6-RFP 26-02 SNP - Program Accountability Software Solicitation Document 09.05.2025.pdf

Savannah-Chatham County Public School System 208 Bull Street / Savannah, Georgia 31401 / (912) 395-5600

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

The Board of Public Education for the City of Savannah and the County of Chatham, the body corporate responsible for public education in the City of Savannah and the County of Chatham commonly known as the Savannah Chatham County Public School System (hereinafter referred to as “SCCPSS,” the “School District,” or the “District”) would like to take this opportunity to announce that it is requesting proposals for RFP 26-02 School Nutrition Program – Program Accountability Software Solution.

This Request for Proposals (“RFP”) packet identifies the goods and/or services requested by the SCCPSS and provides instructions for the submission of proposals and supporting documentation (collectively “Proposal Package(s)”). All Proposal Packages should be submitted electronically in the format specified by uploading to the SCCPSS Purchasing Department e-Procurement portal at https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com.

If you have any questions concerning this solicitation, please submit them in writing through the Vendor Discussions section at https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com Please note that all communications relating to this solicitation must be directed to the Purchasing Department pursuant to SCCPSS policy.

The following table provides the anticipated timeline of events associated with this solicitation, which may be modified by SCCPSS by addenda:

Request for Proposals Timeline

RFP Issue Date September 11, 2025

Deadline for Offeror Questions, Requests for Interpretations, Requests for Material Substitution of Products, Services or Contract Terms

October 1, 2025 @ 5:00 PM ET

Pre-Proposal Conference (if any) Not Applicable

Proposal Due Date and Time October 16, 2025 @ 11:00 AM ET

Proposal Submission Location SCCPSS Purchasing Department e-Procurement portal at https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com

Proposal Opening Date and Time October 16, 2025 @ 11:00 AM ET

Proposal Opening Location Electronically through the Bonfire Portal

Award Date (per award letter) TBD

Contract Start Date and End Date SCCPSS TBD https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com/ http://www.sccpss.com/NR/rdonlyres/30F33A04-35E1-4570-8E51-F4D15EED363F/0/LARGE_RGB.jpg

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Based on SCCPSS School Nutrition RFP Template

DEFINITIONS

Addendum: A change, addition, alteration, correction or revision to a proposal or contract document.

Contract Documents: Consist of the Agreement between the School Nutrition Program and the Vendor, terms and conditions, schedule, specifications, drawings, any and all addenda, errata, and bulletins issued prior to execution of the contract, other documents listed in the Agreement, and modifications issued after execution of the contract.

Offeror: A firm, individual, or corporation submitting a proposal in response to this RFP. May also be referred to as a Vendor.

Request for Proposals or RFP: Also knows as a competitive sealed proposals method, the RFP differs from the traditional sealed bid method in the following ways:

• Competitive sealed proposals allow discussions with competing offerors and adjustments to the initial proposal.

• Comparative judgmental evaluations may be made when selecting among acceptable proposals for award of the Contract.

All procurement transactions shall be conducted in a manner that provides maximum full and open competition consistent with applicable regulations.

SFA: School Food Authority

Solicitation: A document used by the School Nutrition Program to acquire goods and /or services. Solicitations must incorporate a clear and accurate description of the technical requirements for the material, product, or service to be procured. Solicitations must also identify all the requirements which the Offerors must fulfill and all other factors to be used in evaluating the bids or proposals.

Vendor: The provider of the goods and/or services under the Contract.

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I. PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS

A. Intent

1. It shall be the intent and purpose of this Request for Proposals (RFP) to cover the terms and conditions under which a successful Offeror shall be responsible to supply and deliver products to the SCCPSS, School Nutrition Program through sealed proposals. School food authorities shall comply with the requirements of 7 CFR § 210.21 and 2 CFR Part 200, subpart D and USDA implementing regulations 2 CFR Part 400 and Part 415, as applicable, which implement the applicable requirements, concerning the procurement of all goods and services with nonprofit school food service account funds. All procurement transactions must be conducted in a manner providing full and open competition consistent with the standards of this section. In order to ensure objective vendor performance and eliminate unfair competitive advantage, suppliers that develop or draft specifications, requirements, statement of work, or Request for Proposals, must be excluded from competing for such procurements. (2 CFR 200.319)

2. The District is seeking to identify and select a single vendor to provide the items as listed in the attached list in Attachment A for the locations listed in Attachment B. The selected vendor shall provide products in accordance with the Standard Terms and Conditions, Special Terms and Conditions, the RFP and any applicable Addenda.

3. The District reserves the right to accept or reject any or all proposals, or to accept any part of a proposal without accepting the whole thereof, or to accept such proposal as they deem to be in the best interest of the District, without restricting competition.

