6723 Z1 ETM Restaurant RFP Final.doc

State of Nebraska State Purchasing Bureau

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR CONTRACTUAL SERVICES

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY!

SCOPE OF SERVICE

The State of Nebraska (State), Department of Administrative Services (DAS), Materiel Division, State Purchasing Bureau (SPB), is issuing this Request for Proposal (RFP) Number 6723 Z1 for the purpose of selecting a qualified Contractor to provide Eugene T. Mahoney State Park Food and Beverage Service Management (restaurant, catering, and beverage services).

A more detailed description can be found in Section V. The resulting contract may not be an exclusive contract as the State reserves the right to contract for the same or similar services from other sources now or in the future.

The term of the contract will be three (3) years commencing upon execution of the contract by the State and the Contractor notice to proceed. The Contract includes the option to renew for two (2) additional two (2) year periods upon mutual agreement of the Parties. The State reserves the right to extend the period of this contract beyond the termination date when mutually agreeable to the Parties.

ALL INFORMATION PERTINENT TO THIS REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL CAN BE FOUND ON THE INTERNET AT: http://das.nebraska.gov/materiel/purchasing.html.

A Mandatory Pre-Proposal Conference will be held on Thursday, November 10, 2022, 1:00 PM CT at Eugene T. Mahoney State Park, Kiewit Lodge, 2850 West Park Highway, Ashland NE 68003-3508.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 84-602.04, State contracts in effect as of January 1, 2014, and contracts entered into thereafter, must be posted to a public website. The resulting contract, the solicitation, and the successful awarded bidder’s proposal and response will be posted to a public website managed by DAS, which can be found at http://statecontracts.nebraska.gov And https://www.nebraska.gov/das/materiel/purchasing/contract_search/index.php.

In addition and in furtherance of the State’s public records Statute (Neb. Rev. Stat. § 84-712 et seq.), all proposals or responses received regarding this solicitation will be posted to the State Purchasing Bureau public website.

These postings will include the entire proposal or response. Bidder must request that proprietary information be excluded from the posting. The bidder must identify the proprietary information, mark the proprietary information according to state law, and submit the proprietary information in a separate container or envelope marked conspicuously using an indelible method with the words "PROPRIETARY INFORMATION". The bidder should submit a detailed written document showing that the release of the proprietary information would give a business advantage to named business competitor(s) and explain how the named business competitor(s) will gain an actual business advantage by disclosure of information. The mere assertion that information is proprietary or that a speculative business advantage might be gained is not sufficient. (See Attorney General Opinion No. 92068, April 27, 1992) THE BIDDER MAY NOT ASSERT THAT THE ENTIRE PROPOSAL IS PROPRIETARY. COST PROPOSALS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED PROPRIETARY AND ARE A PUBLIC RECORD IN THE STATE OF NEBRASKA. The State will determine, in its sole discretion, if the disclosure of the information designated by the Bidder as proprietary would 1) give advantage to business competitors and 2) serve no public purpose. The Bidder will be notified of the State’s decision. Absent a determination by the State that the information may be withheld pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 84-712.05, the State will consider all information a public record subject to disclosure.

If the agency determines it is required to release proprietary information, the bidder will be informed. It will be the bidder's responsibility to defend the bidder's asserted interest in non-disclosure.

To facilitate such public postings, with the exception of proprietary information, the State of Nebraska reserves a royalty-free, nonexclusive, and irrevocable right to copy, reproduce, publish, post to a website, or otherwise use any contract, proposal, or response to this solicitation for any purpose, and to authorize others to use the documents. Any individual or entity awarded a contract, or who submits a proposal or response to this solicitation, specifically waives any copyright or other protection the contract, proposal, or response to the solicitation may have; and, acknowledges that they have the ability and authority to enter into such waiver. This reservation and waiver is a prerequisite for submitting a proposal or response to this solicitation, and award of a contract. Failure to agree to the reservation and waiver will result in the proposal or response to the solicitation being found non-responsive and rejected.

Any entity awarded a contract or submitting a proposal or response to the solicitation agrees not to sue, file a claim, or make a demand of any kind, and will indemnify and hold harmless the State and its employees, volunteers, agents, and its elected and appointed officials from and against any and all claims, liens, demands, damages, liability, actions, causes of action, losses, judgments, costs, and expenses of every nature, including investigation costs and expenses, settlement costs, and attorney fees and expenses, sustained or asserted against the State, arising out of, resulting from, or attributable to the posting of the contract or the proposals and responses to the solicitation, awards, and other documents.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

iREQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR CONTRACTUAL SERVICES iiTABLE OF CONTENTS ivGLOSSARY OF TERMS viiiACRONYM LIST

1I.

PROCUREMENT PROCEDURE

1A.

GENERAL INFORMATION

1B.

PROCURING OFFICE AND COMMUNICATION WITH STATE STAFF AND EVALUATORS

2C.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

3D.

WRITTEN QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

3E.

MANDATORY PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE

3F.

NOTICE OF INTENT TO ATTEND MANDATORY PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE

3G.

SECRETARY OF STATE/TAX COMMISSIONER REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS (Statutory)

3H.

ETHICS IN PUBLIC CONTRACTING

4I.

DEVIATIONS FROM THE REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

4J.

