ESBD_383496_1732738906601_WALLER -- Gas On Call RFP.docx

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

FOR

ON-CALL SERVICES FOR UTILITY GAS LINE SERVICES

WALLER RFP NO. 25-01

Issued by the City of Waller, Texas

Sealed proposals will be accepted until 19th, December Thursday, 2024 at 2:00pm CST and then publicly opened and read aloud thereafter.

Legal Name of Responding Firm

Contact Person Title

Telephone Number / Email Address

Street Address of Principle Place of Business / City / State / Zip

Mailing Address (if different than Street Address)

Acknowledgement of Addenda (if published): #1____ #2____ #3____ #4____ #5____

By signing below, you hereby certify that the information contained in this proposal an any attachments are true and correct and may be viewed as an accurate representation of proposed services to be provided by this organization. You agree that failure to submit all requested information may result in rejection of your company’s proposal as non-responsive. You certify that no employee, board member, or agent of the City of Waller has assisted in the preparation of this proposal. You acknowledge that you have read and understand the requirements and provisions of the request and that the organization will comply with the regulations and other applicable local, state, and federal regulations and directives in the implementation of this contract. And furthermore, that you certify that you are legally authorized to sign this offer and to submit it to the City of Waller on behalf of said offer by authority of its governing body.

AUTHORIZED SIGNATURE

NOTICE TO BIDDERS

The CITY OF WALLER will receive sealed proposals for construction of “ON-CALL UTILITY GAS LINE SERVICES, Project No. 25-01; CITY OF WALLER, HARRIS COUNTY, TEXAS” at the City of Waller (1218 Farr Street, Waller, Texas 77484). The project includes providing installation, removal, and repair services for various gas utility lines located throughout the City of Waller. The services will be ON CALL and an as-needed basis. The pre-bid will be held in person on 11th, December Wednesday, 2024 at 9:00am CST at the City of Waller (1218 Farr Street, Waller, Texas 77484). Bids will be publicly opened and read on 19th, December Thursday, 2024 at 2:00pm CST at the City of Waller.

Proposals must be accompanied by a certified or cashier’s check or a bid bond from a surety company holding a permit in the State of Texas for an amount equal to 5% of the amount bid. The amount of said certified or cashier’s check or bond will be forfeited to the CITY and the bank or surety shall be liable to the CITY for the amount in the event the successful bidder shall fail or refuse to enter into a contract or furnish bonds as hereafter required within fifteen (15) days after the date of notice of award. If a certified or cashier’s check is provided, the successful bidder shall deliver, at the City of Waller, the original certified or cashier’s check within twenty-four (24) hours of the bid opening.

Copies of the bidding documents may be reviewed and obtained from www.civcastusa.com: search “On-call Services for Gas Utility Lines”. Bidders must register on this website in order to view and/or download specifications, plans, and other related documents for this project. There is NO charge to view or download documents.

The CITY reserves the right to reject any or all bids and to waive informalities or irregularities in bidding. In case of lack of clarity in stating prices, the CITY reserves the right to consider the most advantageous construction thereof, or reject the bid.

INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS

Bidders are requested to submit their bids in accordance with the following conditions and in DUPLICATE.

PRE-BID CONFERENCE

A pre-bid conference with CITY and prospective bidders to discuss the scope of work and to answer questions concerning the Work. No addendum will be issued at this conference, but an addendum will be issued afterwards, if necessary, to answer questions. The pre-bid conference will be held at Waller City Hall, 1218 Farr Street, Waller, Texas 77484 on 11th, December Wednesday, 2024 at 9:00am CST.

PROPOSAL

Delivery of Bids – Please submit one (1) hard copy and one (1) electronic copy (on a USB flash drive) of your response to:

By Personal Delivery, courier, UPS, FedEx:

City of Waller, Waller City Hall, 1218 Farr Street, Waller, Texas 77484

By Mail:

City of Waller, Waller City Hall, c/o Public Works Department, 1218 Farr Street, Waller, Texas 77484

IMPORTANT: mark SEALED PROPOSAL with RFP Name, Number, Company, and Due Date on the outside of the shipping package. Failure to do so may result in a misdirected package, which may become late if not delivered to the Sealed Bid Box by the closing time.

Faxed, emailed or late proposals will be ineligible and not accepted for consideration.