B. Contract Time Period

1. Initial Term: The initial term of this contract which results from the award of this RFP shall not exceed one year and shall commence on the date a contract is executed by a School District employee, such as the Chief Financial Officer, acting with authority under Board Policy or a special resolution of the elected School Board after an award resulting from this RFP has been made by the School District’s governing body, the elected School Board, or its designee pursuant to board policy, and terminates on the date and time set forth in the contract document.

2. Extension Option: Vendor shall agree to maintain the same terms and pricing of this Agreement for a period of ninety (90) days after the stated period of performance if this Agreement is not renewed as a transition period between contracts for the same or similar goods and/or services. If Vendor is not the successful Offeror on the subsequent solicitation for the same or similar goods and/or services, Vendor shall agree to provide the same level of goods and services provided in this Agreement to the District for a period not to exceed ninety (90) days following the end of the stated performance period, allowing for an orderly transition to a new vendor.

3. Renewal Option: The District reserves the right to renew this Agreement for four (4) additional one-year terms, if recommended by the Director of the School Nutrition Program and the Superintendent and approved by the District’s governing body, the elected School Board, to the extent such renewals are allowed by Georgia law.

https://www.law.cornell.edu/definitions/index.php?width=840&height=800&iframe=true&def_id=1df897ac0ee53456d33c34fae017b4c8&term_occur=999&term_src=Title:7:Subtitle:B:Chapter:II:Subchapter:A:Part:210:Subpart:E:210.21 https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/2/part-200 https://www.law.cornell.edu/definitions/index.php?width=840&height=800&iframe=true&def_id=92e1f5a58c279298bd17da63027e231e&term_occur=999&term_src=Title:7:Subtitle:B:Chapter:II:Subchapter:A:Part:210:Subpart:E:210.21 https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/2/part-400 https://www.law.cornell.edu/definitions/index.php?width=840&height=800&iframe=true&def_id=d0379c91b8e8c6172c6b2c6215434f62&term_occur=999&term_src=Title:7:Subtitle:B:Chapter:II:Subchapter:A:Part:210:Subpart:E:210.21 https://www.law.cornell.edu/definitions/index.php?width=840&height=800&iframe=true&def_id=3d0773bf1b9152f67ca9823f65ba1fc0&term_occur=999&term_src=Title:7:Subtitle:B:Chapter:II:Subchapter:A:Part:210:Subpart:E:210.21

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C. Proposal Submission Procedures

1. Offerors shall timely deliver Proposal Packages by uploading to the e-Procurement portal, https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com BEFORE the “RFP Closing Date and Time” listed on the Request for Proposals Timeline on the first page of solicitation, unless the “RFP Closing Date and Time” is extended by the District by an addendum to this solicitation. Proposal Packages shall be uploaded to the portal as PDF documents.

2. The Bonfire Hub is a procurement portal provided to the District by Bonfire Interactive.

The Bonfire Hub is offered at no charge to Offerors, but Offerors will be required to register with Bonfire to submit their Proposal Packages. It is recommended that Offerors register with Bonfire before the date of proposal submission to help ensure that they are not delayed in submitting a Proposal Package by the registration process. It will not be sufficient for a Offeror to have started the registration process before the “RFP Closing Date and Time.” The Proposal Package must be fully uploaded and received by the Bonfire Hub System before the “RFP Closing Date and Time.”

3. The form and formatting requirements for Proposal Packages requested by this RFP are described in Attachment A-Goods and/or Services Requested, Format of Proposals, Evaluation Criteria for Award, and Contract Requirements” and in the attached Proposal Form. Please include with your Proposal Package all documents requested by this solicitation, including, but not limited to, copies of any requested licenses and your certificate of insurance. Failure to include all of the information and/or documents requested by this solicitation could result in the Offerors’ Proposal Package not being considered by SCCPSS

4. If a required form has a signature block for a notary, please sign that form in the presence of a notary and have the form notarized.

5. Time is of the essence. Offerors are responsible for ensuring that their proposals are submitted in a timely manner through the e-Procurement portal. If a Offeror does not receive confirmation that its Proposal Package has been received after submission, then the Offeror should contact the Bonfire Support Team at support.bonfire@eunasolutions.com.

While SCCPSS will accept all proposals received in the https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com portal before the RFP Closing Date and Time, Offerors should not wait until the last minute to submit proposals. It shall not be sufficient to show that the Offeror was in the Bonfire Portal and in the process of uploading a Proposal Package at the “RFP Closing Date and Time.” The submission must be timely completed through the portal to be accepted. The prevailing time will be that which shows receipt by the District through its e-Procurement portal. The District will not accept any Proposal Package not timely submitted through the e-Procurement Portal.

6. By way of example, if the RFP Closing Date and Time is 11:00 a.m. (ET), Offerors should plan to have their Proposal Packages submitted by 10:59:59:99 a.m., because they will not be able to submit their Proposal Package through the e-Procurement Portal once 11:00 a.m. (ET) arrives, as determined by the e-Procurement Portal’s time stamp.

