5-RFP-01-Instruction to Proposers (1).pdf

CITY OF FORT WORTH - PURCHASING DIVISION

INSTRUCTION TO PROPOSERS

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 1 of 23 Prepared By: Purchasing Division Approved By: Chief Procurement Officer

Revisions and Approvals

Revisions

Review/Approvals

Position Name Signature Date Senior Purchasing Manager Chief Procurement Officer

Revision Effective Date Change Reference 00 1-8-2024 Not applicable

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 2 of 23

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.0 BROWSERS

2.0 SUPPORT

3.0 QUESTIONS

4.0 CLARIFICATIONS AND ISSUANCE OF ADDENDA

5.0 SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

6.0 CLOSE DATE AND TIME

7.0 SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION (PUBLIC FILES)

8.0 SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

9.0 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

10.0 PROPOSAL

11.0 PROPOSER

12.0 UNAUTHORIZED COMMUNICATIONS

13.0 NON-ENDORSEMENT AND PUBLIC COMMENTS

14.0 PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE

15.0 PREPARATION OF PROPOSALS

15.1 Tax Exemption

15.2 Proposal Adequacy

15.3 Proposal Page Limit:

15.4 Proposal Summary and Company Overview

15.5 RFP Exceptions

15.6 Proprietary Information

15.7 Business Equity Division (M/WBE) Documents:

15.8 Alternate Proposals

15.9 Proposal Preparation Costs:

15.10 Free on Board (FOB) Point

15.11 Prices:

16.0 MODIFICATION OR WITHDRAWAL OF PROPOSAL

16.1 Modification of Proposal

16.2 Withdrawal of Proposal

17.0 OPENING OF PROPOSAL

18.0 EVALUATION AND AWARD

18.1 Evaluation

18.2 Award

18.3 Acceptance of Proposal

18.4 Reservations

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18.5 Negotiations

18.6 Period of Acceptance

19.0 DOCUMENTS REQUIRED FROM RECOMMENDED PROPOSER

19.1 Certificates of Insurance

19.2 Certificate of Interested Parties Form 1295

20.0 AGREEMENT TERM

21.0 UNIT PRICE ADJUSTMENT

22.0 INVOICE AND PAYMENTS

22.1 Registration

22.2 Invoice

22.3 Payment

23.0 PROTEST PROCEDURE

24.0 COOPERATIVE PURCHASING

25.0 GENERAL PROVISIONS

26.0 SUBCONTRACTORS

27.0 BEST AND FINAL OFFER

28.0 ASSIGNMENT

29.0 ERRORS OR OMISSIONS

30.0 RIGHT OF ASSURANCE

31.0 CHANGE ORDERS

32.0 VENUE

33.0 CONFLICT OF INTEREST

34.0 INSURANCE

35.0 CONTRACT CONSTRAINTS AND CONDITIONS

36.0 CHANGE IN COMPANY NAME OR OWNERSHIP

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 4 of 23

1.0 BROWSERS

The City of Fort Worth’s online procurement portal (Bonfire Portal) can be accessed using Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, or Mozilla Firefox.

Javascript must be enabled. Browser cookies must be enabled.

2.0 SUPPORT

For technical questions about the Bonfire Portal, visit Bonfire’s help forum at https://vendorsupport.gobonfire.com/hc/en-us or contact the Bonfire support team at Support@GoBonfire.com or by calling 1-800-354-8010.

To get started with Bonfire, watch this five-minute training video:

https://vendorsupport.gobonfire.com/hc/en-us/articles/6796500613655- Vendor-Registration-and-Submission-VIDEO-

3.0 QUESTIONS

All questions, explanations, clarifications, or interpretations desired by Proposers regarding any part of the solicitation must be electronically submitted to the City of Fort Worth’s Bonfire Portal through the “Vendor Discussion” section under the respective Project/Request For Proposal (RFP) before the Questions Due Date and time specified in the Bonfire Portal.

4.0 CLARIFICATIONS AND ISSUANCE OF ADDENDA

The Purchasing Division of the City of Fort Worth (City) will post an Addendum on the Bonfire Portal with answers to all questions received before the deadline before the submission Close Date and Time.

Interpretations, corrections, or changes to the RFP made in any other manner are not binding upon the City, and Proposers shall not rely upon such interpretations, corrections, or changes. Oral explanations or instructions given before the award of the Contract are not binding.