DISCOUNTS

4K.

PRICES

4L.

COST CLARIFICATION

4M.

SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS

5N.

PROPOSAL PREPARATION COSTS

5O.

FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

5P.

PROPOSAL CORRECTIONS

6Q.

LATE PROPOSALS

6R.

PROPOSAL OPENING

6S.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL/PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS

6T.

EVALUATION COMMITTEE

6U.

EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS

7V.

ORAL INTERVIEWS/PRESENTATIONS AND/OR DEMONSTRATIONS

7W.

BEST AND FINAL OFFER

7X.

REFERENCE AND CREDIT CHECKS

8Y.

AWARD

8Z.

ALTERNATE/EQUIVALENT PROPOSALS

8AA.

LUMP SUM OR “ALL OR NONE” PROPOSALS

8BB.

EMAIL SUBMISSIONS

8CC.

REJECTION OF PROPOSALS

8DD.

RESIDENT BIDDER

9II.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

9A.

GENERAL

9B.

NOTIFICATION

10C.

BUYER’S REPRESENTATIVE

10D.

GOVERNING LAW (Statutory)

10E.

BEGINNING OF WORK

10F.

AMENDMENT

11G.

CHANGE ORDERS OR SUBSTITUTIONS

11H.

VENDOR PERFORMANCE REPORT(S)

11I.

NOTICE OF POTENTIAL CONTRACTOR BREACH

12J.

BREACH

12K.

NON-WAIVER OF BREACH

12L.

SEVERABILITY

12M.

INDEMNIFICATION

13N.

ATTORNEY'S FEES

13O.

ASSIGNMENT, SALE, OR MERGER

14P.

CONTRACTING WITH OTHER NEBRASKA POLITICAL SUB-DIVISIONS OF THE STATE OR ANOTHER STATE

14Q.

FORCE MAJEURE

14R.

EMERGENCY

15S.

CONFIDENTIALITY

15T.

EARLY TERMINATION

16U.

CONTRACT CLOSEOUT

17III.

CONTRACTOR DUTIES

17A.

INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR / OBLIGATIONS

18B.

EMPLOYEE WORK ELIGIBILITY STATUS

18C.

COMPLIANCE WITH CIVIL RIGHTS LAWS AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYMENT / NONDISCRIMINATION (Statutory)

18D.

COOPERATION WITH OTHER CONTRACTORS

19E.

PERMITS, REGULATIONS, LAWS

19F.

INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS

21G.

ANTITRUST

21H.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

22I.

STATE PROPERTY

22J.

SITE RULES AND REGULATIONS

22K.

ADVERTISING

22L.

DISASTER RECOVERY/BACK UP PLAN

23M.

DRUG POLICY

23N.

WARRANTY

24IV.

PAYMENT

24A.

PROHIBITION AGAINST ADVANCE PAYMENT (Statutory)

24B.

TAXES (Statutory)

24C.

INVOICES

24D.

INSPECTION AND APPROVAL

24E.

PAYMENT (Statutory)

24F.

LATE PAYMENT (Statutory)

24G.

SUBJECT TO FUNDING / FUNDING OUT CLAUSE FOR LOSS OF APPROPRIATIONS (Statutory)

25H.

RIGHT TO AUDIT (First Paragraph is Statutory)

26V.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION AND SCOPE OF WORK

26A.

PROJECT OVERVIEW

26B.

PROJECT ENVIRONMENT

27C.

STAFFING REQUIREMENTS

28D.

FOOD SERVICE AND OPERATION REQUIREMENTS

30E.

MENU

30F.

ALCOHOL

31G.

PRICING AND PAYMENTS

32H.

PROMOTIONS, MARKETING AND SPECIAL EVENTS

32I.

FACILITY, EQUIPMENT AND SANITATION

34J.

BUILDINGS, UTILITIES, SUPPLIES, SPACE USE

35K.

ADMINISTRATION

35L.

DELIVERABLES

36VI.

PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS

36A.

PROPOSAL SUBMISSION

39Form A Bidder Proposal Point of Contact

40Form B Notification of Intent to Attend Mandatory Pre-Proposal Conference

41REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR CONTRACTUAL SERVICES FORM

GLOSSARY OF TERMS

Acceptance Test Procedure: Benchmarks and other performance criteria, developed by the State of Nebraska or other sources of testing standards, for measuring the effectiveness of products or services and the means used for testing such performance.

Addendum: Something to be added or deleted to an existing document; a supplement.

After Receipt of Order (ARO): After Receipt of Order

Agency: Any state agency, board, or commission other than the University of Nebraska, the Nebraska State colleges, the courts, the Legislature, or any other office or agency established by the Constitution of Nebraska.

Agent/Representative: A person authorized to act on behalf of another.

Amend: To alter or change by adding, subtracting, or substituting.

Amendment: A written correction or alteration to a document.

Appropriation: Legislative authorization to expend public funds for a specific purpose. Money set apart for a specific use.

Automated Clearing House: (ACH) Electronic network for financial transactions in the United States Award: All purchases, leases, or contracts which are based on competitive proposals will be awarded according to the provisions in the solicitation.

Best and Final Offer (BAFO): In a competitive proposal, the final offer submitted which contains the bidder’s most favorable terms for price.

