Attachment A - Special Terms and Conditions - Pages 1-12.docx

State of Louisiana Bid Invitation

Attachment A

RFx number: 3000026776 Contract Title: Herbicides Chemicals for DOTD

Special Terms and Conditions Bid Delivery Instructions for State Procurement:

Bidders are hereby advised that the Office of State Procurement (OSP) must receive bids at its physical location by the date and time specified on page 1 of the Invitation to Bid.

Bids may be mailed or delivered by hand or courier service to the Office of State Procurement’s physical location as follows:

Office of State Procurement Claiborne Building, Suite 2-160 1201 North Third Street Baton Rouge, LA 70802

Or bids may be submitted online by accessing the link on page 1 of the Invitation to Bid.

Bidders should be aware of security requirements for the Claiborne Building and allow time to be photographed and presented with a temporary identification badge.

Bidder is solely responsible for ensuring that its courier service provider makes inside deliveries to the Office of State Procurement’s physical location. The Office of State Procurement is not responsible for any delays caused by the bidder's chosen means of bid delivery. Bidder is solely responsible for the timely delivery of its bid. Failure to meet the bid opening date & time shall result in rejection of the bid.

Note: Bidders who choose to respond to this bid online via the vendor portal are encouraged to not submit a written bid as well.

Bidders are hereby advised that due to the nature of the internet, the State of Louisiana cannot guarantee that access to the LaGov or LaPAC websites will be uninterrupted or that e-mails or other electronic transmissions will be sent to you or received by us. The Office of State Procurement is not responsible for any delays caused by the bidder’s choice to submit their bid online. Bidder is solely responsible for the timely delivery of its bid. Failure to meet the bid opening date and time shall result in rejection of the bid.

**Attention**

Receipt of a solicitation or award cannot be relied upon as an assurance of receiving future solicitations. In order to receive notifications of future solicitations from this office, you must register and enroll in the proper category in LaGov.

Enrollment in LaGov provides LaPAC email notification of bid opportunities based upon commodities that you select.

Calendar of Events:

Deadline to receive written inquiries: October 29, 2026

Deadline to answer written inquiries: November 5, 2026

Bid Opening Date and Time: November 17, 2026 @ 10:00 A.M. (Central Time)

Note: The State of Louisiana reserves the right to revise this calendar. Revisions before the bid opening date and time, if any, will be formalized by the issuance of an addendum to this ITB.

Bidder Inquiries:

The State shall not and cannot permit an open-ended inquiry period, as this creates an unwarranted delay in the procurement cycle and operations of our Agency customers. The State reasonably expects and requires responsible and interested bidders to conduct their in-depth bid review and submit inquiries in a timely manner.

An inquiry period is hereby firmly set for all interested bidders to perform a detailed review of the bid documents and to submit any written inquiries relative thereto. Without exception, all inquiries must be submitted in writing by an authorized representative of the bidder, clearly cross-referenced to the relevant bid section. All inquiries must be received by the Inquiry Deadline date set forth in the Calendar of Events section of this bid. Only those inquiries received by the established deadline shall be considered by the State. Inquiries received after the established deadline shall not be entertained.

Inquiries concerning this bid may be delivered by mail, express courier, e-mail, hand, or fax to:

Office of State Procurement Attention: Paris King 1201 North Third St.

Claiborne Bldg., Suite 2-160 Baton Rouge, LA 70802

E-Mail: Paris.King2@la.gov Phone: (225) 342-8019 Fax: (225) 342-9756

Only the person identified above or their designee has the authority to officially respond to bidder’s questions on behalf of the State. Any communications from any other individuals are not binding to the State.

An addendum will be issued and posted at the Office of State Procurement’s LaPAC* website, to address all inquiries received and any other changes or clarifications to the bid. Thereafter, all bid documents, including but not limited to the specifications, terms, conditions, plans, etc., will stand as written and/or amended by any addendum. No negotiations, decisions, or actions shall be executed by any bidder as a result of any oral discussions with any state employee or state consultant. It is the bidder’s responsibility to check the LaPAC website frequently for any possible addenda that may be issued. The Office of State Procurement is not responsible for a bidder’s failure to download any addenda documents required to complete the bid.

