County of Bucks Purchasing Department 55 East Court Street, Doylestown, PA 18901 Phone: 215-348-6372 | Email: purchasing@buckscounty.org

County Commissioners Diane M. Ellis Marseglia, LCSW, Chair

Robert J. Harive., Vice Chair Gene DiGirolamo, Secretary w w w . b u c k s c o u n t y . g o v

REQUEST FOR

PROPOSALS

Frosty Hollow Trail Design & Engineering

Spec No. 35-08/26

Proposals Due: 11:30AM on Monday, August 10, 2026

1.0 Introduction

The County of Bucks, Doylestown Pennsylvania (the County) is soliciting proposals for Design & Engineering services from an independent contractor. Companies submitting proposals must have demonstrated experience in said services.

Throughout this document, the singular use of the words Company, Vendor, Contractor, Proposer or Offeror shall apply to the responders of this request for each service, or all services proposed.

2.0 Background

The purpose of this project is to construct the 0.90 -mile Frosty Hollow Trail in Middletown Township, Bucks County, PA. The new trail would provide ADA complaint upgrades along approximately 0.30 miles of existing concrete trail and 0.60 miles of completely new trail. The project includes two tax map parcels 22-59-26 and 22-60-109.

The trail is planned to traverse a PECO transmission line within tax map parcel 22-59-

26. Any trail traversing the powerline corridor must comply with the conditions identified within an existing agreement between the County and PECO, included here as Exhibit D, and PECO standards S-7070, S-7073, and S-1011. Additional security features and coordination with PECO may be required as determined through the design review process. The trail itself will be composed of asphalt, unless a more appropriate surface is determined during design and engineering.

For discussion purposes, the trail consists of two segments.

Segment 1 - The entrance of Frosty Hollow Park and ending at the entrance of the existing Tennis Courts. This existing 0.3-mile segment is composed of a 10 foot wide concreate sidewalk. ADA facilities and a new crosswalk are the only improvements proposed for this segment

Segment 2 - Starting at the northern side of the Tennis courts to Frosty Hollow Road.

0.6 miles of new trail are planned and will then run through the County owned Frosty Hollow Park facility, traversing a PECO powerline corridor and small tributary of the Mill Creek to enter municipal owned Upper Orchard Park. The trail would run along the west side of Upper Orchard Drive to connect to Frosty Hollow Road. The is planned to be a new 10-foot-wide Asphalt trail, with two crosswalks and ADA improvements at two locations along the new trail.

A concept plan is included as Exhibit F to this RFP.

Bucks County has secured a TASA Funding Grant that will be used for the design and engineering of the trail. Therefore, all work must conform to TASA standards and requirements. Ideally, the selected consultant will have a demonstrated background with TASA projects.

3.0 Scope of Work

3.1 Any products and services that are not specifically addressed in this RFP, but are necessary to provide functional capabilities proposed by the proposer, must be included in the proposal.

3.2 The selected Contractor shall perform all services necessary to progress the project from inception through the preparation of design and construction drawings, bid specifications and permitting. These services are to include, but are not limited to the following:

3.2.1 Provide a timeline for all design and permitting activities.

3.2.2 Perform property boundary survey for Tax Map Parcels 22-59-26 and 22-

60-109.

3.2.3 Perform utility clearance investigations, documentation, and coordination, including any compliance with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission process, if required.

3.2.4 Perform all necessary environmental assessments, potentially including a Categorical Exclusion Evaluation (CEE), Phase I Environmental Site Assessment and/or cultural resource investigations.

3.2.5 Obtain all necessary Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP)/US Army Corp of Engineers (USACOE) permits for the project. If additional archaeological or historic work is identified through this process, then a contract supplement will be requested from the selected consultant to perform these additional services.

3.2.6 Perform wetlands survey to identify all wetland areas; determine how wetlands disturbance or wetland avoidance will be addressed; and obtain all necessary wetland permits from agencies with jurisdiction. If wetlands mitigation work is required, a separate contract supplement will be issued for the design work associated with wetland mitigation work required.