7. Offerors may withdraw Proposal Packages at any time prior to the “Due Date and Time” set forth in the Request for Proposals Timeline on the first page of this solicitation or as may be amended by addendum. Offerors may resubmit a new Proposal Package provided it seeks to do so prior to the “Due Date and Time” for Proposal Package submission. To revise and withdraw a proposal prior to the scheduled deadline, please submit your withdrawal request at https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com.

mailto:support.bonfire@eunasolutions.com

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8. Except as allowed by law with the consent of the District, Proposal Packages cannot be withdrawn or modified after the submission deadline. Care should be taken to ensure that information provided is accurate, complete, and consistent. Omission of any of the required information may subject the Offeror to disqualification. The District reserves the right to request information or respond to inquiries for clarification purposes only, but it is not required to give Offerors an opportunity to correct inaccurate or incomplete Proposal Packages.

D. Receipt and Registration of Proposal Packages All Proposal Packages will be received in the Bonfire portal where they will be kept confidential and will be made available to District staff (but not the general public) for review and evaluation after the “RFP Closing Date and Time” for this solicitation as set forth on Page 1 of this solicitation or by subsequent amendment, unless sooner withdrawn by an Offeror as allowed by this solicitation. Proposal Packages formally withdrawn prior to the “RFP Closing Date and Time” will not be available to the District through the Bonfire portal for review or consideration. Except as required by law, Proposal Packages will not be made available to the general public unless or until an award is made (if any) to protect the competitive process. If an award is made at the conclusion of the evaluation process, public and non-proprietary information about Proposal Packages will be made available to the public pursuant to Section J below. If this solicitation is cancelled before an award is made, proposals will not be made available for public inspection, except as may be required by law, to prevent offerors from having an unfair advantage in future solicitations for the same goods or services.

E. Proposals Considered an Offer.

1. An Offeror’s timely-filed, signed proposal shall be considered an offer on the part of the Offeror which may become a binding contract on the Offeror if accepted by the District at the conclusion of the proposal evaluation process. By submitting a proposal in response to this RFP, Offeror agrees that proposal will remain open for acceptance by the District for at least ninety (90) days without any changes in terms or pricing.

2. In event that the Offeror refuses to perform its promises made in its offer after acceptance by the District, the District may take such action as it deems appropriate to redress the Offeror’s failure to perform, including legal action for damages or equitable relief, including specific performance, for the Offeror’s lack of required performance. To the extent the Offeror provided a bid bond, the District may seek payment on the bid bond.

F. Duty To Examine

1. It is the responsibility of each Offeror to examine the entire solicitation, seek clarification in writing, and check its offer for accuracy before submitting the offer. Lack of care in preparing an offer shall not be grounds for withdrawing the offer after the offer due date and time nor shall it give rise to any contract claim. i) Offerors shall carefully examine all documents in the solicitation to obtain knowledge of existing conditions, limitations, and requirements. Failure to examine the documents will not relieve the Offeror of responsibility for same nor will extra payment or change order requests be considered for conditions which could have been determined by examining the solicitation.

2. Proposals will be considered as conclusive evidence of complete examination and understanding of the terms and conditions of the proposal documents including the specifications and all requirements thereof of the RFP. It is understood that submission of a proposal indicates full acceptance of the same by the parties submitting the proposal. Furthermore, by submitting a proposal the Offeror waives the right to claims for additional time or monetary compensation for all work without limit required to complete the contract which could have been obtained by

SCCPSS RFP 26-02 School Nutrition Program – Program Accountability Software Solution Page 6 the Offeror through examination of all documents or raising a question regarding requirements prior to submitting a proposal.

3. The District is not liable for any costs incurred by Offerors prior to issuance of or entering into a contract. Costs associated with developing the proposal, preparing for oral presentations, and any other expenses incurred by the Offeror in responding to this RFP are entirely the responsibility of the Offeror and shall not be reimbursed in any manner by the School Nutrition Program.

G. Bidder Questions, Requests for Interpretations, Requests for Material Substitution of Products, Services or Contract Terms.

This solicitation document for this Request for Proposals (“RFP”) sets forth 1) the rules for the solicitation process, 2) the contract terms that will become binding on any Bidders selected for award, and 3) the specifications for the Scope of Work and/or Technical Specifications for the products to be purchased by the District. If a Bidder should have any questions relating to this RFP, including but not limited to the interpretation of RFP language, the specifications for the goods and/or services requested and/or requests for the substitution of different materials, products, or services, the terms of sample contract provisions attached to this solicitation and/or requests to propose different contract, the preparation of submission of Proposal Packages, or the evaluation and contract award process outlined in this RFP, the Offeror may deliver written requests for interpretation or requests for the substitution of products, services, or contract terms to the Purchasing Department through the e-Procurement portal at https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com by the Deadline for Bidder Questions, Requests for Interpretations, Requests for Material Substitution of Products, Services or Contract Terms listed on the first page of this solicitation, as may be subsequently amended.