*Note: LaPAC is the State’s online electronic bid posting and notification system resident on State Procurement’s website. In that LaPAC provides an immediate e-mail notification to subscribing bidders that a solicitation and any subsequent addenda have been let and posted, notice and receipt thereof is considered formally given as of their respective dates of posting.

To receive the email notification, vendors must register in the LaGov portal. Registration is intuitive.

Help scripts are available on the Office of State Procurement’s website under Vendor Resources.

Terms and Conditions:

This solicitation contains all terms and conditions with respect to the commodities herein. Any vendor contracts, forms, terms, or other materials submitted with bid may cause bid to be rejected.

Vendor's Forms:

The purchase order is the only binding document to be issued against the contract. Signing of vendor's forms is not allowed.

Substitutes:

Only brands and numbers stated in the award are approved for delivery under the contract and any substitution must receive prior written approval of the Office of State Procurement.

Acceptance:

Unless otherwise specified, bids on the contract will be assumed to be firm for acceptance for a minimum of 30 days. If accepted, prices must be firm for the specified contract period.

Prices:

Prices shall be complete, including transportation/freight charges prepaid by the bidder to the destination, inside delivery, unpacking, assembly of all components and removal of all associated debris from premises. Prices should be quoted in the unit (each, box, case, hour, flat, mile, etc.) as specified in this solicitation.

Freight Charges:

Unit price must be inclusive of any freight charges. Bid should be F.O.B. Destination – title passing upon receipt of goods. Failure to comply with this requirement may disqualify your bid.

Payment:

Payment will be made on the basis of unit price as listed in the contract; such price and payment will constitute full compensation for furnishing and delivering the contract commodities. In no case will the State Agency refuse to make partial payments to the Contractor although all items have not been delivered. This payment in no way relieves the Contractor of his responsibility to effect shipment of the balance of the order. Payment will be to vendor and address as shown on order.

Late Payments:

Interest due by a State Agency for late payments shall be in accordance with La. R.S. 39:1695 at the rates established in La. R.S. 13:4202.

Invoices:

Invoices will be submitted by the Contractor to the Using Agency and the invoice shall refer to the delivery ticket number, delivery date, purchase order number, quantity, unit price, and delivery point. A separate invoice for each order delivered and accepted shall be submitted by the Contractor in duplicate directly to the accounting department of the Using Agency. Invoices shall show the amount of any cash discount and shall be submitted on the Contractor's own invoice form.

Contractual Period:

The State of Louisiana intends to award all items for an initial period, not to exceed 12 months. Delays in awarding, beyond the anticipated starting date, may result in a change in the contract period. If the situation occurs, an award may be made for less than 12 months.

Renewals:

At the option of the State of Louisiana and acceptance by the Contractor, the contract may be extended for two additional 12 month periods at the same prices, terms and conditions. Total contract time may not exceed 36 months.

Quantities:

This is an open-ended requirements contract. Quantities shown are based on the previous contract usage or estimates. Where usage is not available, a quantity of one indicates a lack of history on the item. The successful bidder must supply at bid prices actual requirements as ordered whether the total of such requirements is more or less than the quantities shown.

Orders:

The Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) shall issue contract purchase orders for the items required, as and when needed.

Packaging:

Bidders are requested to bid packaging and portion sizes as specified. However, if alternates to the packaging or portion sizes are proposed, they should be as close as possible to those specified. Unless requested or otherwise specified, bulk packaging is not acceptable. Quantities per package which are greater than specified may be considered bulk packaging and may be cause for rejection.

The State of Louisiana reserves the right to accept or reject alternate packaging or portion sizes based on factors including, but not limited to: storage limitations at the facility; product shelf life, dietary requirements on portions, etc.; delivery schedules specified; distribution requirements; internal/external packaging specifications; and canteen resale considerations.

Vendors are encouraged to consider delivery methods that utilize recyclable or reusable packaging material and containers, or those with recycled content.