It is the responsibility of the respondent(s) to ensure that the proposals are received at the CITY address as described above by the designated due date and time. CITY assumes no responsibility for delays caused by postage, mail courier, email, package misdirection or any other form of delivery. Late proposals will be opened nor considered in the evaluation of the proposal. Proposals may be withdrawn at any time prior to the submittal deadline, but they may not be withdrawn after the official opening. Proposals received will be publicly opened after the response submission deadline at CITY offices.

People wishing to attend the opening should notify the receptionist upon arrival. A staff member will escort attendees to the opening location. Only the names of the respondent(s) submitting a proposal will be read aloud. No other information will be disclosed at that time.

Proposal information is restricted and not publicly available until after the award of a contract. All documents associated with the proposal submitted, unless the respondent indicates a portion of the proposal is proprietary, may be subject to public inspection in accordance with the Public Information Act. All information obtained in the course of this solicitation will become property of the CITY.

WITHDRAWAL OF BIDS - A bidder may withdraw his proposal providing the request, in writing, is in the hands of the City Clerk by the time set for opening proposals. When such proposal is reached, it will be returned unopened to the bidder.

BID GUARANTEE - No proposal shall be considered unless accompanied by a bid bond, certified check, or cashier's check of the character and amount stated in the NOTICE TO BIDDERS. All forms of guarantee shall be made payable to "City of Waller." The bid guarantee of unsuccessful bidders will be returned following action by the CITY on the award of the contract and to the successful bidder within 48 hours following execution of contract and bonds, as required. In case the successful bidder fails to file such contract and bonds, the amount of his bid guarantee shall be forfeited to the City of Waller as liquidated damages.

BIDDERS’ RESPONSIBILITY – Bidders are required to inform themselves of the conditions under which the work is to be performed and all other factor that might affect the manner or method of work. The CITY does not make any representations as to the conditions under which the work is to be performed. Any information provided by the CITY, including, but not limited to geotechnical information, shall be for the Bidders’ convenience only and the CITY does not guarantee the accuracy or correctness of any information so provided. The Bidder, if awarded the contract, shall not be allowed any extra compensation by reason of any conditions under which the work is to be performed or any other factor that might affect the manner or method of work.

INTERPRETATION OF CONTRACT DOCUMENTS - If the prospective bidder is in doubt as to the true meaning of any part of the specifications or other proposed contract documents, he may submit to the City a written request for an interpretation thereof. Any interpretation of the proposed documents will be made only by an addendum duly issued. The Bidders are to acknowledge receipt of addenda on the proposal form.

PROPOSED SERVICES - Respondents will prepare a proposal by offering unit cost pricing on the BID SHEET for the work described in Section II Specifications. The proposal to be submitted will be considered for award only for the sections completed on the BID SHEET. The respondent will not be considered for any section that is not completed.

BASIS ON WHICH BIDS ARE REQUESTED - Bids are requested on the basis of unit and/or lump sum pricing, as clearly set forth in the proposal and in the specifications.

CONSIDERATION OF YOUR PROPOSAL - The CITY will consider each section on the BID SHEET for award. A vendor submitting a proposal is not required to bid on all sections but must bid all items in a section. However, the CITY reserves the right to combine sections in any manner, and award to the vendor(s) of its choosing, who are deemed to be offering the most advantageous proposal to the CITY.

REQUIREMENTS FOR SIGNING BIDS - Bidder must sign his bid in the space provided on the bid form; unsigned bids will not be accepted. If the bid is submitted by a partnership or corporation, the and address of the partnership or corporation must be shown, together with the name and address of the partners or corporate officers. Bids submitted by a partnership must be signed by one of the partners. Bids submitted by a corporation must be signed by one of the corporate officials having under the corporate structure, the power to act in this capacity and the corporate seal must be affixed onto the bid. Bids submitted by a sole proprietorship must be signed by the Proprietor.

CITY’S RIGHT TO REQUIRE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION - The CITY reserves the right, after the proposals have been opened and before the contract has been awarded, to require a responding firm to provide the following information:

• The experience record of the bidder showing completed jobs of a nature similar to the one covered by the proposed Contract and all work in progress with bond amounts and percentage completed;

• A sworn statement of the current financial condition of the bidder;

• An equipment schedule.

CONTRACT

INTERVIEWS - CITY reserves the right to request an interview, including a presentation by the firm, to supplement their written submission. These presentations will be scheduled, if required, after Proposals are received and prior to the award of the Contract.