All answers to questions for interpretation, requests for material substitution and requests for changes of contract terms shall be made by addenda to the RFP and shall be made available to all Bidders through the District’s purchasing portal.

1. General questions about the solicitation or bidding process may be asked without following a specific format or without providing specific information.

2. Questions about the interpretation of the meaning of a specific provision of this solicitation should identify a) the number and title of each section of this solicitation that the Bidder has a question about, b) the page number where the provision is found, and c) state specific question the Bidder has about the provision.

3. For requests to changes the terms of this solicitation and any resulting contract, the request should identify any Bid Exceptions by: (a) the number and title of each section of this Bid that the Bidder takes exception to; (b) the specific sentence within such section that the Offeror takes exception to; and (c) any alternate provision proposed by the Offeror.

4. When requesting substitutions for alternate/equivalent products or changes to the scope of work from those requested by this ITB before the award of a contract, Bidders should submit a substitution request by the deadline for Requests for Substitution, and the Bidder shall provide the following information to the District to assess whether to approve the substitution:

a) Product identification, including manufacturer and/or distributor’s name and number, brand name, product code, product label, quantity per case, case weight and item number.

b) Manufacturer’s product literature/specifications, including but not limited to product description, technical specifications and warranties.

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c) Bidder’s explanation as to why it believes the requested substitute is equal or superior in all respects to the product originally specified by the District.

Requests for substitution should NOT contain any pricing information.

The District shall have sole discretion to determine whether to approve a requested substitute.

5. All requests for interpretation, substitution, or changes to contract terms, must be submitted to the Purchasing Department before the Deadline for Written Questions/Requests for Substitution set forth in the Request for Proposals Timeline as set forth on page 1 of this solicitation, as may amended. The District shall not be required to answer any questions about this RFP submitted after 4:59:59:99 p.m. (ET) on the date of this deadline. Any requests for interpretation, requests for changed solicitation or contract terms, or requests for the substitution of products or changes in product scope, may be rejected if the information requested above is not provided.

6. The Senior Purchasing Director, or her designee, in her discretion, may extend the deadline for submitting requests for interpretation for all Offerors.

H. Information to be Provided for Requests for Changes to the Scope of Work or the Substitution of Products Prior to Bid Award.

1. Manufacturer’s name and product model numbers as listed in the specification in Attachment A shall be used to establish minimum quality and design features which are acceptable. Manufacturer’s name and product model numbers as listed in these specifications shall be used to establish minimum quality and design features. Similar products of other reputable manufacturers may be acceptable so long as 1) the Bidder submits a request for substitution prior to the deadline for requests for substitution and 2) the District approves the requested substitution and adds it to the list of products bidders may bid on. This determination shall rest solely with the District. If technical specifications are not included, the alternate product will not be considered. Submission of specifications and warranties does not guarantee approval of acceptance of the product.

I. Offeror’s Essential Credentials and Business Structure to be considered a “Responsible Offeror.”

1. To even be considered for a possible award of a contract for the goods and/or services requested by this RFP, an Offeror must be deemed a “responsible” Offeror by the District’s Purchasing Department. To be considered a “responsible” Offeror for the purpose of this RFP, an Offeror must be able to meet the minimum licensing, bonding, insurance, and contractual requirements of this RFP. The District reserves the right to request an Offeror provide additional information or documentation to demonstrate that it is a “responsible” Offeror. Failure to provide the requested additional information, in itself, will be sufficient grounds for the District to declare the Offeror to be not “responsible” or “non-responsive” for the purposes of this RFP.

2. If the goods and/or services provided by Offeror are a technology product (such as software), then the Offeror must demonstrate that its technology product complies with the District’s adopted accessibility standard and, if it fails to do so, then the Offeror may be disqualified as a non-responsive offeror. The District retains discretion to determine which Offerors meet the District’s adopted accessibility standard, so long as all Offerors are held to the same accessibility standard. In the event that no Offeror providing a technology product (such as software) offers a technology product that complies with all of the requirements of the District’s adopted accessibility standard, the District reserves the right to consider only those Offerors whose standards are as close as possible to the District’s adopted accessibility standard. The

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District may request a compliance report or other documentation to show that the Offeror can comply with the adopted accessibility standard.

3. To be considered a “responsible” Offeror, the Offeror must demonstrate that it is either a) an in-state or out-of-state for profit, nonprofit, or professional corporation or limited liability company registered to transact business in the State of Georgia, b) an out-of-state for profit, nonprofit, or professional corporation that is excused from registering to transact business in the State of Georgia, c) a partnership, limited partnership, or joint venture composed of individuals who are U.S. Citizens, permanent residents, or residents of other countries who have not been prohibited from conducting business in the United States that can demonstrate to the District’s satisfaction through formal governing documents (such as a partnership agreement), insurance certificates, or other written documents that it has the ability and capacity to provide the goods and/or services requested by the District in the time and manner expected by the District; d) or an individual who can demonstrate through insurance certificates or other written documents to the District’s satisfaction that he/or she is a United States citizen, a permanent resident, or the resident of another country who has not been prohibited from conducting business in the United States and who has the capacity to provide the requested goods and/or services in the time and manner expected by the District. The attached solicitation forms will ask questions to ascertain information about the capacity of the Offeror, and Offerors should supply the most up-to-date version of any requested corporate registrations or corporate documents.