3.2.7 Conduct Pennsylvania Natural Diversity Inventory (PNDI) search and identify any species of concern. If additional PNDI work is identified through this process, then a contract supplement will be requested from the selected consultant to perform these additional services.

3.2.8 Prepare erosion and sedimentation plans and apply for and obtain Bucks County Conservation District and National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) approval as applicable.

3.2.9 Complete shared use trail design addressing any required structural, drainage issues, environmental and safety issues. Design shall meet or exceed America Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials

(AASHTO), (and any others, DCNR, etc.) standards for an ADA accessible multi-use trail.

3.2.10 Design, engineer and obtain any permits necessary for the construction of the small stream crossing over a tributary of the Mill Creek on TMP 22-59- 26.

3.2.11 Coordinate with Middletown Township relative to the design of any elements that fall under their purview.

3.2.12 Design in accordance with Middletown Township standards, those items that fall under their purview. Consultant will assist the County in securing all necessary approvals and permits, including any potential permits necessary from PennDOT for these items.

3.2.13 Final design must be compliant with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements.

3.2.14 Provide a minimum of two construction project cost estimates based on the preliminary and final design documents. These estimates will be broken down into specific items and shall include all aspects of the construction process including construction inspection.

3.2.15 Preparation of a final Plans, Specifications and Estimates (PS&E) package for bidding.

3.2.16 Prepare revisions to the documents as required by the Bucks County Conservation District, PennDOT and other agencies having jurisdiction including the County and Middletown Township.

3.2.17 The selected Contractor will be responsible for any clearing of the right-of-way to conduct a topographic survey or for identifying legal right-of-way boundaries, if required.

3.2.18 All construction drawings and specifications shall be prepared under the seal of a licensed professional engineer who is authorized by Pennsylvania law to apply the seal.

3.2.19 The Contractor will be required to affix the professional seal of their registered profession on all construction drawings prepared under this contract and comply fully with the requirements for all permits required as part of this project.

3.2.20 Attend a maximum of 8 coordination meetings either in person or virtually.

This includes coordination meetings with Middletown Township.

3.2.21 The County will be responsible for communicating with Middletown Township regarding land development approvals. Any drawing or information required for municipal approval shall be provided to the County by the Contractor.

3.2.22 The County will be responsible for acquiring any required easements should the need arise. The Contractor will be responsible for providing plans and legal descriptions necessary for obtaining any easements and for coordination between the county and the affected property owners.

3.2.23 The project should be designed and documented in accordance with TASA Grant requirements.

3.2.24 Prepare bidding documents (plans, contract & technical specifications) for public bidding by the County (one CD, all necessary bound copies for review by agencies and County, one unbound copy).

3.2.25 The construction drawings and bid specifications shall clearly and concisely describe the work to be performed to complete the trail and road crossings. They will accurately describe the specific materials and services to be supplied by firms engaged to construct the trail. Consistent and clear terminology in the specifications and graphic drawings shall be used to avoid any future confusion during construction.

3.2.26 Drawings shall include site and design data in sufficient detail to execute the proposed design.

3.2.27 All design costs must be broken down by task and include an hourly breakdown of staff assigned to the task using the cost proposal template found in Exhibit E.

3.2.28 Construction consultation services are included in the scope of work. The cost of these services should be included in the proposed cost breakdown.

4.0 Projected Timetable

The projected timetable for this RFP is as follows. The County reserves the right to change or extend any of these dates as needed:

Issue Request for Proposal 7/06/2026 Pre-Proposal Conference 7/16/2026 at 2:00 PM Deadline to Submit Questions 7/27/2026 at 12:00 PM Issue Final Addendum to RFP 7/30/2026 Proposals Due 8/10/2026 at 11:30 AM ET

5.0 Contracted Company’s Responsibilities

5.1 The Company shall perform services as specified in the RFP, Contract, any addenda thereto, and agreed upon information provided in the Proposal.

5.2 The Company shall provide and assign only individuals who have experience with the services to be provided. Company must also ensure individuals do not have a criminal record.