Bidder: A vendor who submits a proposal in response to a written solicitation.

Breach: Violation of a contractual obligation by failing to perform or repudiation of one’s own promise.

Business: Any corporation, partnership, individual, sole proprietorship, joint-stock company, joint venture, or any other private legal entity.

Business Day: Any weekday, except State-recognized holidays.

Calendar Day: Every day shown on the calendar including Saturdays, Sundays, and State/Federal holidays.

Cancellation: To call off or revoke a purchase order or contract without expectation of conducting or performing it at a later time.

Change Order: Document that provides an addendum and/or amendments to an executed purchase order or contract.

Collusion: An agreement or cooperation between two or more persons or entities to accomplish a fraudulent, deceitful, or unlawful purpose.

Competition: The effort or action of two or more commercial interests to obtain the same business from third parties.

Confidential Information: Unless otherwise defined below, “Confidential Information” shall also mean proprietary trade secrets, academic and scientific research work which is in progress and unpublished, and other information which if released would give advantage to business competitors and serve no public purpose (see Neb. Rev. Stat. §84-712.05(3)). In accordance with Nebraska Attorney General Opinions 92068 and 97033, proof that information is proprietary requires identification of specific, named competitor(s) who would be advantaged by release of the information and the specific advantage the competitor(s) would receive.

Contract: An agreement between two or more parties creating obligations that are enforceable or otherwise recognizable at law; the writing that sets forth such an agreement.

Contract Administration: The administration of the contract which includes and is not limited to; contract signing, contract amendments and any necessary legal actions.

Contract Award: Occurs upon execution of the State document titled “Service Contract Award” by the proper authority.

Contract Management: The management of day to day activities at the agency which includes and is not limited to ensuring deliverables are received, specifications are met, handling meetings and making payments to the Contractor.

Contract Period: The duration of the contract.

Contractor: An individual or entity lawfully conducting business in the State, or licensed to do so, who seeks to provide goods or services under the terms of a written solicitation.

Cooperative Purchasing: The combining of requirements of two or more political entities to obtain advantages of volume purchases, reduction in administrative expenses or other public benefits.

Copyright: A property right in an original work of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression, giving the holder the exclusive right to reproduce, adapt and distribute the work.

Customer Service: The process of ensuring customer satisfaction by providing assistance and advice on those products or services provided by the Contractor.

Default: The omission or failure to perform a contractual duty.

Deviation: Any proposed change(s) or alteration(s) to either the terms and conditions or deliverables within the scope of the written solicitation or contract.

Evaluation: The process of examining an offer after opening to determine the contractor’s responsibility, responsiveness to requirements, and to ascertain other characteristics of the offer that relate to determination of the successful award.

Evaluation Committee: Individuals selected by the requesting agency for the evaluation of proposals (offers made in response to written solicitations).

Extension: Continuance of a contract for a specified duration upon the agreement of the parties beyond the original Contract Period. Not to be confused with “Renewal Period”.

Foreign Corporation: A foreign corporation that was organized and chartered under the laws of another state, government, or country.

Installation Date: The date when the procedures described in “Installation by Contractor“, and “Installation by State”, as found in the solicitation, or contract, are completed.

Interested Party: A person, acting in their personal capacity, or an entity entering into a contract or other agreement creating a legal interest therein.

Invalid Proposal: A proposal that does not meet the requirements of the solicitation or cannot be evaluated against the other proposals.

Late Proposal: An offer received after the Opening Date and Time.

Mandatory/Must: Required, compulsory, or obligatory.

May: Discretionary, permitted; used to express possibility.

Module (see System): A collection of routines and data structures that perform a specific function of software.

Must: See Mandatory/Must and Shall/Will/Must.

Non-Responsive Proposal: Any proposal that does not comply with the requirements of the Request For Proposal.

Opening Date and Time: Specified date and time for the public opening of received, labeled, and sealed formal proposals.

Operating System: The control program in a computer that provides the interface to the computer hardware and peripheral devices, and the usage and allocation of memory resources, processor resources, input/output resources, and security resources.

Outsourcing: The contracting out of a business process which an organization may have previously performed internally or has a new need for, to an independent organization from which the process is purchased back.

Performance Bond: An insurance agreement, accompanied by a monetary commitment, by which a third party (the surety) accepts liability and guarantees that the Contractor fulfills any and all obligations under the contract.

Point of Contact (POC): The person designated to receive communications and to communicate.

Pre-Proposal Conference: A meeting scheduled for the purpose of clarifying a written solicitation and related expectations.

Product: Something that is distributed commercially for use or consumption and that is usually (1) tangible personal property, (2) the result of fabrication or processing, and (3) an item that has passed through a chain of commercial distribution before ultimate use or consumption.

Project: The total scheme, program, or method worked out for the accomplishment of an objective, including all documentation, commodities, and services to be provided under the contract.

Proposal: Bidder’s response to a written solicitation Proprietary Information: Proprietary information is defined as trade secrets, academic and scientific research work which is in progress and unpublished, and other information which if released would give advantage to business competitors and serves no public purpose (see Neb. Rev. Stat. § 84-712.05(3)). In accordance with Attorney General Opinions 92068 and 97033, proof that information is proprietary requires identification of specific named competitor(s) advantaged by release of the information and the demonstrated advantage the named competitor(s) would gain by the release of information.