4. To be considered a “responsible” Offeror, the Offeror must demonstrate that it has all required business licenses or professional certifications needed to provide the required goods and/or services in the State of Georgia. The Offeror must provide copies of the most-up-to-date version of any required licenses or certifications.

5. To be considered a “responsive” and “responsible” Offeror, Offeror should disclose any possible conflicts of interests that may exist between Offeror and any “Related Party” and the SCCPSS, SCCPSS School Board members, or SCCPSS employees, so that the District can seek to evaluate the potential conflict of interest and determine whether a transaction with Offeror is appropriate given the potential conflict of interest under Board Policy or other applicable law. For purposes of this RFP “Related Party” is defined as: any corporate affiliate of Offeror, any owner of more than 10% of Offeror’s ownership interests, any of Offeror’s current officers, any of Offeror’s current directors, or any of Offeror’s current employees that Offeror reasonably expects to be involved in actually providing goods and/or services to the District in response to this solicitation.

6. The District shall have discretion to determine and evaluate potential conflicts of interest under its own policies, such as Policy GAG, and to determine whether an Offeror will be disqualified because of a potential conflict of interest. Some questions in the Offeror Information Form (Solicitation Form 1) are designed to help identify and evaluate potential conflicts of interest.

If an Offeror declines to provide additional information requested to evaluate a potential conflict of interest, the Offeror may be disqualified as “non-responsive”.

7. Offerors shall be required to disclose whether Offeror, any Related Party, or any individual working for Offeror is a beneficiary under Georgia’s Teacher Retirement System (TRS) or the Public School Employees Retirement System (PSERS). No such individual shall provide any services to the District until their information and eligibility to perform services has been certified through TRS or PSERS. The Contractor agrees to provide any information required by TRS or PSERS. Any employees or other individuals working for or through the Contractor receiving retirement benefits under Georgia’s TRS or PSERS shall be subject to any applicable salary and service limitations as outlined in Georgia law, TRS, or PSERS policy. If TRS or PSERS does not approve the engagement of an Offeror or an individual working for Offeror because they are a TRS or PSERS beneficiary, the District may disqualify or terminate an Offeror or disallow a

SCCPSS RFP 26-02 School Nutrition Program – Program Accountability Software Solution Page 9 particular individual from providing services to the District and declare the Offeror “not responsive” or not “responsible.”

8. More project-specific requirements for the Offeror to be considered a “responsible” Offeror, including insurance requirements, are set forth in more detail in “Section III- Special Terms and Conditions” which is incorporated by this reference.

J. Minimum Order Clause.

Any minimum order requirements imposed by the Offeror shall be stated on proposals prior to proposal opening and contract award. Order limitations placed on the District after contract award will not be accepted. If the successful Offeror fails to honor orders placed by the District for the entire period of the contract, then the Offeror will be held responsible for any cost incurred by SCCPSS to resolicit for the item(s). The District reserves the right to negotiate minimum orders whether by total dollar amount and/or by volume in association with the total amount of award to the Offeror in terms of total dollar amount and/or volume. If mutual agreement cannot be reached as to the minimum order amount, the District reserves the right to find the Offeror non-responsive and to make the award to the next low Offeror who is responsible and responsive or to resolicit for those items, whichever is deemed in the best interest of SCCPSS as determined by the Director of Purchasing. The decision of District shall be final and unappealable.

K. Additional Proposal Instructions

1. Proprietary Information If an Offeror submits any document with the proposal that is considered to be proprietary in nature or is considered to be a trade secret, the Offeror shall notify the school district that the documents are included in the proposal. The school district will honor the request unless or until a competing Offeror asks to have access to the information. In such case, the school district will notify the affected Offeror that a challenge has been made. If the affected Offeror can produce a court issued restraining order within ten calendar days subsequent to the notification, the information will remain confidential and shall not be released pending subsequent court action. If the restraining order is not received within the ten working day period, the information will be released, and the school district shall not be held liable.

2. Evidence of Financial Capabilities After the proposal opening, Offerors must be prepared to present suitable evidence of their financial standing within three (3) business days after request by the District. This evidence would include an income statement, balance sheet and statement of cash flow accompanied by an auditor’s report attesting to the accuracy of the financial statements.

3. Offer Acceptance Period – Proposals received are an irrevocable offer for 90 days after the proposal opening time and date.