5.3 The Company shall perform all services in strict compliance with all Federal, State and Local laws, regulations, ordinances, and directives as they may pertain to said services.

6.0 County Responsibilities

6.1 Provide a designee to be the point of contact for all questions and/or request by the Contractor.

7.0 County Rights and Authority

7.1 The County shall retain the right to inspect and review the Contractor's performance under this contract and to initiate action, within the terms of the contract that it deems necessary to assure Contractor compliance.

7.2 The County will review and approve, prior to any implementation, all recommend changes proposed by the Contractor.

8.0 Proposal Procedures

8.1 Pre-proposal Conference. A non-mandatory pre-proposal conference will be held to review the RFP and allow for questions to be asked. The pre-proposal conference will be held virtually commencing promptly at 2:00 PM ET on Thursday, July 16, 2026.

Vendors are required to register using the URL below:

https://events.gcc.teams.microsoft.com/event/32023b96-6c5a-4ff6-866a- 24a0b535a9f3@84e2e871-e7fc-4b00-a387-ce8840a4e58d

8.2 Questions. Questions regarding this RFP must be submitted to the solicitation on the PennBid website no later than 12:00 PM (Noon) ET, Monday, July 27, 2026.

8.3 Proposal Submission.

8.3.1 Proposals must be submitted electronically via the PennBid Portal no later than 11:30 AM, Eastern Time on Monday, August 10, 2026.

8.3.2 Proposals received after the time and date above will not be considered.

8.3.3 Proposals shall be submitted at no cost to the County and any proposal received shall remain the property of the County.

8.3.4 Proposers are encouraged to reply "comply", "comply with exceptions", "cannot comply" or "our alternative is..." to every requirement in this RFP.

8.3.5 The County reserves the sole right to waive technicalities contained in proposals.

8.3.6 The County reserves the right to reject any and all proposals.

8.3.7 Proposals submitted in response to this RFP must remain valid for a period of 365 days from the proposal submission date.

8.3.8 Disclosure of Proposal Contents.

All proposals/bids and other material submitted becomes the property of the County and may be returned only at the County's option. Information contained in the proposals/bids will not be disclosed during the evaluation process. Under Pennsylvania's "Right to Know" laws public records are required to be open to reasonable inspection and reproduction. All proposal/bid information, including detailed price and cost information, will be held in confidence during the evaluation process and prior to the time a Notice of Intent to Award is issued. Thereafter all proposals/bids will become public information; subject to inspection and reproduction in accordance with the PA Right to Know Law (Act 3 of 2008), unless otherwise exempt under the Act. Copies of said public records may be made in the Purchasing Department at a cost to the requesting party of $0.25 per page.

Notwithstanding any terms or conditions contained herein, Consultant/Vendor agrees to comply with all Local, State and Federal laws and regulation. Consultant/Vendor specifically agrees to produce all documents that may be subject to public disclosure pursuant to the Pennsylvania Open Records Law.

Material considered confidential by the proposer must be clearly identified and the proposer must include a brief statement justifying the basis for confidentiality and how this information meets the criteria of Section 102 of the PA Right to Know Law. It is the Vendor / Consultant’s duty and obligation to provide the County with a redacted copy of the proposal documents at the time of proposal submission, which it deems to be confidential and proprietary. Failure to do so shall be deemed the Vendor / Consultant’s explicit consent for the County to provide an unredacted copy of the proposal in response to an applicable Right to Know request.

The County reserves the right to request further information from the proposer regarding the basis for confidentiality and further reserves the right to make its own confidentiality determinations in compliance with the

Right to Know Law.

Trade secrets and other proprietary data contained in a proposal may be held confidential if such data meets the definitions of confidential proprietary information and/or trade secrets under Section 102 of the Right to Know Law. Material considered confidential by the proposer must be clearly identified and the proposer must include a brief statement that sets out the reasons for the confidentiality and how this information meets the criteria of Section 102 of the law.