Protest/Grievance: A complaint about a governmental action or decision related to a solicitation or resultant contract, brought by a bidder who has submitted a proposal response by the opening date and time in connection with the award in question, to AS Materiel Division or another designated agency with the intention of achieving a remedial result.

Public Proposal Opening: The process of opening correctly submitted offers at the time and place specified in the written solicitation and in the presence of anyone who wished to attend.

Release Date: The date of public release of the written solicitation to seek offers.

Renewal Period: Optional contract periods subsequent to the original Contract Period for a specified duration with previously agreed to terms and conditions. Not to be confused with Extension.

Request for Proposal (RFP): A written solicitation utilized for obtaining competitive offers.

Responsible Contractor: A contractor who has the capability in all respects to perform fully and lawfully all requirements with integrity and reliability to assure good faith performance.

Responsive Bidder: A bidder who has submitted a proposal which conforms to all requirements of the solicitation document.

Shall/Will/Must: An order/command; mandatory.

Should: Expected; suggested, but not necessarily mandatory.

Specifications: The detailed statement, especially of the measurements, quality, materials, and functional characteristics, or other items to be provided under a contract.

Statutory: These clauses are controlled by state law and are not subject to negotiation.

Subcontractor: Individual or entity with whom the contractor enters a contract to perform a portion of the work awarded to the contractor.

System (see Module): Any collection or aggregation of two (2) or more Modules that is designed to function, or is represented by the Contractor as functioning or being capable of functioning, as an entity.

Termination: Occurs when either Party, pursuant to a power created by agreement or law, puts an end to the contract prior to the stated expiration date. All obligations which are still executory on both sides are discharged but any right based on prior breach or performance survives.

Third Party: Any person or entity, including but not limited to fiduciaries, shareholders, owners, officers, managers, employees, legally disinterested persons, and sub-contractors or agents, and their employees. It shall not include any entity or person who is an interested Party to the contract or agreement.

Trade Secret: Information, including, but not limited to, a drawing, formula, pattern, compilation, program, device, method, technique, code, or process that (a) derives independent economic value, actual or potential, from not being known to, and not being ascertainable by proper means by, other persons who can obtain economic value from its disclosure or use; and (b) is the subject of efforts that are reasonable under the circumstances to maintain its secrecy (see Neb. Rev. Stat. §87-502(4)).

Trademark: A word, phrase, logo, or other graphic symbol used by a manufacturer or bidder to distinguish its product from those of others, registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Upgrade: Any change that improves or alters the basic function of a product or service.

Vendor Performance Report: A report completed by the using agency and submitted to State Purchasing Bureau documenting products or services delivered or performed which exceed or fail to meet the terms of the purchase order, contract, and/or solicitation specifications.

Vendor: An individual or entity lawfully conducting business with the State.

Will: See Mandatory/Shall/Will/Must.

Work Day: See Business Day.

ACRONYM LIST

ARO – After Receipt of Order

ACH – Automated Clearing House

BAFO – Best and Final Offer

COI – Certificate of Insurance

DAS – Department of Administrative Services ETM – Eugene T Mahoney NGPC – Nebraska Game and Parks Commission

RFP – Request for Proposal SHP – State Historical Park SP – State Park

SPB – State Purchasing Bureau

I. PROCUREMENT PROCEDURE

A. GENERAL INFORMATION

The solicitation is designed to solicit proposals from qualified Bidder who will be responsible for providing Eugene T. Mahoney State Park Food and Beverage Service Management (restaurant, catering, and beverage service) at a competitive and reasonable cost. Terms and Conditions, Project Description and Scope of Work, and Proposal instruction requirements may be found in Sections II through VI.

Proposals shall conform to all instructions, conditions, and requirements included in the solicitation. Prospective bidders are expected to carefully examine all documents, schedules, and requirements in this solicitation, and respond to each requirement in the format prescribed. Proposals may be found non-responsive if they do not conform to the solicitation.

B. PROCURING OFFICE AND COMMUNICATION WITH STATE STAFF AND EVALUATORS

Procurement responsibilities related to this solicitation reside with State Purchasing Bureau. The point of contact (POC) for the procurement is as follows:

Name:

Connie Heinrichs

Agency:

State Purchasing Bureau

Address:

1526 K Street, Suite 130

Lincoln, NE 68508 Telephone:

402-471-0975 E-Mail:

connie.heinrichs@nebraska.gov From the date the solicitation is issued until the Intent to Award is issued, communication from the Bidder is limited to the POC listed above. After the Intent to Award is issued, the Bidder may communicate with individuals the State has designated as responsible for negotiating the contract on behalf of the State. No member of the State Government, employee of the State, or member of the Evaluation Committee is empowered to make binding statements regarding this solicitation. The POC will issue any answers, clarifications or amendments regarding this solicitation in writing. Only the SPB or awarding agency can award a contract. Bidders shall not have any communication with, or attempt to communicate or influence any evaluator involved in this solicitation.