L. Pre-Proposal Conference

If a pre-proposal conference has been scheduled under this solicitation, the date, time, phone number and location will be outlined in the chart below. Offeror should raise any questions it may have about the solicitation or the procurement at that time. An Offeror may not rely on any verbal responses to questions at the conference. Material issues raised at the conference that result in changes to the solicitation shall be answered solely through a solicitation addendum.

Date: N/A Time: N/A

Location: N/A Phone Number: N/A

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M. Addendum If clarification of the specifications/instructions is required, the request shall be made in writing no later than the time and date specified on the Request for Proposals Timeline. The school district will respond to the request in the form of an addendum issued to all potential Offerors. No addendum will be issued within five working days of the date and time of proposal opening. Responses to inquiries that affect the content of this RFP will be provided in writing to all recipients of the RFP. It is the responsibility of each Offeror to inquire about any aspect of the RFP that is not fully understood or is believed to be susceptible to more than one interpretation. The District will accept only written inquiries regarding this RFP until the date shown on the Request for Proposals Timeline, in order for a reply to reach all Offerors before the RFP closes and to give Offerors ample time to respond to any Addenda.

Any information given to a prospective Offeror concerning an RFP will be furnished to all prospective Offerors as an Addendum to the RFP if such information is necessary or if the lack of such information would be prejudicial to uninformed Offerors.

N. Proposal Opening Date/Time/Place

All Proposal Packages will be received in the Bonfire portal where they will be kept confidential and will be made available to District staff (but not the general public) for review and evaluation after the “RFP Closing Date and Time” for this solicitation as set forth on Page 1 of this solicitation or by subsequent amendment, unless sooner withdrawn by an Offeror as allowed by this solicitation. Proposal Packages formally withdrawn prior to the “RFP Closing Date and Time” will not be available to the District through the Bonfire portal for review or consideration. Except as required by law, Proposal Packages will not be made available to the general public unless or until an award is made (if any) to protect the competitive process.

If an award is made at the conclusion of the evaluation process, public and non-proprietary information about Proposal Packages will be made available to the public pursuant to Section R below. If this RFP is cancelled before an award is made, proposals will not be made available for public inspection, except as may be required by law, to prevent Offerors from having an unfair advantage in future solicitations for the same goods or services.

O. Procedure for RFP Award

Through this solicitation process, the District seeks to award a contract for the goods and/or services requested by the solicitation to one or more Offerors.

The District has discretion to determine whether it wants to award a contract to a single Offeror or multiple Offerors. If the District decides to award this contract to multiple Offerors, the District reserves the right to designate one Offeror as a primary vendor, another Offeror a secondary vendor, and other Offerors of additional backup Offerors. In which case, the Offeror determined to have made the most advantageous proposal, as determined by the District through this solicitation process, shall be designated the primary vendor. The Offeror with the next most advantageous proposal, as determined by the District through this solicitation process, shall be designated the secondary vendor, and the Offeror with the third most advantageous proposal, as determined by the District through this solicitation process, shall be designated the next backup vendor and so on for as many awards the District decides to make. The District will use the primary vendor, unless the primary vendor cannot fulfill the goods and/or services required by the District in the amount, manner, or time requested by the District, in which case the District may use the secondary vendor or other backup vendors in its discretion.

By the proposal submission deadline (as may be amended by addenda), Offerors will submit their Proposals Packages in response to this RFP through the School District’s e-Procurement Portal at https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com. Proposal Packages should include the 1) Offeror’s Technical Proposal, a custom document that outlines how the Offeror proposes to provide the good and/or services requested (without discussion of price), 2) all of the additional forms requested by this RFP, 3) any business licenses, corporate registrations, insurance certificates, tax documents, or other supporting documents

SCCPSS RFP 26-02 School Nutrition Program – Program Accountability Software Solution Page 11 requested by this RFP, and 4) a “Sealed Fee Proposal,” a document providing the Offeror’s proposed pricing information, entered in the proposal pricing module on the District’s e-Procurement Portal at https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com.

Proposal Packages will initially be reviewed by the Purchasing Department to determine whether the Proposal Packages are “responsive” and the Offerors are “responsible” as described in the General Terms and Conditions of this RFP in light of the goods and/or services requested in this RFP. If any proposal is determined not to be “responsive,” the Purchasing Department will inform the Offeror in writing that its proposal will not be considered on the basis that it is not “responsive.” If any Offeror is determined by the Purchasing Department to not be “responsible,” the Purchasing Department will inform the Offeror in writing that its proposal will not be considered on the grounds that the Offeror is not a “responsible” Offeror. In evaluating whether an Offeror’s proposal is “responsive” and the Offeror is ”responsible” the District’s review shall not be limited to the evaluation criteria set forth below, as it may also consider all of the forms and other documents submitted by the Offeror (or the Offeror’s failure to provide required information or documents). For example, if the District determines that an Offeror has an unsatisfactory litigation history, in its sole discretion, based on the Offeror’s answer to the Questions Regarding Responsibility of Offeror (Solicitation Form 1), then the Offeror may be disqualified as not “responsible.”