8.4 Ambiguity, Conflict, or Other Errors in the RFP. Any ambiguity, conflict, discrepancy, omission or other error discovered in this RFP must be reported immediately in writing to the County of Bucks Purchasing Director, submitted to the solicitation on the PennBid website and a request made for specific modifications or clarifications.

8.5 Requests for Clarification. Any requests by the County for clarification of proposals shall be answered in writing and such requests should not alter the proposer's pricing information contained in its cost proposal.

9.0 Selection Criteria.

9.1 Mandatory Requirements.

9.1.1 Compliance with RFP instructions.

9.1.2 Licenses/Certifications. Offeror possesses the requisite licenses and/or certifications to perform the work described in Section 3.0.

9.2 The proposer will be selected based on their written proposal and any requested presentations. The County will assemble a committee for the purpose of evaluations. The Selection Committee will review all proposals and make their recommendations for selection. The primary criteria used in making a selection will be as follows:

9.2.1 Experience and Qualifications.

(A) Demonstrated experience of the firm with trail design experience, with an emphasis on the past five years, as well as ongoing projects that the firm is currently involved with

(B) History of completing projects on time and within budget

(C) Qualifications and experience of the individual personnel working on the project team

(D) If subcontractors will perform work, how well do they measure up to these same evaluation criteria

(E) TASA Funded Project experience helpful

(F) Experience working with PECO and complying with PECO design standards is helpful

(G) Examples of the accuracy of the firm’s construction cost estimating on similar projects

9.2.2 Project thoroughness and understanding.

(A) Demonstrated understanding of the purpose and scope of the project

(B) Demonstrate understanding of permitting requirements required for successful completion of the project including Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT), Americans with Disability Act (ADA), American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), and other relevant permitting organizations.

(C) Demonstrated experience with all aspects of the project’s design

(D) Thoroughness of the proposal to describe deliverables to be provided

(E) Completeness, quality, and clarity of the proposal

9.2.3 Project Management.

(A) Demonstrated ability to complete the project within time and budget

(B) Proposed project schedule.

(C) Identification of the firm’s approach to problem solving, project management, and client communications.

9.2.4 The Contractor shall provide resumes for all project team members that include professional license numbers for licensed individuals who would be working on the project.

9.2.5 Proposed timeline for design and permitting activities.

9.2.6 Results of reference calls.

9.2.7 Costs. All design costs must be broken down by task and include an hourly breakdown of staff assigned to the task. The Cost Proposal Template provided in Exhibit E must be used to submit cost documents.

Supplemental cost documents may be submitted if required.

9.2.8 Terms and Conditions. Vendors that accept the County’s Professional Services Agreement with no revisions are preferred to vendors that request revisions. Determining whether any proposed revision is acceptable requires judgement. The County may accept minor revisions without concern, while substantial revisions may be grounds to disqualify a response.

9.3 Procedure. Submitted proposals will be reviewed by the Selection Committee.

Proposers who are deemed, based on the selection criteria, fully qualified and best suited among those submitting proposals may be requested to participate in discussions regarding their proposals. Discussion will cover cost, methods of operation, and all other relevant factors.

9.4 At the conclusion of discussions, the proposers will be ranked based on selection criteria, and final recommendations will be submitted to the County Commissioners for consideration.

9.5 The Commissioners may request proposers participate in additional discussions regarding their proposals in order to make a decision on which proposer is offered a contract.

9.6 Contract negotiations will be conducted with the proposer chosen by the Commissioners. If a satisfactory agreement can be reached, the contract shall be awarded to the proposer; otherwise, negotiations will be conducted with a subsequent proposer until a satisfactory contract can be established or until the Commissioners determine that rejection of all proposals is in the best interest of the County.

10.0 Method of Award

10.1 The award will be made to the proposer whose proposal is determined to be professionally and technically complete. The selection process may, however, include a request for additional information or an oral presentation to support the written proposal.

10.2 The County reserves the right to award this contract not necessarily to the proposer with the lowest price, but to the proposer that demonstrates the best ability to fulfill the requirements of the RFP. The successful proposer will be chosen based on the qualifications and selection criteria discussed in the proposal.