The following exceptions to these restrictions are permitted:

1. Contact made pursuant to pre-existing contracts or obligations;

2. Contact required by the schedule of events or an event scheduled later by the solicitation POC; and

3. Contact required for negotiation and execution of the final contract.

The State reserves the right to reject a bidder’s proposal, withdraw an Intent to Award, or terminate a contract if the State determines there has been a violation of these procurement procedures.

C. SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

The State expects to adhere to the procurement schedule shown below, but all dates are approximate and subject to change.

NOTE: All ShareFile links in the Schedule of Events below, are unique links for each schedule step. Please click the correct link for the upload step you are requesting.

September 26, 2022

ShareFile link for uploading questions: https://nebraska.sharefile.com/r-r9be75e459f804fe094ce335d74e276b5

November 2, 2022

ShareFile link for uploading completed Form B: https://nebraska.sharefile.com/r-re87d073cd42447a5b255a8c16540e8af

November 3, 2022

Location:

Eugene T. Mahoney State Park

Kiewit Lodge 2850 West Park Highway

Ashland NE 68003-3508

* Registration Advisement:

Proposals will only be accepted from those Companies/Firms which properly register their attendance at this meeting by completing all of the required information on the State Registration Sheet.

November 10, 2022

1:00 PM

Central Time

ShareFile link for uploading questions: https://nebraska.sharefile.com/r-r9be75e459f804fe094ce335d74e276b5

November 14, 2022

http://das.nebraska.gov/materiel/purchasing.html

November 21, 2022

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87094023857?pwd=bnJoRGRCS3RodHZRTHJmc3hjM3A2Zz09 ShareFile Electronic Proposal Submission Link: https://nebraska.sharefile.com/r-rddf107c87dc2466a8b12854f7c8a3c3e

December 1, 2022

2:00 PM

Central Time

December 1, 2022

January 1, 2023

January 1, 2023

D. WRITTEN QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS tc "WRITTEN QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS " \l 2 Questions regarding the meaning or interpretation of any solicitation provision must be submitted in writing to State Purchasing Bureau and clearly marked “RFP Number 6723 Z1; “Eugene T. Mahoney State Park Food and Beverage Service Management (restaurant, catering, and beverage service) Questions”. The POC is not obligated to respond to questions that are received late per the Schedule of Events.

Bidders should present, as questions, any assumptions upon which the Bidder's proposal is or might be developed. Any proposal containing assumptions may be deemed non-responsive. Non-responsive proposals may be rejected by the State. Proposals will be evaluated without consideration of any known or unknown assumptions of a bidder. The contract will not incorporate any known or unknown assumptions of a bidder.

It is preferred that questions be uploaded using the following link via ShareFile:

https://nebraska.sharefile.com/r-r9be75e459f804fe094ce335d74e276b5 It is recommended that Bidders submit questions using the following format.

Written answers will be posted at http://das.nebraska.gov/materiel/purchasing.html per the Schedule of Events.

E. MANDATORY PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE

A pre-proposal conference will be held per the Schedule of Events. Attendance at the pre-proposal conference is mandatory in order to submit a proposal. Bidders will have an opportunity to ask questions at the conference to assist in the clarification and understanding of the solicitation requirements. Questions that have a material impact on the solicitation or process, and questions that are relevant to all bidders, will be answered in writing and posted at http://das.nebraska.gov/materiel/purchasing.html. An answer must be posted to be binding on the State. The State will attempt to provide verbal answers to questions that do not impact the solicitation or process and are only of interest to an individual bidder during the conference. If a bidder feels it necessary to have a binding answer to a question that was answered verbally, the question should be submitted in writing per the Schedule of Events.

F. NOTICE OF INTENT TO ATTEND MANDATORY PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE

Bidders should notify the POC of their intent to attend by uploading the "Notification of Intent to Attend the Pre-Proposal Conference Form" (see Form B) using the following link via ShareFile: https://nebraska.sharefile.com/r-re87d073cd42447a5b255a8c16540e8af G. SECRETARY OF STATE/TAX COMMISSIONER REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS (Statutory) All bidders must be authorized to transact business in the State of Nebraska and comply with all Nebraska Secretary of State Registration requirements. The bidder who is the recipient of an Intent to Award may be required to certify that it has complied and produce a true and exact copy of its current (within ninety (90) calendar days of the intent to award) Certificate or Letter of Good Standing, or in the case of a sole proprietorship, provide written documentation of sole proprietorship and complete the United States Citizenship Attestation Form, available on the Department of Administrative Services website at http://das.nebraska.gov/materiel/purchasing.html. This must be accomplished prior to execution of the contract.

H. ETHICS IN PUBLIC CONTRACTING

The State reserves the right to reject proposals, withdraw an award or intent to award or award, or terminate a contract if a bidder commits or has committed ethical violations, which include, but are not limited to:

1. Offering or giving, directly or indirectly, a bribe, fee, commission, compensation, gift, gratuity, or anything of value to any person or entity in an attempt to influence the bidding process;

2. Utilize the services of lobbyists, attorneys, political activists, or consultants to influence or subvert the bidding process;

3. Being considered for, presently being, or becoming debarred, suspended, ineligible, or excluded from contracting with any state or federal entity:

4. Submitting a proposal on behalf of another Party or entity; and

5. Collude with any person or entity to influence the bidding process, submit sham proposals, preclude bidding, fix pricing or costs, create an unfair advantage, subvert the proposal, or prejudice the State.