If the City, in its sole discretion, determines that a change or additional information is needed or a clarification is required, the City shall issue an Addendum in the Bonfire Portal regarding such change, additional information, or clarification. Sole authority for issuing of Addendum shall https://vendorsupport.gobonfire.com/hc/en-us mailto:Support@GoBonfire.com https://vendorsupport.gobonfire.com/hc/en-us/articles/6796500613655-Vendor-Registration-and-Submission-VIDEO-https://vendorsupport.gobonfire.com/hc/en-us/articles/6796500613655-Vendor-Registration-and-Submission-VIDEO-

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 5 of 23 be vested in the City’s Purchasing Division. Proposers are advised to check the Bonfire Portal frequently for any Addendum issued.

5.0 SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Tentative Schedule of events are available in the Bonfire Portal for each RFP. The City reserve the right to change those dates as and when required.

Proposers are advised to check the Bonfire Portal frequently for any changes.

6.0 CLOSE DATE AND TIME

The deadline date and time for submission(s)/Proposals against a Project/RFP shall be specified in the Bonfire Portal.

Your Proposals must be finalized, uploaded, and submitted in the Bonfire Portal prior to the posted Close Date and Time for the Project/RFP.

Electronic submission is subject to electronic interface latency, which can result in transmission delays. All Proposers assume the risk of late transmission/submission. The City shall not be held liable if an interested Proposer is unable to submit a complete Proposal before the published deadline due to transmission delays or any other technical issues or obstructions. The City strongly recommends allowing sufficient time to complete the submission process (ideally a week before the deadline) to begin the uploading process and to finalize your submission to give adequate time in the event an issue arises.

7.0 SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION (PUBLIC FILES)

Supporting Documentation (Public Files) attached to the Bonfire Portal are integral part of the Project/RFP. Bidders should download and review all those documents. Bidders should complete required documents and upload those to “Required Information” section of the Project in the Bonfire Portal.

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8.0 SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

All submissions/Proposal(s) must be submitted electronically prior to the close date and time under the respective Project/RFP via the Bonfire Portal:

https://fortworthtexas.bonfirehub.com/portal/?tab=openOpportunities Failure to complete and submit all required information listed in the respective RFP will be grounds for rejection of a Proposal as non-responsive. No late Proposals shall be accepted. Proposals delivered in any other manner than using the Bonfire Portal will not be accepted or considered.

If, upon being opened, a submission is unreadable to the degree that material conformance to the requirements of the procurement specifications cannot be ascertained, such submission will be rejected without liability to the City, unless such Proposer provides clear and convincing evidence (a) of the content of the submission as originally submitted and (b) that the unreadable condition of the Electronic Proposal was caused solely by error or malfunction of the Bonfire Portal. Failure to scan a clear or readable copy of a Proposal into the system does not constitute and shall not be considered an error or malfunction of the Bonfire Portal. Proposers are encouraged to fully review each page of every document within their submission prior to submitting to ensure all documents are clear, legible, and complete.

9.0 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

A Request for Proposal (RFP) is the publication of the City’s intent to award an agreement based on a submitted Proposal that presented the best value to the City based on the means and methods of how they will provide the requested goods and/or services to the City, among other consideration. It may also be referred to as a Project or Solicitation.

The purpose of the RFP is to describe the goods and/or services to be procured. Proposers are expected to examine all documents that make up the RFP. Proposers shall promptly notify the City of any omission, ambiguity, inconsistency, or error that they may discover upon examination of the RFP.

The City assumes no responsibility for any errors or misrepresentations that result from the use of an incomplete RFP.

https://fortworthtexas.bonfirehub.com/portal/?tab=openOpportunities

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The evaluation criteria to award a contract from an RFP shall be Best Value.

The award of contract may be made to the responsible Proposer(s) whose Proposal is determined to be the most advantageous to the City considering the relative importance of price and the other evaluation factors included in the RFP.

10.0 PROPOSAL

An offer/submission by a Proposer for goods and/or service submitted in the Bonfire Portal against the RFP before the submission Close Date and Time.

Proposal may also be referred to as a Bid.

11.0 PROPOSER

An entity (which could be a person or a business) that (i) seeks or has the potential to do business with the City and serve as a Supplier (also referred to as Seller, Vendor, Contractor, Consultant, etc.) and (ii) responds to a City procurement solicitation. Proposer may also be referred to as Bidder.