10.3 The successful proposer shall commence work only after the transmittal of a fully executed contract and after receiving written notification to proceed from the

County. The successful proposer will perform all services indicated in the proposal in compliance with the negotiated contract.

10.4 The County reserves the right to reject any or all proposals for any reason, in whole or in part, received in response to this RFP. The County will not pay for any information herein requested, nor is it liable for any costs incurred by the proposer. Proposers whose proposals do not meet the mandatory requirements will be considered non-compliant. After the evaluation of the proposals and selection of the successful proposer, all proposers will be notified in writing of the selected firm.

10.5 The County reserves the right to award Contract A and Contract B, as described in Section 3.0, to separate vendors if it is deemed in the best interest of the County.

11.0 Interview/Presentation

The County reserves the sole right, in the best interest of the County, upon review of proposals, to do any of all of the following:

11.1 Request and obtain additional information and/or clarification from prospective proposers.

11.2 Request and schedule proposer(s) to meet and schedule at a designated time, date, and county location for an interview and/or presentation.

12.0 Agreement

12.1 The County reserves the sole right to offer and enter into an agreement with the successful proposer.

12.2 The successful proposer agrees to sign a written Agreement including terms and conditions as specified in this RFP. The County reserves the right to change, add and/or delete terms as determined to be in its best interest.

12.2.1 Contractor agrees to comply with the terms and conditions set forth in its proposal dated (date of proposal), as well as all requirements of the RFP and any addenda thereto; pertinent portions of the proposal submitted by the successful proposer; and any negotiated additions or changes to the received proposal all of which are incorporated herein by reference as though fully set forth at length.

12.2.2 The contract sum shall be (awarded amount) as indicated in the Contractor's executed Proposal. Said prices shall be the total compensation paid by the County to the Contractor including all related incidental work thereto.

12.2.3 Contractor further agrees to indemnify and save harmless the County from any and all actions, claims and demands whatsoever that may result from Contractor's use of any facilities owned by the County does further agree to repair any damage to the County-owned property caused by Contractor's negligence or willful actions and the Contractor shall further supply the necessary insurance's as set forth in this proposal.

12.2.4 The parties hereto do hereby agree that they shall comply with all conditions and provisions of the specifications whenever such specifications are not inconsistent with the terms and provisions of this Agreement, and do hereby agree to execute all documents, agreements, and other papers related hereto and in form satisfactory to the County.

12.2.5 HOLD HARMLESS CLAUSE. In the event that any of the insurance hereinbefore provided shall not, by reason of any act, omission or negligence of the Contractor be procured or kept in full force and effect, the Contractor shall indemnify defend & save harmless the County against losses, claims and demands to the same extent as the County and the County would have been indemnified by each insurance if it had been in full force and effect. The Contractor shall also indemnify defend & save harmless the County against any and all losses, claims and demands to the extent that they are not recoverable under each insurance policy solely because of a deductible franchise or average provision therein and to the extent that the proceeds of insurance collections from underwriters are reduced by any customary brokers' commissions.

12.2.6 SUITS AND CLAIMS. The Contractor agrees to indemnify, defend, and save harmless the County and all the officers and subordinates, from all suits and actions of any name, nature, and description brought against them or any of them for or on account of any damages or loss sustained by any party through the Contractor or his agents, servants, or employees in the performance or subsequent to the completion of the work under the contract whether such injury or damages be due to negligence or the inherent nature of the work. It is not the intention of this Section or anything herein provided to confer in a third party beneficiary a right of action upon any person whatsoever and nothing hereinbefore or hereinafter set forth shall be construed so as to confer upon any person other than the County a right of action either under this contract or in any manner whatsoever.

12.2.7 The agreement must be signed by authorized representatives of the Contractor and the Bucks County Board of Commissioners.

12.3 The Agreement must incorporate, in order or precedence, the following:

12.3.1 The Agreement.

12.3.2 The County Request for Proposal (RFP) and addenda thereto.

12.3.3 Pertinent portions of the proposal submitted by the successful proposer.

12.4 The successful proposer who is presented an agreement is required to sign and have witnessed three original agreements. The agreements shall be presented to the Bucks County Commissioners for consideration and/or approval. Upon Commissioners approval and signature, an original agreement shall be forwarded to the successful proposer.