The Bidder shall include this clause in any subcontract entered into for the exclusive purpose of performing this contract.

Bidder shall have an affirmative duty to report any violations of this clause by the Bidder throughout the bidding process, and throughout the term of this contract for the awarded bidder and their subcontractors.

I. DEVIATIONS FROM THE REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

The requirements contained in the solicitation (Sections II thru VI) become a part of the terms and conditions of the contract resulting from this solicitation. Any deviations from the solicitation in Sections II through VI must be clearly defined by the bidder in its proposal and, if accepted by the State, will become part of the contract. Any specifically defined deviations must not be in conflict with the basic nature of the solicitation, requirements, or applicable state or federal laws or statutes. “Deviation”, for the purposes of this solicitation, means any proposed changes or alterations to either the contractual language or deliverables within the scope of this solicitation. The State discourages deviations and reserves the right to reject proposed deviations.

J. DISCOUNTS

Prices quoted shall be inclusive of ALL trade discounts. Cash discount terms of less than thirty (30) days will not be considered as part of the proposal. Cash discount periods will be computed from the date of receipt of a properly executed claim voucher or the date of completion of delivery of all items in a satisfactory condition, whichever is later.

K. PRICES

Prices quoted shall be net, including transportation and delivery charges fully prepaid by the contractor, F.O.B. destination named in the solicitation. No additional charges will be allowed for packing, packages, or partial delivery costs. When an arithmetic error has been made in the extended total, the unit price will govern.

Prices submitted on the cost proposal form shall remain fixed for the first year of the contract. Any request for a price increase subsequent to the first year of the contract shall not exceed three percent (3 %) of the previous Contract period. Increases will be cumulative across the remaining periods of the contract. Requests for an increase must be submitted in writing to the State Purchasing Bureau a minimum of 120 days prior to the end of the current contract period. Documentation may be required by the State to support the price increase.

The State reserves the right to deny any requested price increase. No price increases are to be billed to any State Agencies prior to written amendment of the contract by the parties.

The State will be given full proportionate benefit of any decreases for the term of the contract.

L. COST CLARIFICATION

The State reserves the right to review all aspects of cost for reasonableness and to request clarification of any proposal where the cost component shows significant and unsupported deviation from industry standards or in areas where detailed pricing is required.

M. SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS tc "SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS " \l 2 The State is accepting only electronically submitted responses. The State will not accept proposals by email, voice, or telephone.

Pages may be consecutively numbered for the entire proposal or may be numbered consecutively within sections. Figures and tables should be numbered and referenced in the text by that number. They should be placed as close as possible to the referencing text. The Technical Proposal should not contain any reference to dollar amounts. However, information such as data concerning labor hours and categories, materials, subcontracts and so forth, shall be considered in the Technical Proposal so that the bidder’s understanding of the scope of work may be evaluated. The Technical Proposal shall disclose the bidder’s technical approach in as much detail as possible, including, but not limited to, the information required by the Technical Proposal instructions.

It is the bidder’s responsibility to ensure the RFP is received electronically by the date and time indicated in the Schedule of Events. Proposals must be submitted via ShareFile by the date and time of the proposal opening per the Schedule of Events. No late proposals will be accepted.

It is the responsibility of the bidder to check the website for all information relevant to this RFP to include addenda and/or amendments issued prior to the opening date. Website address is as follows: http://das.nebraska.gov/materiel/purchasing.html.

Emphasis should be concentrated on conformance to the RFP instructions, responsiveness to requirements, completeness, and clarity of content. If the bidder’s proposal is presented in such a fashion that makes evaluation difficult or overly time consuming the State reserves the right to reject the proposal as non-conforming.

1. Bidders must submit responses via ShareFile using the proposal submission link.

Note to bidders: Not all browsers are compatible with ShareFile. Currently Chrome, Internet Explorer and Firefox are compatible. After the bidder clicks the proposal submission link, the bidder will be prompted to enter contact information including an e-mail address. By entering an e-mail address, the bidder should receive a confirmation email confirming the successful upload directly from ShareFile.

Proposal submission link: https://nebraska.sharefile.com/r-rddf107c87dc2466a8b12854f7c8a3c3e

a. The Technical, Cost Proposal and Proprietary information should be uploaded as separate and distinct files.

i. If duplicated proposals are submitted, the State will retain only the most recently submitted response.

ii. If it is the bidder’s intent to submit multiple proposals, the bidder must clearly identify the separate submissions.

iii. It is the bidder’s responsibility to allow time for electronic uploading. All file uploads must be completed by the Opening date and time per the Schedule of Events. No late proposals will be accepted.

b. ELECTRONIC PROPOSAL FILE NAMES

The bidder should clearly identify the uploaded RFP proposal files. To assist in identification the bidder should use the following naming convention:

i. RFP 6723 Z1, Company Name, Description of Service

ii. If multiple files are submitted for one RFP proposal, add number of files to file names:

a) RFP 6723 Z1 Company Name, Description of Service, File 1 of 2.

b) RFP 6723 Z1 Company Name, Description of Service, File 2 of 2.

iii. If multiple RFP proposals are submitted for the same RFP, add the proposal number to the file names:

a) RFP 6723 Z1 Company Name, Description of Service, Proposal 1 File 1 of 2.

