Vehicle Requirements & Equipment: At a minimum each of the vehicles furnished by the Contractor should meet the following requirements:

a. The Contractor shall furnish clean, modern and mechanically safe buses with functioning heat and air conditioning that are licensed, regularly inspected, equipped with fire extinguisher, and are subject to a regular maintenance schedule. Service records shall be made available upon request.

b. Must be able to accommodate differing sized groups.

c. Meet all applicable Commonwealth of Virginia and city vehicle licensing, safety inspection, and insurance requirements. Any state or city decals, stickers and/or license plates shall be properly displayed on all buses and shall be current at all times;

d. Be model year 2002 or newer and equipped with anti-lock brakes;

e. Have interior upholstery and flooring clean and in good condition;

f. Have an exterior that is clean, well painted and no signs of damage;

g. Have air-conditioning and heating systems that are in excellent working order with individual overhead air controls;

h. Be equipped with a restroom that is completely functioning, clean and well-stocked with standard restroom supplies to include but not limited to, soap, paper towels, toilet paper, etc. (Restroom shall be cleaned and serviced as often as necessary to avoid offensive odors in the rear portion of the bus.)

i. Be equipped with televisions, VCRs, DVD players, outlets, satellite TV and free wireless internet access (Wi-Fi) and a GPS system. All of the aforementioned electronic equipment must be in excellent working order. Radio/phone communications equipment shall be in proper working condition. Wi-Fi is required for all trips regardless of distance. All buses must have at least four

(4) to six (6) monitors per bus.

j. Buses shall have interior lighting adequate for reading by passengers.

k. Seating shall be reclining

l. Be equipped with under-bus storage/baggage compartments with locks;

m. Be equipped with interior overhead parcel racks/compartments;

n. Be capable of displaying Mason customized signage.

5. Fleet Requirements: Contractor must provide a list of their fleet of vehicles to include year, make, model, bus capacity/number of seats, sleeper bus availability, electric and/or hybrid availability, and service history within the last 3 years.

6. Routing: It should be the responsibility of the Contractor to research and find the best route for each trip and approved by an authorized representative of GMU. If routes conflict, the authorized representative has priority.

7. Emergency Contacts: Prior to the start of the contract, the Contractor shall provide the emergency contacts available 24/7, to GMU. In the event of a bus breakdown or other emergency, the contacts on this list shall provide assistance, information or guidance above and beyond that provided by the driver. Traffic Accidents: Written report of all accidents involving vehicles, clients, and staff shall be transmitted/reported to GMU within one (1) hour of the accident occurrence.

8. Subcontracting Requirements: Contractor shall use only their company-owned buses. No trips can be subcontracted to another bus company or individual without prior written consent of the University.

Contractor shall be totally and solely responsible to ensure that the subcontractor and the subcontractor’s employees are compliant with all the terms and conditions identified herein. In addition, Contractor is fully responsible for the actions of and services provided by the subcontractor and the subcontractor’s employees. In the instance subcontractors provide the requested services, the University will issue payment to the contracted/prime vendor. The contracted/prime vendor is responsible for payment to its subcontractors.

9. Other Department Needs:

a. Bus(es) shall arrive at the designated GMU athletic department location point no later than 45 minutes prior to the departure for a planned event, unless an alternate arrival time has been approved by GMU.

b. Drivers must reference pick-up location from sent trip itinerary to arrive at the appropriate location.

c. During periods of inclement weather, GMU reserves the right to cancel, reschedule, or delay the departure of any trip. In the event a trip is to be made on the original scheduled date but rescheduled, the vendor and GMU shall agree to when the bus will arrive at the GMU department point based on the new departure time.

d. Bus and driver shall be ready for immediate departure at the conclusion of each event in the following manner:

i. Bus shall be fully fueled and serviced prior to departure.

ii. Driver shall be rested, fed, and relieved.

iii. Driver(s) shall be on-call for transportation while at the destination site.

iv. Driver’s location shall always be made known to the Staff in charge of the traveling party.

v. All drivers shall be in good health and meet the physical requirements for commercial drivers by the USDOT standards.

vi. All buses shall be non-smoking.

vii. Driver breaks must coincide with the scheduled stops within the trip itinerary.