12.0 UNAUTHORIZED COMMUNICATIONS

Cone of Silence: the period of time that begins when an RFP has been released until the Intent to Award has been published. During this period of time, Proposers’ contact regarding this RFP with employees or officials of the City other than the Purchasing Staff, the Business Equity Division, or as otherwise indicated in the RFP is prohibited and may result in disqualification from the procurement process.

No officer, employee, agent, or representative of the Proposer shall have any contact or discussion, verbal or written, with any members of the City Council, City staff, or City’s consultants, or directly or indirectly through others, seek to influence any City Council member, City staff, or City’s consultants regarding any matters pertaining to this RFP, except as herein provided. Any violation of this prohibition may result in the Proposer being disqualified from the procurement process.

Proposers should refrain from making comments regarding a specific solicitation or its subject matter – in the media or otherwise – until the

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 8 of 23 selection process is complete. For the selected Proposer, such comments are also inappropriate until the contractual engagement with the City has ended.

13.0 NON-ENDORSEMENT AND PUBLIC COMMENTS

If a Proposal is accepted, the successful Proposer shall not issue any news releases or other statements pertaining to the award or servicing of the agreement that state or imply the City’s endorsement of the successful Proposer’s services.

14.0 PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE

If a pre-proposal conference is held, the time, place, and nature of the conference will be specified on the Bonfire Portal section under the respective RFP. Attendance at pre-proposal conferences is not mandatory but is highly encouraged.

15.0 PREPARATION OF PROPOSALS

Each Proposer must furnish all information required by an RFP on the documents provided and/or in the format required, unless otherwise stated.

Proposals submitted on different forms or in different formats than required in the RFP may be considered non-responsive. Any attempt to alter the wording in the RFP is ineffective and may result in rejection of the Proposal.

In order to be considered, Proposals must include all the documents and information requested in this RFP.

15.1 Tax Exemption:

Purchases of Goods or Services for City use are usually exempt from City, State, and most Federal Taxes. Proposals shall not include exempted taxes. The successful Proposer should request a Tax Exemption Certificate from the Purchasing Division. Under no circumstances shall the City be liable to pay taxes under any Contract for which the City has an exemption.

15.2 Proposal Adequacy:

Proposals should adequately address all evaluation factors listed in the RFP and include required details and documents that will be used as

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 9 of 23 part of the evaluation. Proposals should be prepared as simply as possible and provide a straightforward, concise description of the Proposer’s capabilities to satisfy the requirements of the RFP. Utmost attention should be given to accuracy, completeness, and clarity of content. Proposals shall be completed in accordance with the requirements of this RFP. Statements made by a Proposer shall be without ambiguity, and with adequate elaboration, where necessary, for clear understanding. All parts, pages, figures, or tables should be numbered and clearly labeled. Submitted information should be limited to pertinent information only.

15.3 Proposal Page Limit:

Unless stated otherwise, Proposals shall be limited to a maximum of twenty-five (25), Letter size (8-1/2” x 11”) pages using a font size no smaller than 12-point Times New Roman or Arial and margins of at least one inch in each direction. Any required/requested Attachments, Exhibits, or Addendums shall not count towards this page limit so long as Proposers do not add any information to the Attachment, Exhibit, or Addendum that was not specifically requested to be included in the same.

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 10 of 23 Prepared By: Purchasing Division Approved By: Chief Procurement Officer

15.4 RFP Exceptions:

Requested Proposal Exceptions - Any and all exceptions to the RFP must be listed on an item-by-item basis and cross- referenced. If there are no exceptions, the Firm must expressly state that no exceptions are taken; the firm must also understand that listing exceptions within their documentation does not guarantee acceptance by the City.

15.5 Proprietary Information:

i. All material submitted to the City becomes public property and is subject to the Texas Public Information Act upon receipt.

ii. If a Proposer does not desire information that it believes to be proprietary in the Proposal to be disclosed, the Proposer shall attach a listing of each page number in a chart as shown below and must clearly mark and identify each page by including the word “PROPRIETARY” in all caps and highlighted yellow on the bottom center of each page at the time of submittal. The City will, to the extent allowed by law, endeavor to protect such information from disclosure. The final decision as to the information that must be disclosed lies with the Texas Attorney General. Note: Pricing may not be marked proprietary and will be made publicly available in the form of a bid tab following

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 11 of 23 evaluation of all Proposals. By submitting a response, Proposers agree that pricing is not proprietary and may be released.