13.0 Term of Agreement

The term of agreement shall begin as soon as practicable and shall last until completion of the work described in Section 3.0. The County reserves the right to negotiate and change terms and conditions as necessary in the best interest of the County.

14.0 Required Format and Contents of Proposal

All proposals submitted must contain, at a minimum, the following information in the format and order set forth below:

Please Note: The County reserves the sole right to reject any proposal received that is not in the format required. All respondents must respond to the following items in the order listed below. Responses should be well thought out, thorough and concise. Clarity and brevity will be viewed favorably.

14.1 Separate Contracts. Vendors may submit proposals for either one or both of the contracts described in Section 3.0. If anything included in the proposal is contingent upon award of both contracts to the same Vendor, this must be clearly explained. Proposals should be prepared with the understand that the County may award Contracts A and B separate if deemed to be in its best interest.

14.2 Cover Letter. A cover letter transmitting the proposal to the County on company letterhead, signed by an official authorized to contract for the firm. The letter must contain the following: Name, title, address, telephone number, and email address of the company's contact person for the proposal; a statement that the proposer understands and agrees with the scope of services and accepts all other requirements, terms, and conditions of the RFP; and identify all materials and enclosures being forwarded in response to the RFP.

14.3 Table of Contents. Provide a listing of all major topics, their associated section number, and starting page number.

14.4 Firm Description. Provide an overview of your firm. Include the location of your firm's headquarters and the location of the office that will serve the County.

14.5 Key Personnel. List the key personnel in your firm who will assume day-to-day responsibilities for managing this contract. Indicate the specific responsibilities of individuals to be assigned to this project and include brief resumes for those individuals. All individuals assigned to the County must have at least demonstrated experience in disciplines as outlined above. No changes to assigned personnel during the term of the appointment will be permitted without the prior consent and written approval of the County.

14.6 General Disclosure.

14.6.1 Over the past five years, what other Forensic Crime Lab Operation have any principal members of your firm who will be assigned to the County account been involved with managing? Please describe the relationship.

14.6.2 Have any principal members of your firm, over the past five years been engaged in any business activities, which could be construed as a conflict of interest as respect to their involvement with this contract?

14.6.3 Have any principal members of your firm, over the past three years, been named in any legal action(s), investigations or other actions which could materially affect your firm's ability to perform the duties listed in the Scope of Services?

14.7 Description of Services. Provide a detailed description of the specific services to be provided, including whether County employees are needed to participate and if so the extent at which their participation is needed, and the timing and length of this process.

14.8 Relevant Experience. All respondents are expected to be qualified with specific and/or relevant experience in Forensic Crime Lab Operation services. As such, all proposals must include the qualifications and relevant experience of the respondent's personnel including, but not limited to, industry experience. Offeror must have a minimum of 5 years’ experience providing said services.

14.9 Subcontractors. The respondent is to provide the names and addresses of all subcontractors that will be involved in this contract.

14.10 References. List at least three (3) current references for which services were provided that are similar in size and scope to this Request for Proposal. For each reference, provide the client's name, address and contact person and telephone number.

14.11 Current Contracts. Provide a list of contracts you have engaged within the last three years.

14.12 Cost. In a separate electronic document, provide your cost proposal detailing your fee structure. Please include whether or not you will accept a credit card to pay the invoices issued for this contract.

14.13 Additional Items/Services Offered. Please provide with your proposal, any additional item(s) or services that your organization can provide at no additional cost to the County.

14.14 Professional Services Contract. The County’s standard Professional Services Agreement, including all applicable Terms & Conditions, is included as Exhibit C in the PennBid portal. for reference. Proposers that do not accept the boilerplate contract as written must submit a redlined version of the agreement with their proposal, clearly identifying any requested edits or exceptions. If your firm is selected for award, the County is not obligated to accept all requested redlines or modifications. Any proposed changes will be subject to review and final approval by the County during the contract negotiation process. Please note: Terms and Conditions that are based on federal regulations are non-negotiable and may not be edited.