C. FINANCIAL SPONSORSHIP: Mason received the following financial sponsorship for the current contract (2021 – 2027). Mason expects proposals to offer similar sponsorships, but we are open to various levels of sponsorship support for “Official” or “Preferred” transportation providers.

1. Year 1: $37,500

2. Year 2: $38,000

3. Year 3: $39,000

4. Year 4: $40,000

5. Year 5: $42,000

D. PRICING AND REPORTING REQUIREMENTS: The contractor’s pricing structure(s) must be transparent and comprehensive. We have provided a pricing schedule template as Attachment D – Sample Pricing Schedule.

Offerors are welcome to complete this schedule, amend this schedule, and/or submit an alternate pricing schedule if their fee/pricing structure deviates significantly from what is provided but all pricing submitted must be comprehensive, clearly defined, and complete. If there are any pricing factors such as fuel surcharges, driver limitations (on number of hours that can be driven, lodging/per diem requirements, any fees, etc. those must be clearly outlined and explained in your proposal as to what triggers them and why.

Note that any requests for reimbursement for lodging, travel, per diem, etc. must be in accordance with George Mason University’s Travel Policies and Procedures and not exceed the per diem limits (GSA Per diem).

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:

https://fiscal.gmu.edu/purchasing/food-beverage-overview/ https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-book/per-diem-rates

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.procurement@eunasolutions.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 https://gmu.bonfirehub.com/ https://procurement-help.eunasolutions.com/hc/en-us https://gmu.bonfirehub.com/ 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.

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. A Word version is provided if you intend to take any exceptions. Contract exceptions must be submitted as a Word document with tracked changes through Bonfire.

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.

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

o 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.

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

o 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.

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

c. Resumes of personnel working with Mason

d. No fewer than three (3) contracts or engagements of similar size and scope, preferably from other comparable higher education institutions your company is/has provided services with. Include the client/customer name, a summary of what services were provided under the contract, dollar value of the project/engagement (preferably over $200K), period of performance for the contract, total annual value of the contract, and the total estimated or final contract value over all years.

e. No fewer than three (3) references that demonstrate the Offeror’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.

4. 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. Inventory of company owned vehicles including current condition, maintenance, history, amenities, etc.

d. An inventory of company owned vehicles (and conditions of these vehicles) that would be used in the event of a breakdown. If Offeror is not planning on using replacement vehicles during the one hour period, please provide an alternate plan.

e. Provide an inventory of vehicles with ADA compliant accessories. Describe in detail your plan and ability to provide transportation to physically handicapped individuals.

f. Describe contingency plans for vehicle breakdowns, unanticipated emergencies, etc.

g. Describe Offeror’s plan to provide buses with prominent signage to increase Mason brand awareness on local and regional highways.

h. Provide current Certificate of Insurance; USDOT identification number; current Federal

MotorCarrier Safety Administration FMCSA MC number; and copy of current Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles (VA DMV) operating authority certificate.

i. Transition Plan outlining how, if selected, you will successfully facilitate transitioning into providing these services, by the contract start date, and taking over scope/services from the incumbent contractor. If you foresee any challenges, require any assistance, information or feedback from GMU or the incumbent offeror please outline that in your response.

5. Proposed Pricing: Provide rates for all services described in section XI. . we have provided a Pricing

Schedule, Attachment D, that offers shall utilize and/or amend to reflect their pricing and fees. 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.

Provide a sample invoice for your services. George Mason has provided an example invoice as Attachment C – Sample Invoice Format showing an acceptable breakdown for an example project for the services requested herein. At a minimum, contractors are required to provide a breakdown of the hours worked, the rate, all fees, and the total per engagement/project or per day for these services.

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 & Experience 20

2. Specific plans or methodology to be used to provide the services including quality of available fleet 20

3. Sponsorship Offer 15

4. Price Offered 25

5. Offeror is certified with Virginia SBSD at the proposal due date & time. 20

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 mailto:acctpay@gmu.edu mailto:AcctPay@gmu.edu mailto:enrollment@paymode-x.com 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) Issue Date October 30, 2026 Contractor Questions Due (Bonfire ONLY) November 11, 2026 by 4:00PM ET George Mason University Response to Contractor Questions

November 20, 2026 by 5:00PM ET

Thanksgiving Holiday (University Closed) November 25, 2026 – November 27, 2026 Proposal…