Pages with information believed to be Proprietary

Please indicated if only specific sections on the page are believed to be Proprietary

iii. Failure to identify proprietary information exactly as required in above paragraph will result in all unlisted and/or unmarked sections being deemed non-proprietary and available upon public request.

15.6 Business Equity Division (M/WBE) Documents:

If a Business Equity Goal has been established for the RFP, the applicable documents must be submitted by all Proposers wishing to continue in the RFP evaluation process within two (2) City business days after the RFP Close Date, exclusive of the Close Date, to the Bonfire Portal.

15.7 Alternate Proposals:

Proposers may offer an “equal” product as an alternate Proposal. The final determination of what constitutes an “approved equal” shall be in the sole discretion the City.

15.8 Proposal Preparation Costs:

All costs associated with preparing a Proposal in response to an RFP shall be borne by the Proposer.

15.9 Free on Board (FOB) Point:

Freight Terms shall be FOB Destination, Freight Prepaid and Allowed. The Proposer should quote its lowest and best price, with the goods delivered to the place specified, at the Proposer’s expense and risk, and their tender delivery to the City. Proposals offering any

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 12 of 23 other delivery terms are not acceptable and such term may be cause for rejection.

15.10 Prices:

i. Proposals shall be firm-priced offers unless otherwise specified.

ii. In the event of a discrepancy between unit price and extended price, the unit price shall govern; however, Proposer shall bear the risk of inaccurate extended pricing and shall be required to reduce its unit prices to meet the extended price included in the RFP in event that the use of unit prices would increase the overall cost to the City for the items and quantities included in the RFP.

iii. Prices shall be offered in the United States Dollars and cents.

iv. Unit prices shall include all costs associated with the specified good/service unless specified in the RFP, including but not limited to handling, delivery, fuel charges, fees and certifications fees. No additional charges will be accepted or paid by the City.

v. The quantities listed on the RFP are only estimates based on previous usage and do not indicate intent to purchase or a guarantee of future business. The City is obligated to pay for only those goods or services actually ordered by an authorized City employee and then received as required and accepted by the City. Proposers should extend their best price based on the estimated quantities included in the RFP, but it is understood that the City may purchase more or less of any item included in the RFP.

vi. Following the award, additional services of the same general category that could have been encompassed in the award of the contract, and that are not already on the contract, may be added based on the discount price sheet provided with the Proposal so long as such inclusion does not violate state or local law.

vii. Any services that have been omitted from this RFP that are clearly necessary shall be considered a requirement although

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 13 of 23 not directly specified or called for in the RFP. Proposers should identify such services to the extent possible when responding to the RFP.

16.0 MODIFICATION OR WITHDRAWAL OF PROPOSAL

16.1 Modification of Proposal:

Proposal may be modified in the Bonfire Portal at any time prior to the Close Date and Time. NOTE: If a Proposal is modified, it must be resubmitted by the Close Date and Time to be responsive; once a Proposal is pulled from submitted status by the Proposer, it is no longer submitted for purposes of being evaluated.

16.2 Withdrawal of Proposal:

Proposal may be withdrawn in the Bonfire Portal at any time prior to the Close Date and Time. Withdrawn Proposal may be resubmitted, with or without modifications in the Bonfire Portal, before the Close Date and Time. No Proposal may be withdrawn after the Close Date and Time without forfeiture of the Proposal/Bid guarantee, if any.

17.0 OPENING OF PROPOSAL

For Projects/RFPs that require a public opening as per state law, the Purchasing Division representative responsible for opening Proposal(s) will publicly open and read each Proposer Title (name) aloud in the Fort Worth City Council Chambers located at 200 Texas, Fort Worth, Texas 76102, at approximately 2:00 PM CST after Close Date and Time, unless otherwise noted in the RFP.

18.0 EVALUATION AND AWARD

18.1 Evaluation:

Proposers may furnish pricing for all or any portion of the RFP (unless otherwise specified). However, the City may evaluate and award the contract for any item or group of items shown on the RFP, or any combination deemed most advantageous to the City. Proposals

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 14 of 23 that specify an “all or none” award may be considered if a single award is advantageous.

18.2 Award:

The method of award is detailed in the respective RFP. The City can award contracts to the Proposer whose Proposal represents the “best value” to the City.