Unless otherwise specified, the commodities shall be packed in substantial commercial containers of the type, size and kind commonly used for the purpose, so constructed as to ensure acceptance and safe delivery as called for in the contract.

Package Markings:

Packages must be marked with the brand and number of the product and such other information as sizes, types, quantity, use instruction, etc. which helps the end user in using the product correctly.

Delivery:

Deliver to DOTD. Delivery is to be made upon the issuance of a purchase order.

Electronic Vendor Payment Solution:

In an effort to increase efficiencies and effectiveness as well as be strategic in utilizing technology and resources for the State and the Contractor, the State intends to make all payments to Contractors electronically. The LaCarte Procurement Card will be used for purchases of $5,000 and under, and where feasible, over $5,000. Contractors will have a choice of receiving electronic payment for all other payments by selecting the Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT). If you receive an award and do not currently accept the LaCarte card or have not already enrolled in EFT, you will be asked to comply with this request by choosing either the LaCarte Procurement Card and/or EFT. You may indicate your acceptance below.

The LaCarte Procurement Card uses a Visa card platform. Contractors receive payment from State Agencies using the card in the same manner as other Visa card purchases. Contractors cannot process payment transactions through the credit card clearinghouse until the purchased products have been shipped or received or the services performed.

For all Statewide and Agency Term Contracts:

· Under the LaCarte program, purchase orders are not necessary. Purchase orders must be placed against the net discounted products of the contract. All contract terms and conditions apply to purchases made with LaCarte.

· If a purchase order is not used, the Contractor must keep on file a record of all LaCarte purchases issued against the contract during the contract period. The file must contain the particular item number, quantity, line total and order total. Records of these purchases must be provided to the Office of State Procurement upon request.

EFT payments are sent from the State’s bank directly to the payee’s bank each weekday. The only requirement is that you have an active checking or savings account at a financial institution that can accept Automated Clearing House (ACH) credit files and remittance information electronically. Additional information and an enrollment form is available by contacting the Office of Statewide Reporting & Accounting Policy at doa-osrap-eft@la.gov.

To facilitate this payment process, you will need to complete and return the EFT enrollment form.

If an award is made to your company, please check which option you will accept or indicate if you are already enrolled.

Payment Type Will Accept Already Enrolled

LaCarte ______ ______

EFT ______ ______

Printed Name of Individual Authorized

Email address and phone number of authorized individual Louisiana Preference:

Notwithstanding any other provision of La. R.S. 39:1604 to the contrary, the following preferences shall apply only to bidders whose Louisiana business workforce is comprised of a minimum of 50% Louisiana residents.

(1) Do you have a Louisiana Business workforce? ☐ yes ☐ no

(2) If so, do you certify that at least 50% of your Louisiana business workforce is comprised of Louisiana residents? ☐ yes ☐ no

A. In accordance with the provisions of La. R.S. 39:1604, each procurement officer, purchasing agent, or similar official who procures or purchases agricultural or forestry products, including meat, seafood, produce, eggs, paper or paper products under the provisions of Chapter 17 of Title 39 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes shall procure or purchase Louisiana products provided all of the following conditions are met:

(1) The bidder certifies in the bid submitted that the product meets the criteria of a Louisiana product.

(2) The product is equal to or better than equal in quality to other products.

(3) The cost of the Louisiana product shall not exceed the cost of other products by more than 10%, except as otherwise provided in this Chapter as a specific exception.

Do you claim this preference? ☐ yes ☐ no

Specify line number(s):

B. In accordance with the provisions of La. R.S. 39:1604, each procurement officer, purchasing agent, or similar official who procures or purchases products under the provisions of Chapter 17 of Title 39 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes shall procure or purchase meat and meat products, domesticated or wild catfish, produce, eggs or crawfish which are further processed in Louisiana, provided the cost of the further processed meat and meat products, domesticated or wild catfish, produce, eggs or crawfish do not exceed the cost of other products by more than 7%.

Do you claim this preference? ☐ yes ☐ no

Specify location within Louisiana where product is further processed:

(Note: If more space is required, include on a separate sheet.)