The “Request for Proposal for Contractual Services” form must be signed manually in ink or by DocuSign and returned by the proposal opening date and time along with the bidder’s Request for Proposal and any other requirements as stated in the Request for Proposal document in order for the bidder’s Request for Proposal response to be evaluated.

By signing the “Request for Proposal for Contractual Services” form, the bidder guarantees compliance with the provisions stated in this solicitation.

N. PROPOSAL PREPARATION COSTS

The State shall not incur any liability for any costs incurred by Bidders in replying to this solicitation, including any activity related to bidding on this solicitation.

O. FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

Violation of the terms and conditions contained in this solicitation or any resultant contract, at any time before or after the award, shall be grounds for action by the State which may include, but is not limited to, the following:

1. Rejection of a bidder’s proposal;

2. Withdrawal of the Intent to Award;

3. Withdrawal of the Award;

4. Negative Vendor Performance Report(s)

5. Termination of the resulting contract;

6. Legal action; and

7. Suspension of the bidder from further bidding with the State for the period of time relative to the seriousness of the violation, such period to be within the sole discretion of the State.

P. PROPOSAL CORRECTIONS

A bidder may correct a mistake in a proposal prior to the time of opening by uploading a revised and completed proposal if the original proposal was electronically submitted.

1.

If a corrected electronic proposal is submitted, the file name(s) date/time stamped with latest date/time stamp will be accepted. The corrected proposal file name(s) should be identified as a.

Corrected 6723 Z1 Company Name Proposal #1 Description of Service, File 1 of 2, b.

Corrected 6723 Z1 Company Name Proposal #2 Description of Service, File 2 of 2, etc.

Changing a proposal after opening may be permitted if the change is made to correct a minor error that does not affect price, quantity, quality, delivery, or contractual conditions. In case of a mathematical error in extension of price, unit price shall govern.

Q. LATE PROPOSALS

Proposals received after the time and date of the proposal opening will be considered late proposals. Late proposals will be returned unopened, if requested by the bidder and at bidder's expense. The State is not responsible for proposals that are late or lost regardless of cause or fault.

R. PROPOSAL OPENING

The opening of proposals will be public and the bidders will be announced. Proposals WILL NOT be available for viewing by those present at the proposal opening. Proposals will be posted to the State Purchasing Bureau website once an Intent to Award has been posted to the website. Once proposals are opened, they become the property of the State of Nebraska and will not be returned.

S. REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL/PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS

The proposals will first be examined to determine if all requirements listed below have been addressed and whether further evaluation is warranted. Proposals not meeting the requirements may be rejected as non-responsive. The requirements are:

1. Original Request for Proposal for Contractual Services form signed manually in ink or by DocuSign;

2. Clarity and responsiveness of the proposal;

3. Completed Corporate Overview;

4. Completed Sections II through VI;

5. Completed Technical Approach; and

6. Completed State Cost Proposal Template.

T. EVALUATION COMMITTEE

Proposals are evaluated by members of an Evaluation Committee(s). The Evaluation Committee(s) will consist of individuals selected at the discretion of the State. Names of the members of the Evaluation Committee(s) will not be published prior to the intent to award.

Any contact, attempted contact, or attempt to influence an evaluator that is involved with this solicitation may result in the rejection of this proposal and further administrative actions.

U. EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS

All proposals that are responsive to the solicitation will be evaluated. Each evaluation category will have a maximum point potential. The State will conduct a fair, impartial, and comprehensive evaluation of all proposals in accordance with the criteria set forth below. Areas that will be addressed and scored during the evaluation include:

1. Corporate Overview should include but is not limited to:

a. the ability, capacity, and skill of the bidder to deliver and implement the system or project that meets the requirements of the solicitation;

b. the character, integrity, reputation, judgment, experience, and efficiency of the bidder;

c. whether the bidder can perform the contract within the specified time frame;

d. the quality of vendor performance on prior contracts;

e. such other information that may be secured and that has a bearing on the decision to award the contract;

2. Technical Approach; and,

3. Cost Proposal.

Neb. Rev. Stat. §81-161 allows the quality of performance of previous contracts to be considered when evaluating responses to competitively bid solicitations in determining the lowest responsible bidder. Information obtained from any Vendor Performance Report (See Terms & Conditions) may be used in evaluating responses to solicitations for goods and services to determine the best value for the State.

Neb. Rev. Stat. §73-107 allows for a preference for a resident disabled veteran or business located in a designated enterprise zone. When a state contract is to be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder, a resident disabled veteran or a business located in a designated enterprise zone under the Enterprise Zone Act shall be allowed a preference over any other resident or nonresident bidder, if all other factors are equal.

Resident disabled veterans means any person (a) who resides in the State of Nebraska, who served in the United States Armed Forces, including any reserve component or the National Guard, who was discharged or otherwise separated with a characterization of honorable or general (under honorable conditions), and who possesses a disability rating letter issued by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs establishing a service-connected disability or a disability determination from the United States Department of Defense and (b)(i) who owns and controls a business or, in the case of a publicly owned business, more than fifty percent of the stock is owned by one or more persons described in subdivision (a) of this subsection and (ii) the management and daily business operations of the business are controlled by one or more persons described in subdivision(a) of this subsection. Any contract entered into without compliance with this section shall be null and void.