The following criteria may be considered to determine the best value (see section 252.043 of the Texas Local Government Code):

i. Purchase Price;

ii. Reputation of the Proposer and of the Proposer’s goods and/or services;

iii. Quality of the Proposer’s goods and/or services;

iv. Extent to which the goods and/or services meet the City’s needs;

v. Proposer’s past relationship with the City;

vi. Impact on the ability of the City to comply with laws and rules relating to contracting with historically underutilized businesses, including Certified Minority Women-Owned Businesses, and non-profit organizations employing persons with disabilities;

vii. Total long-term cost to the City to acquire the Proposer’s goods and/or services; and

viii. Any relevant criteria specifically listed in the RFP.

Each RFP will specify the criteria and relative importance of each criteria being used for each specific project.

18.3 Acceptance of Proposal:

Acceptance of a Proposal will be in the form of a Purchase Order or a contract. Subsequent purchase releases may be issued as appropriate.

The contents of a Proposal shall become a part of the contract. Under no circumstances will the City be responsible for goods and/or

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 15 of 23 services provided without a Purchase Order issued through the City’s PeopleSoft system.

18.4 Reservations:

The City expressly reserves the right to:

i. Specify approximate quantities in the RFP;

ii. Extend the RFP Close Date and Time;

iii. Consider and accept alternate Proposals, if specified in the RFP, when most advantageous to the City;

iv. Waive, as an informality, minor deviations from specifications provided they do not affect competition or result in functionally unacceptable goods and/or services;

v. Waive any minor informality in any RFP procedure (a minor informality is one that does not affect the competitiveness of the Proposers);

vi. Add additional terms or modify existing terms in the RFP;

vii. Reject a Proposal because of unbalanced unit prices Proposal;

viii. Reject or cancel any or all Proposals for any reason;

ix. Reissue an RFP;

x. Procure any item by other means;

xi. Cancel an RFP prior to the Close Date and time; and/or

xii. Award in the most advantageous manner to the City, which may include a single award, an award to multiple Proposers on a non-exclusive award basis, or awarding primary and secondary Proposers.

18.5 Negotiations:

The City reserves the right to negotiate all elements that comprise the successful Proposer’s response to ensure that the best possible consideration be afforded to all concerned.

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18.6 Period of Acceptance:

Proposer acknowledges that by submitting the Proposal, Proposer makes an offer that, if accepted in whole or part by the City, constitutes a valid and binding irrevocable offer that subject to negotiation by the City, shall be reduced to a contract as to any and all items accepted in writing by the City. Unless specified otherwise, the period of acceptance of Proposals is one hundred and eighty (180) calendar days from the Close Date.

19.0 DOCUMENTS REQUIRED FROM RECOMMENDED PROPOSER

19.1 Certificates of Insurance:

When insurance is required, the Proposer must provide Certificates of Insurance in the amounts and for the coverages required to the Purchasing Office within 14 calendar days after notification of award, or as otherwise required by the Solicitation.

19.2 Certificate of Interested Parties Form 1295:

If the Purchase Agreement must be approved by the City Council before execution, the successful Proposer is required to complete the Certificate of Interested Parties Form 1295 and submit the form within two (2) City business days to the Purchasing contact listed in the solicitation before the purchase/contract will be presented to the City Council. The form may be completed at https://www.ethics.state.tx.us/whatsnew/elf_info_form129 5.htm

20.0 AGREEMENT TERM

Unless specified otherwise, the initial term of the agreement shall be one year. Upon the expiration of the initial term, the agreement shall renew automatically under the same terms and conditions for up to four (4) one-year renewal periods, unless City or Supplier provides the other party with notice of non-renewal at least 90 days before the expiration of the initial term or renewal periods. In the event no funds or insufficient funds are appropriated by City in any fiscal period for any payments due hereunder, City will notify supplier/vendor of such occurrence and the contract will https://www.ethics.state.tx.us/whatsnew/elf_info_form1295.htm https://www.ethics.state.tx.us/whatsnew/elf_info_form1295.htm

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 17 of 23 terminate on the last day of the fiscal period for which appropriations were received without penalty or expense to City of any kind whatsoever, except as to the portions of the payments herein agreed upon for which funds have been appropriated.