15.0 General Terms and Conditions

15.1 Independent Capacity of Contractor. The Contractor, its employees and agents, are not deemed to be employees of the County in any manner whatsoever and shall act in an independent capacity and not as officers, employees, or agents of the County.

15.2 Prohibition Against Assignment. The Contractor shall not assign any part of this Agreement without prior written approval of the County.

15.3 Contract Modification, Amendment, and Termination.

15.3.1 This document and all attachments, which have been incorporated by reference, contain all terms, provisions and conditions of the Agreement.

All provisions thereof are intended by the parties to be whole and entire

15.3.2 Any alteration, variation, modifications, or waiver of any provision of the Agreement shall be valid only when reduced to writing, duly acknowledged by the parties hereto by execution of an addendum, which shall be attached to and become part of this Agreement.

15.3.3 The County reserves the right to suspend, revise, or withhold funds in whole or part for reasons of noncompliance with the terms and provisions of this Agreement.

15.3.4 In addition, the County may terminate this Agreement at any time, upon 10 days written notice delivered by certified mail or in person in which case equitable adjustment will be made for work satisfactorily performed up to the date of notice of termination.

15.4 Confidential Information.

15.4.1 All Information contained in the files of County of Bucks and all departments thereof is considered "Confidential Information".

"Confidential Information" means any and all information, data, documents, files and records disclosed to the Contractor by the County either directly or indirectly in writing or orally. Confidential Information does not include any of the foregoing items which (i) is known to Proposer at the time of disclosure to Proposer by the County as evidenced by written records of the Proposer, (ii) has become publicly known and made generally available through no wrongful act of Proposer or (iii) has been rightfully received by Proposer from a third party who is authorized to make such disclosure.

15.4.2 Proposer agrees not to use any Confidential Information disclosed to it by the County for its use or for any purpose except to carry out discussions concerning, and the undertaking of, any business relationship between Proposer and the County to third parties or to employees of Proposer except employees who are required to have the information in order to carry out the discussions or intentions of the aforementioned relationship.

Proposer will have or has had employees who have access to Confidential Information of the County sign a nondisclosure agreement in content substantially similar to this Agreement and will promptly notify the County in writing of the names of each such employee upon the request of the County at any time. Proposer agrees that it will take all reasonable measures to protect the secrecy of and avoid disclosure or use of Confidential Information of the County in order to prevent it from falling into the public domain or the possession of persons other than those persons authorized hereunder to have any such information, which measures shall include the highest degree of care that Proposer utilizes to protect its own Confidential Information of a similar nature. Proposer agrees to notify the County promptly in writing of any misuse or misappropriation of Confidential Information of the County which may come to Proposer's attention. Proposer also agrees that, without the County's prior written approval, Proposer shall not directly or indirectly disclose to anyone the existence of this Agreement or the fact that Proposer has this arrangement with the County.

15.5 Hold Harmless. It is understood that the Contractor is an independent contractor in respect to its performance under this Agreement, and shall assume all risks and responsibilities for losses of every description in connection with the service, which can be attributed either directly or indirectly to the Contractor. The Contractor agrees to indemnify, defend, and save harmless the County, its agents and employees for or on account of any damages or loss, including the cost of litigation or legal counsel resulting directly or indirectly from the actions of the Contractor in fulfilling the terms of this Agreement.

15.6 Surety.

Not required for this contract.

15.7 Insurance and Taxes.

15.7.1 The Contractor shall perform its services under this Agreement, as an independent Contractor and shall insure, as they may appear, the interests of all parties to this Agreement against any and all claims which may arise out of Contractor's operations under the terms of this Agreement.

15.7.2 Contractor will provide original certificate(s) of insurance made out to the County of Bucks showing all insurance coverage carried by Contractor upon submission of a signed Agreement to the County. The Agreement will not be approved by County if a certificate is not present. If, during the term of the Agreement, coverage should expire, the County may withhold payments until the Contractor submits a new certificate reflecting the new policy coverage dates.