C. In accordance with the provisions of La. R.S. 39:1604, each procurement officer, purchasing agent, or similar official who procures or purchases materials, supplies, products, provisions, or equipment under the provisions of Chapter 17 of Title 39 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes may purchase such materials, supplies, products, provisions, or equipment which are produced, manufactured, or assembled in Louisiana, as defined in La. R.S. 38:2251(A), and which are equal in quality to other materials, supplies, products, provisions, or equipment, provided that all of the following conditions are met:

(1) The cost of such items does not exceed the cost of other items which are manufactured, processed, produced, or assembled outside the State by more than 10%.

(2) The vendor of such Louisiana items agrees to sell the items at the same price as the lowest bid offered on such items.

(3) In cases where more than one bidder offers Louisiana items which are within 10% of the lowest bid, the bidder offering the lowest bid on Louisiana items is entitled to accept the price of the lowest bid made on such items.

Do you claim this preference? ☐ yes ☐ no

Specify location within Louisiana where product is produced, manufactured, or assembled:

(Note: If more space is required, include on a separate sheet.)

Note: Failure to specify above information may cause elimination from preferences.

Procurement of United States Products:

In accordance with the provisions of La. R.S. 39:1604.7, in the event a contract is not entered into for products purchased under the provisions of La. R.S. 39:1595, each procurement officer, purchasing agent, or similar official who procures or purchases materials, supplies, products, provisions, or equipment under the provisions of this Chapter may purchase such materials, supplies, products, provisions, or equipment which are manufactured in the United States, and which are equal in quality to other materials, supplies, products, provisions, or equipment, provided that all of the following conditions are met:

(1) The cost of such items does not exceed the cost of other items which are manufactured outside the United States by more than 5%.

(2) The vendor of such items agrees to sell the items at the same price as the lowest bid offered on such items.

(3) In cases where more than one bidder offers items manufactured in the United States which are within 5% of the lowest bid, the bidder offering the lowest bid on such items is entitled to accept the price of the lowest bid made on such items.

(4) The vendor certifies that such items are manufactured in the United States.

For the purposes of this preference,

(1) "Manufactured in the United States" means produced by a process in which the manufacturing, final assembly, processing, packaging, testing, and any other process that adds value, quality, or reliability to assembled articles, materials, or supplies, occur in the United States.

(2) "United States" means the United States and any place subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.

Do you claim this preference? ☐ yes ☐ no

Specify line number(s):

Specify location within the United States where this product is manufactured:

(Note: If more space is required, include on a separate sheet.)

Literature:

Literature and/or specifications must be submitted upon request; if requested, literature and/or specifications must be submitted within five business days of written request.

If bidding other than specified, sufficient information should be enclosed with the bid in order to determine quality, suitability, and compliance with the specifications.

Failure to comply with this request may eliminate your bid from consideration.

Non-Exclusivity Clause:

This agreement is non-exclusive and shall not in any way preclude State Agencies from entering into similar agreements and/or arrangements with other vendors or from acquiring similar, equal, or like goods and/or services from other entities or sources.

Termination for Non-Appropriation of Funds:

The continuation of the contract is contingent upon the appropriation of funds to fulfill the requirements of the contract by the legislature. If the legislature fails to appropriate sufficient monies to provide for the continuation of a contract or if such appropriation is reduced by the veto of the Governor or by any means provided in the Appropriations Act or Title 39 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950 to prevent the total appropriations for the year from exceeding revenues for that year or for any other lawful purpose and the effect of such reduction is to provide insufficient monies for the continuation of the contract, the contract shall terminate on the date of the beginning of the first fiscal year for which funds are not appropriated.

Assignment:

The Contractor shall not assign any interest in the contract by assignment, transfer or novation without prior written consent of the State. This provision shall not be construed to prohibit the Contractor from assigning his bank, trust company, or other financial institution any money due or to become due from approved contracts without such prior written consent. Notice of any such assignment or transfer shall be furnished promptly to the State.

Record Retention:

The successful vendor shall retain all books, records, and other relevant documents associated with the contract for at least 5 years after final payment.