Similarly, if an Offeror fails to provide requested insurance forms, the Offeror may be disqualified as “non-responsive.”

After the Purchasing Department determines whether the proposals are “responsive” and the Offerors are “responsible,” an Evaluation Committee will evaluate all of the “responsive” proposals from all of the “responsible” Offerors using the evaluation criteria set forth below and score the proposals. The Evaluation Committee may determine that all proposals are good enough to be “reasonably susceptible for award” or it may determine that only a certain number of Offerors are “reasonably susceptible of being selected for award” and create a “short list” of those Offerors that the SCCPSS is most interested in contracting with.

If the Evaluation Committee seeks additional information to further differentiate short-listed Offerors, it may provide all short-listed Offerors with details regarding additional rounds of evaluation, which could require additional submissions or in-person interviews. All short-listed Offerors will be given an opportunity to participate in additional rounds of evaluation on the same basis. Offerors who did not make the short-list of Offerors reasonably susceptible for award may not be eligible to participate in additional rounds of evaluation, and should file a timely protest within five (5) business days of being notified that they would not be short-listed and would not participate in additional rounds of evaluation.

After the Evaluation Committee has completed its final ranking of “short-listed” Offerors determined to be “reasonably susceptible for award,” after initial or additional rounds evaluation, the Superintendent or her designees may, but are not required to, allow discussions, negotiations, and revision of proposals for the purposes of obtaining best and final offers. All Offerors determined to be “reasonably susceptible for award” shall be given an opportunity to participate in such discussions, negotiations, and revisions, if the Superintendent or her designees seek discussions, negotiations, and revisions of proposals. Such discussions, negotiations, and revisions, if any occur, shall be conducted in such a way so as not to disclose the contents of competing Offerors.

After best and final offers have been obtained from all Offerors “reasonably susceptible for award,” whether after the Evaluation Committee ranking or after further evaluation, discussions, negotiations, and revisions as permitted by the Superintendent or her designees, then the Superintendent or her designee shall recommend for approval an award of a contract or contracts to one or more Offerors to the District’s “Final Decision Maker” for the purchase. The “Final Decision Maker” for the purchase may vary according to Board Policy or special resolution of the District’s governing body, the elected School Board, and may also depend on the nature of the goods and/or services to be purchased and the estimated amount of the contracts to be awarded. Depending on the nature of the goods and/or services or amount of the contract, the “Final Decision Maker” will usually be the Superintendent or the elected School Board, but, SCCPSS RFP 26-02 School Nutrition Program – Program Accountability Software Solution Page 12 sometimes, another District employee will be designated by Policy or the elected School Board as the “Final Decision Maker.”

Taking into consideration the evaluation factors set forth in the request for proposals, the “Final Decision Maker” may approve the award recommendation in whole or in part, reject the entire recommendation and request that the Superintendent or her designees continue negotiations with Offerors in an attempt to find more acceptable proposal(s), or reject the recommendation and cancel the solicitation in its entirety. If the solicitation is canceled, the District may seek to obtain the same goods and/or services through a similar or different competitive process.

The Superintendent or her designees may make their own assessment of the evaluation factors set forth in this request for proposals and they are not bound by the evaluation of the Evaluation Committee. The Evaluation Committee’s scoring is meant to serve as a tool to assist the Final Decision Maker, and to make an initial determination of whether an Offeror is reasonably susceptible for award and eligible for contract negotiations and should be “short listed.”

Similarly, the elected School Board (or other Final Decision Maker) may make its own assessment of the evaluation factors set forth in this request for proposals, and it is not bound by the evaluation of the Evaluation Committee, the Superintendent, or her designees.

P. MANNER OF PREPARATION OF PROPOSAL PACKAGES AND SUBMISSION OF FEE

PROPOSALS.

1. MANNER OF PREPARATION OF PROPOSAL PACKAGES

The documents submitted with Proposal Packages should be:

• Typewritten or legibly printed in ink and signed by an authorized representative either by hand or electronically by typing the signature using the following format: “s/Representative’s Name”.

• Proposal Packages should include the 1) Offeror’s Technical Proposal, a custom document that outlines how the Offeror proposes to provide the good and/or services requested (without discussion of price), 2) all of the additional forms requested by this RFP, 3) any business licenses, corporate registrations, insurance certificates and tax documents, or other supporting documents requested by this RFP, and 4) a “Sealed Fee Proposal,” a document providing the Offeror’s propose pricing information, entered in the pricing module on the District’s e-Procurement Portal at https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com.

• All documents submitted as part of a Proposal Package shall be submitted in the PDF format, with the exception of the Sealed Fee Proposal, which will be submitted through the online pricing module on the District’s e-Procurement Portal at https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com.