15.7.3 The Vendor shall maintain the required insurance coverage and limits as specified in Exhibit A of this Agreement, proof of insurance is required upon execution of this Agreement, and must include the required language in Appendix A. It shall be Vendor’s responsibility to notify the County should the insurance be cancelled for any reason, including non-payment of premium.

15.7.4 Without affecting any other rights or remedies, the Vendor agrees to waive its right to recover damages against the County, for loss of or damage to its property arising out of or incident to the Vendor’s Commercial General Liability Insurance, Automobile Liability Insurance, Umbrella Insurance, Worker’s Compensation Liability Insurance, Professional Liability Insurance, and any other lines of insurance coverage Vendor may maintain from time to time in connection with this Contract. The effect of such releases and waivers is not limited by the amount of insurance carried or required, or by any deductibles applicable hereto. Vendor agrees to have its respective property damage insurance carriers waive any right to subrogation that such companies may have against the County.

15.7.5 The Contractor hereby expressly waives any immunity under the Workers' Compensation Act, either as an employer or statutory employer, for any claim brought by the County. This waiver is intended to comply with the provisions of Section 303(b) [77 P.S. @ 481(b)] of said act.

15.7.6 Contractor shall accept full responsibility for the payment of premiums of all insurance, as well as for social security taxes, income tax deductions, and any other taxes or payroll deductions required by law for Contractor or Contractor's employees who are performing services pursuant to this Agreement.

15.8 Familiarity with Proposed Work. Contractor certifies that he has carefully considered the work proposed and the RFP to determine for himself the difficulties and requirements incidental to the prosecution of the work, and that the submission of a proposal is considered conclusive evidence of such examination.

15.9 Sole Contractor. The Contractor agrees that he and only he shall be the County's sole contractor under this Agreement.

15.10 Non-Discrimination/Sexual Harassment Clause.

15.10.1 The Contractor agrees to comply with all applicable State and

Federal laws, regulations, procedures, and orders, which protect the civil rights of employees, job applicants, and recipients of services.

15.10.2 The Contractor expressly agrees to comply with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and all other applicable Federal, State, and/or Local Laws, ordinances, rules and regulations and orders prohibiting discrimination in hiring or employment opportunities. It shall not be an excuse for non-compliance that the Contractor has or intends to delegate any of its responsibilities to any union, training program, other source of recruitment or other entity, but Contractor shall remain primarily responsible for compliance hereunder.

15.11 Certification Regarding Impartiality and Conflict of Interest.

15.11.1 The Contractor certifies that he is a totally independent contractor and that to the best of his knowledge, no County official or employee has a vested interest, financial or otherwise, in this Agreement.

15.11.2 The Contractor will inform the County in writing immediately if any potential conflict of interest arises during the performance of this Agreement. Conflict of interest may constitute grounds for termination of this Agreement following notification by County to Contractor (allowing Contractor a reasonable opportunity to respond) where same is not corrected by Contractor within a reasonable time period after notice.

15.11.3 The Contractor shall not discriminate against any person because of race, color, religious creed, ancestry, national origin, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, or handicap.

15.12 Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. Contractor recognizes its responsibilities to assure identity and employment eligibility of its own employees under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 and any record acquisition and retention requirements under the Act.

15.13 Statutes Applicable to this Agreement. Contractor is responsible for familiarity and compliance with all statutes that apply to their performance under their agreement.

15.14 No Arbitration Clause. The Contractor/Engineer agrees that no bid documents prepared for the County will include Arbitration Clauses.

15.15 Information Technology Policies. Contract shall comply with the terms and conditions contained in Exhibit B.

16.0 Exhibits

16.1 The following Exhibits listed below included as separate files in the PennBid portal. All exhibits are incorporated by reference into this RFP.

Exhibit A – Insurance Requirements Exhibit B – Information Technology Terms & Conditions Exhibit C – Professional Services Agreement Exhibit D – PECO Agreement Exhibit E – Cost Proposal Template Exhibit F – Concept Plan