Therefore, if a resident disabled veteran or business located in a designated enterprise zone submits a proposal in accordance with Neb. Rev. Stat. §73-107 and has so indicated on the solicitation cover page under “Bidder must complete the following” requesting priority/preference to be considered in the award of this contract, the following will need to be submitted by the bidder within ten (10) business days of request:

4. Documentation from the United States Armed Forces confirming service;

5. Documentation of discharge or otherwise separated characterization of honorable or general (under honorable conditions);

6. Disability rating letter issued by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs establishing a service-connected disability or a disability determination from the United States Department of Defense; and

7. Documentation which shows ownership and control of a business or, in the case of a publicly owned business, more than fifty percent of the stock is owned by one or more persons described in subdivision (a) of this subsection; and the management and daily business operations of the business are controlled by one or more persons described in subdivision (a) of this subsection.

Failure to submit the requested documentation within ten (10) business days of notice will disqualify the bidder from consideration of the preference.

Evaluation criteria will be released with the solicitation.

V. ORAL INTERVIEWS/PRESENTATIONS AND/OR DEMONSTRATIONS

The State may determine after the completion of the Technical and Cost Proposal evaluation that oral interviews/presentations and/or demonstrations are required. Every bidder may not be given an opportunity to interview/present and/or give demonstrations; the State reserves the right, in its discretion, to select only the top scoring bidders to present/give oral interviews. The scores from the oral interviews/presentations and/or demonstrations will be added to the scores from the Technical and Cost Proposals. The presentation process will allow the bidders to demonstrate their proposal offering, explaining and/or clarifying any unusual or significant elements related to their proposals. Bidders’ key personnel, identified in their proposal, may be requested to participate in a structured interview to determine their understanding of the requirements of this proposal, their authority and reporting relationships within their firm, and their management style and philosophy. Only representatives of the State and the presenting bidder will be permitted to attend the oral interviews/presentations and/or demonstrations. A written copy or summary of the presentation, and demonstrative information (such as briefing charts, et cetera) may be offered by the bidder, but the State reserves the right to refuse or not consider the offered materials. Bidders shall not be allowed to alter or amend their proposals.

Once the oral interviews/presentations and/or demonstrations have been completed, the State reserves the right to make an award without any further discussion with the bidders regarding the proposals received.

Any cost incidental to the oral interviews/presentations and/or demonstrations shall be borne entirely by the bidder and will not be compensated by the State.

W. BEST AND FINAL OFFER

Bidder should provide the best offer with the original proposal response and should not expect the State to request a best and final offer (BAFO).

Every bidder may not be given the opportunity to submit a BAFO. Any BAFO requested by the State and submitted by the bidder to be evaluated (using the stated BAFO criteria) and scored by the Evaluation Committee. The State reserves the right to conduct more than one Best and Final Offer. If requested by the State, the BAFO must be submitted on the BAFO Cost Proposal form. Failure to submit a requested BAFO may result in rejection of the bidder’s entire proposal response.

X. REFERENCE AND CREDIT CHECKS

The State reserves the right to conduct and consider reference and credit checks. The State reserves the right to use third parties to conduct reference and credit checks. By submitting a proposal in response to this solicitation, the bidder grants to the State the right to contact or arrange a visit in person with any or all of the bidder’s clients. Reference and credit checks may be grounds to reject a proposal, withdraw an intent to award, or rescind the award of a contract.

Y. AWARD

The State reserves the right to evaluate proposals and award contracts in a manner utilizing criteria selected at the State's discretion and in the State’s best interest. After evaluation of the proposals, or at any point in the solicitation process, the State of Nebraska may take one or more of the following actions:

1. Amend the solicitation;

2. Extend the time of or establish a new proposal opening time;

3. Waive deviations or errors in the State’s solicitation process and in bidder proposals that are not material, do not compromise the solicitation process or a bidder’s proposal, and do not improve a bidder’s competitive position;

4. Accept or reject a portion of or all of a proposal;

5. Accept or reject all proposals;

6. Withdraw the solicitation;

7. Elect to rebid the solicitation;

8. Award single lines or multiple lines to one or more bidders; or,

9. Award one or more all-inclusive contracts.

The solicitation does not commit the State to award a contract. Once intent to award decision has been determined, it will be posted to the Internet at: https://das.nebraska.gov/materiel/bidopps.html Any protests must be filed by a bidder within ten (10) business days after the intent to award decision is posted to the Internet. Grievance and protest procedure is available on the Internet at:

http://das.nebraska.gov/materiel/purchasing.html

Z. ALTERNATE/EQUIVALENT PROPOSALS

Bidder may offer proposals which are at variance from the express specifications of the solicitation. The State reserves the right to consider and accept such proposals if, in the judgment of the Materiel Administrator, the proposal will result in goods and/or services equivalent to or better than those which would be supplied in the original proposal specifications. Bidder must indicate on the solicitation the manufacturer’s name, number and shall submit with their proposal, sketches, descriptive literature and/or complete specifications. Reference to literature submitted with a previous proposal will not satisfy this provision. Proposals which do not comply with these requirements are subject to rejection.