21.0 UNIT PRICE ADJUSTMENT

Suppliers/vendors may require that unit prices be adjusted for increases or decreases in Supplier’s cost during the contract period using the following procedure:

i. The Supplier must submit its price adjustment request, in writing, at least 30 days before the requested effective period. The Supplier shall provide written proof of cost increases with the price adjustment request.

ii. If the City concludes that the rate increase being requested is unacceptable, the City reserves the right to adjust the rate request, or reject the rate request in its entirety and allow the contract to expire at the end of the contract term. If the City elects not to exercise the renewal option, the Purchasing Division reserves the right to issue a new solicitation or procure the goods or services by any other allowable means.

iii. Prices shall remain firm for the term of the Agreement and shall include all associated freight and delivery costs, unless otherwise specifically stated and agreed to by City.

iv. Upon expiration of the contract term, the successful Proposer agrees to hold over under the same terms and conditions of the contract for a reasonable period of time to allow the city to re-solicitate an agreement, not to exceed ninety (90) days.

v. The provision of goods and/or services shall not be suspended by the Supplier except as expressly allowed by the contract’s terms and conditions.

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 18 of 23

22.0 INVOICE AND PAYMENTS

22.1 Registration:

Successful Proposer are required to register for direct deposit payments prior to providing goods and/or services using the forms posted on the City’s website at:

https://www.fortworthtexas.gov/departments/finance/pur chasing/register

22.2 Invoice:

The Supplier shall send invoices electronically to the City’s centralized Accounts Payable department invoice email address:

supplierinvoices@fortworthtexas.gov This email address is not monitored so please do not send correspondence to this email address. The sole purpose of the supplier invoices email address is to receipt and process supplier invoices.

Please include the following on the subject line of your e-mail:

Supplier name, Invoice number, and PO number, separated by an underscore (ex: Example, Inc._123456_FW013-0000001234) To ensure the system can successfully process your invoice in an expedient manner, please adhere to the following requirements:

i. All invoices must be either a PDF or TIFF format.

ii. Image quality must be at least 300 DPI (dots per inch).

iii. Invoices must be sent as an attachment (i.e. no invoice in the body of the email).

iv. One invoice per attachment (includes PDFs). Multiple attachments per email is acceptable but each invoice must be a separate attachment.

v. Please do not send handwritten invoices or invoices that contain handwritten notes.

vi. Dot matrix invoice format is not accepted.

https://www.fortworthtexas.gov/departments/finance/purchasing/register https://www.fortworthtexas.gov/departments/finance/purchasing/register mailto:supplierinvoices@fortworthtexas.gov

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vii. The invoice must contain the following information:

a. Legal Supplier Name and Address;

b. Remit to Supplier Name and Address, if different;

c. Applicable City Department business unit# (i.e. FW013)

d. Complete City of Fort Worth PO number (i.e. the PO number must contain all preceding zeros);

e. Invoice number;

f. Invoice date; and

viii. Invoices should be submitted after delivery of the goods and/or services.

To prevent invoice processing delays, please do not send invoices by mail and email and please do not send the same invoice more than once by email to supplierinvoices@fortworthtexas.gov. To check on the status of an invoice, please contact the City Department ordering the goods/services or the Central Accounts Payable Department by email at: ZZ_FIN_AccountsPayable@fortworthtexas.gov.

If you are unable to send your invoice as outlined above at this time, please send your invoice to our centralized Accounts Payable department instead of directly to the individual city department. This will allow the city staff to digitize the invoice for faster processing.

If electronic invoicing is not possible, you may send your paper invoice to:

City of Fort Worth Attn: FMS Central Accounts Payable 200 Texas Street Fort Worth, Texas, 76102

The City’s goal is to receive 100% of invoices electronically so that all supplier payments are processed efficiently. To achieve this goal, we need the Contractor’s support.

If Contractor has any questions, please contact the Accounts Payable team at (817) 392-2451 or by email to ZZ_FIN_AccountsPayable@fortworthtexas.gov mailto:supplierinvoices@fortworthtexas.gov mailto:ZZ_FIN_AccountsPayable@fortworthtexas.gov mailto:ZZ_FIN_AccountsPayable@fortworthtexas.gov

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Contractor shall not include Federal, State of City sales tax in its invoices. City shall furnish a tax exemption certificate upon Vendor’s request.

22.3 Payment:

All payment terms shall be “Net 30 Days” unless specified in the Proposal and agreed by the City.