• PDFs submitted in support of the Proposal Package may either be created electronically or scanned from a paper copy. The “Technical Proposal” shall be a separate, single PDF uploaded on the District’s e-Procurement Portal at https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com organized as set forth in Section 2 below.

• Please upload with your Proposal Package all documents requested by this solicitation, including, but not limited to, a copy of your firm’s current business license and certificate of insurance.

• If a required form has a signature block for a notary, please sign that form in the presence of a notary and have the form notarized.

SCCPSS RFP 26-02 School Nutrition Program – Program Accountability Software Solution Page 13

• Failure to include all of the information and/or documents requested by this solicitation could result in the offeror’s proposal not being considered by the SCCPSS.

Offerors are encouraged to review carefully all provisions and attachments of this document prior to submission. Each Proposal Package constitutes an offer and may not be withdrawn except as provided herein.

2. ORGANIZATION OF TECHNICAL PROPOSALS.

Offerors’ typewritten or legibly printed technical proposals shall be organized with a title page, table of contents, and the following subsections which should include an introductory letter and address each evaluation criteria:

NO FEES OR SERVICE COSTS SHALL BE IDENTIFIED OR DISCUSSED WITHIN THE TECHNICAL

PROPOSAL DOCUMENT, OR DURING ANY FIRM INTERVIEWS, IF CONDUCTED.

Title Page - Show the RFP subject, the name of the Offeror, Offeror’s address, telephone number, and the name and email address of the Offeror’s contact person for this RFP.

Table of Contents – Clearly identify the material by section and page number.

SECTION A: Transmittal Letter – Not Scored

This letter will summarize in a brief and concise manner, the Offeror’s understanding of the scope of work and make a positive commitment to timely provide requested services. The letter must name all persons authorized to make representations for the offeror, including the titles, addresses, and telephone numbers of such persons. An authorized agent of the offeror must sign the Letter of Transmittal indicating the agent’s title or authority. The letter should not exceed two (2) pages in length.

SECTION B: Company Experience and Qualifications – (Total Possible Points = 5)

This section includes the mandatory criteria listed below:

1. Company headquarters location and a list of any local offices. Provide the number of years your firm has been in business providing the services as requested by the solicitation.

2. Adequate information to describe the scope and nature of the offeror’s previous experience in providing the goods and/or services requested by the solicitation.

3. List of Offeror’s employees who are expected to provide services if awarded a contract by the District and copies of their educational background and experience, with a focus on their qualifications for providing the goods and/or services requested by this solicitation.

SECTION C: Functionality and Technical Approach – (Total Possible Points = 70)

Based upon the Scope of Work/Services detailed in this Attachment “A” and those opportunities identified by the activities set forth hereon, provide details of your firm’s understanding of the services to be provided. Identify any additional resources required by the District for the plan.

1. Offeror shall provide a summary of your firm’s understanding of the project and relevant issues.

2. Offeror shall describe how it will be able to deliver all of the goods and/or services identified in the specifications set forth in this solicitation. Please address how your proposed solution will address the

SCCPSS RFP 26-02 School Nutrition Program – Program Accountability Software Solution Page 14 following:

• System Requirements

• Point-of-Sale

• Point-of-Sale Reports

• Point-of-Sale Hardware

• Eligibility

• Verification

• CEP

• Menus

• Online Menus

• Food Production

• Production Records

• Purchasing

• Inventory

• Student Management

• Online Payment/Parent Portal

SECTION D: References – (Total Possible Points = 5

The Offeror shall describe how it successfully provided similar goods and/or services to those requested by the District in this solicitation for at least three other clients, preferably other school districts or government agencies.

Offerors shall also provide contact information for these references on Solicitation Form 1.

3. EVALUATION OF SEALED FEE PROPOSALS.

Sealed Fee Proposal – (Total Possible Points = 20)

All fee proposals will be entered directly in the pricing module on the District’s e-Procurement Portal at https://sccpss.bonfirehub.com.

The pricing module of the District’s e-Procurement Portal may require Offeror to provide a lump sum proposed fee based on an estimated quantity or on a hypothetical purchasing situation, such as a repair scenario to allow the District to estimate a total proposed price that requires consideration of multiple labor rates or material, costs. While the estimated quantity or hypothetical purchasing situation will be used for comparing proposals to one another, the District reserves the right to order different quantities of goods and services than those listed in the pricing module. Offeror agrees to honor its quoted pricing if awarded a contract no matter what quantity of good and/or services are actually ordered by the District.

The firm offering the overall lowest cost to the District will receive the total amount of points for cost. The remaining firms will be awarded points for cost according to the following formula:

(Total cost of lowest firm / Total cost of firm to be ranked) x 20 Points = Points Awarded

To the extent the pricing module of the District’s e-Procurement Portal requests unit prices outside of the lump sum fee that will be used for comparing proposals, those unit prices will not be considered in the award…