Right to Audit:

The State Legislative Auditor, Federal Auditors and Internal Auditors of the Division of Administration, or others so designated by the DOA, shall have the option to audit all accounts directly pertaining to the contract for a period of five years from the date of final payment or as required by applicable State and Federal Law. Records shall be made available during normal working hours for this purpose.

Applicable Law The contract shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of Louisiana; specifically, the Louisiana Procurement Code (La. R.S. 39:1551-1755) and its corresponding rules and regulations and, to the extent applicable, the Information Technology Procurement Code (La. R.S. 39:196-200) and its corresponding rules and regulations.

Venue of any action for judicial review brought with regard to the contract, after exhaustion of administrative remedies, shall be in the Nineteenth Judicial District Court, Parish of East Baton Rouge, State of Louisiana, which shall exercise its appellate jurisdiction in accordance with the Louisiana Procurement Code.

Contract Controversies Any claim or controversy arising out of the contract shall be resolved by the provisions of La. R.S. 39:1671-1673, as applicable.

Increase/Decrease:

The quantities listed herein are estimated to be the amount needed. In the event a greater or lesser quantity is needed, the right is reserved by the State of Louisiana to increase or decrease the amount, at the unit price stated in the bid.

Usage Reporting Requirements:

Successful vendor is to keep a record of all orders issued against the contract during the contract period. Approximately 4 months prior to the end of the contract period, the Contractor is to be prepared to submit to the Office of State Procurement a contract usage report.

The specific usage report content, scope, and format requirements are available on the Office of State Procurement’s website under Vendor Resources/Vendor Forms. In addition, the person’s name who compiled the report and their contact information shall be provided. The Office of State Procurement reserves the right to request copies of any purchase order issued against the contract.

The usage reports shall be submitted utilizing this format or an equivalent format that has been pre-approved by the Office of State Procurement.

Method of Award:

The State intends to award by line item to the lowest responsive, responsible bidder meeting all specifications. The State reserves the right to reject individual line items from the award.

Contract Utilization:

By submitting a bid, the bidder acknowledges that he agrees to the following terms that will be part of any resulting contract(s) awarded from this solicitation:

The contract has been designated as a Louisiana Pricing Schedule (“LaPS”). The State intends to use the following process before placing orders under the contract, and the Contractor explicitly understands and agrees to the use of this process before accepting orders under the contract. Where multiple LaPS contracts exist for functionally equivalent products and/or services and the procurement exceeds the defined maximum value for small purchases established by executive order of the Governor, all eligible users of these contracts will utilize the following procedures:

1) Prepare a Request for Responses (an informal process used to make a best value determination) that includes, if applicable:

B) If necessary or applicable, a request for submittal of a project plan for performing the task and information on the Contractor’s experience and/or past performance performing similar tasks.

D) A request for submittal of a firm-fixed total price for labor and/or products which are no higher than prices in the LaPS contract.

2) Submit the Request for Response to at least three LaPS contract holders, whenever available, offering functionally equivalent products and/or services that will meet the Agency’s needs.

3) Evaluate responses and select the Contractor to receive the order:

A) After responses have been evaluated, the order shall be placed with the Contractor that represents the best value that meets the Agency’s needs. The Ordering Agency should give preference to small entrepreneurships or small and emerging businesses when two or more contractors can provide the services and/or products at the same firm-fixed price.

B) The Ordering Agency shall document in the procurement file the evaluation of the Contractors’ responses that formed the basis for selection. The documentation shall identify the Contractor from which the services and/or products were purchased, the services and/or products purchased, and the cost of the resulting purchase order.

C) Purchases shall not be artificially divided to avoid the requirements of this section when recurring requirements for the same products are known.

GSA:

Bidders should submit with their bid response the most recent published commercial price list and their GSA price schedule (if one exists) covering all items bid. In the event that a printed published price list is not available, a typed, signed and notarized list of prices covering all items bid should be submitted. If not submitted with the bid, this information shall be provided within 10 days of the request. Prices bid may not exceed the commercial price list or GSA prices in order for the item(s) to be awarded. Any terms and conditions contained in the published price list or GSA price list will not be applicable to the State’s contract unless specified.

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