23.0 PROTEST PROCEDURE

Due to the subjective nature RFPs, the City does not allow for protests of RFP awards. If a Proposer believes that a procedural error has occurred, the Proposer should notify the buyer using the Bonfire Portal immediately.

24.0 COOPERATIVE PURCHASING

i. The City has interlocal agreements with many other governmental entities that provides the ability for other entities to use the City’s contracts, so long as Supplier/vendor agree to extend the same terms, conditions, and pricing to the other entities. Proposer, shall indicate in their Proposal whether they agree that to extend the terms, conditions, specifications, and pricing of its agreement with the City to other governmental entities.

ii. If the successful Proposer agrees to extend the resulting contract to other governmental entities, the following shall apply: Governmental entities with interlocal agreements with the City shall be eligible, but not obligated, to purchase material/services under contract(s) awarded as a result of City solicitations. All purchases by governmental entities other than the City shall be billed directly to that governmental entity and paid by that governmental entity. The City shall not be responsible for another governmental entity’s debts. Each governmental entity shall order its own material/services as needed.

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 21 of 23

25.0 GENERAL PROVISIONS

The Supplier shall not assign its rights or duties under an award without the prior written consent of the City. Such consent shall not relieve the assignor of liability in the event of default by its assignee.

26.0 SUBCONTRACTORS

Proposers may include subcontractors for any part of services offered. City reserves the right at its sole discretion to accept or reject any proposal that includes subcontractors. Upon award of a contract, City reserves the right to pre-approve use of any and all subcontractors.

27.0 BEST AND FINAL OFFER

The City at its sole discretion may elect to have Proposers that submit proposals deemed most advantageous to the City to prepare a Best and Final Offer for consideration by the Evaluation Committee. Contract negotiations will then be based on submitted Best and Final Offers.

28.0 ASSIGNMENT

The Proposers shall not assign its rights or duties under an award without the prior written consent of the City. Such consent shall not relieve the assignor of liability in the event of default by its assignee.

29.0 ERRORS OR OMISSIONS

The Proposer shall not be allowed to take advantage of any errors or omissions in this RFP. Where errors or omissions appear in this RFP, the Proposer shall promptly notify the City’s Purchasing Division in writing of such error or omission it discovers. Any significant errors, omissions or inconsistencies in this RFP are to be reported no later than ten (10) days before time for the RFP response is to be submitted.

30.0 RIGHT OF ASSURANCE

Whenever the City has reason to question the Proposer’s intent to perform, the City may demand that the Proposer(s) give written assurance of Proposer’s intent to perform. In the event a demand is made, and no

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 22 of 23 assurance is given within ten (10) calendar days, the City may treat this failure as an anticipatory repudiation of the contract.

31.0 CHANGE ORDERS

No oral statement of any person shall modify or otherwise change or affect the terms, conditions or specifications stated in the resulting contract.

32.0 VENUE

The contract/agreement(s) will be governed and construed according to the laws of the State of Texas. The contract(s) is performable in Tarrant County, Texas. Venue shall lie exclusively in Tarrant County, Texas.

33.0 CONFLICT OF INTEREST

No public official shall have interest in this contract, in accordance with Vernon’s Texas Codes Annotated, Local Government Code Title 5, Subtitled C., Chapter 171.

34.0 INSURANCE

For the duration of a contract resulting from this RFP, Proposer shall carry insurance in the types and amounts as negotiated in the final contract.

35.0 CONTRACT CONSTRAINTS AND CONDITIONS

All goods and/or services shall be provided in accordance with applicable requirements and ordinances of the City, laws of the State of Texas, and applicable federal laws.

The proposed contract has been provided with this RFP. However, all final terms and conditions will be negotiated with the awarded Proposer.

36.0 CHANGE IN COMPANY NAME OR OWNERSHIP

The successful Proposer shall notify the City’s Purchasing Division, in writing, of a company name, ownership, or address change for the purpose of maintaining updated City records. The president of the company or authorized official must sign the letter. A letter indicating changes in a

Effective Date: Jan 8, 2024 Ref#: RFP-01 Revision: 00 Page 23 of 23 company name or ownership must be accompanied with supporting legal documentation such as an updated W-9, documents filed with the state indicating such change, copy of the board of director’s resolution approving the action, or an executed merger or acquisition agreement. Failure to do so may adversely impact future invoice payments.