AWARD OF CONTRACT - Before award of any contract can be approved, the City of Waller shall be satisfied that the bidder involved: (1) maintains a permanent place of business; (2) has adequate plant and equipment to do the work properly and expeditiously; (3) has a suitable financial status to meet obligations incident to the work; (4) has appropriate technical experience, (5) can submit a satisfactory performance record, and (6) consistently maintains experienced on-site supervisory staff during construction. The award, if made, will be made to the lowest responsible bidder as recommended by the City Engineer and the City Manager, subject to the decision of the City Council.

Upon completion of the evaluation process, CITY may award the contracts to one or more respondent(s) whose submission is determined to be the most advantageous to CITY.

WHEN AWARD EFFECTUAL - The contract shall be deemed as having been awarded when formal notice of award shall have been duly served upon the awardee (i.e., the bidder to whom the City intends awarding the contract) by an officer or agent of the City authorized to give such notice.

EXECUTION OF CONTRACT DOCUMENTS - The contractor shall complete execution of contact documents within 15 days after the award of contract by the City Council. Five executed counterparts of the contract documents and performance and payment bonds will be required.

COMMENCEMENT OF WORK - After contract documents have been executed by all concerned parties, the CITY shall issue a Task Order Agreement to the contractor stating the effective date to begin work.

TEXAS STATE SALES TAX - The City of Waller is tax exempt. No sales tax will be charged on any products or services. Materials incorporated into this project are exempt from State Sales Tax according to the provisions of the Texas Tax Code, Chapter 151, Subsection H. City will not pay any sales tax included in a Contractor’s invoice.

The City of Waller cannot exempt any other person/vendor from applicable sales taxes that may be required of them in relation to this project. The Contractor must obtain a limited sales, excise and use tax permit or exemption certificate which shall enable him to buy the materials to be incorporated into the work without paying the tax at the time of purchase.

RENEWALS - This contract for On-Call Services for Gas Utility Line Services shall be for an initial term of one year, with the option for an extension of the same for two (2) additional one-year periods under the same terms, conditions and unit prices as expressed herein; provided that the unit prices may be adjusted to reflect the Consumer Price Index (Urban) sixty-four (64) days prior to the effective date of the renewed contract if requested by the Contractor and agreed by the City. Such option must be exercised in writing by the City and the Contractor.

ABOUT THIS SOLICITATION

1. SCOPE OF WORK

Contractor shall furnish all necessary labor, materials (excluding those specifically provided by CITY), consumable materials, tools, equipment, transportation, skills, expertise, supervision, insurance, taxes (excluding Texas sales and use taxes and municipal sales taxes), permits, licenses, bonds, and all other items of expense and services necessary to safely and satisfactorily perform natural gas line construction, improvements and maintenance. Work will be performed on an as needed basis, with detailed instructions being provided in the work order, sketches, maps and drawings and will be in accordance with the provisions described herein.

The Contractor's responsibility shall include the performance of all operations necessary to furnish Buyer with completed gas transportation and/or distribution lines ("lines") ready for service. Said lines shall include pipe, valves, fittings, and any other material or equipment specified in the work order and associated documents. Contractor shall prepare the lines for service by making the necessary connections to existing facilities.

Receiving, unloading, handling, and storing of all materials, pavement breaking, ditching, tunneling, boring, excavating, cleaning, swabbing, inspecting of pipe, tacking and welding of pipe, fittings and any pertinent equipment, application of joint coating materials, furnishing labor and materials necessary for pressure testing, locating and repairing leaks indicated by test, purging, backfilling, rolling and compacting backfill, cleanup, maintaining required traffic control and warning signals for the protection of the public.

See OM Section 10 and 11 for City of Waller specification which follow the Texas Railroad Commission guidelines.

2. INTERLOCAL AGREEMENTS

Other governmental entities may be extended the opportunity to purchase from contracts awarded by the CITY, with the consent and agreement of the successful Vendor(s) and the CITY. Such consent and agreement shall be conclusively inferred from lack of exception to this clause in the proposal submitted. However, all parties indicate their understanding and all parties hereby expressly agree that the CITY is not an agent of, partner to or representative of those outside agencies or entities and that the CITY is not obligated or liable for any action or debts that arise out of such independently negotiated interlocal or “piggyback” procurements.

3. GENERAL INFORMATION

ADDENDA

Addendums to this solicitation, if any or issued, will be emailed only to plan holders of record. Addendums will also be posted on www.Civcast.com. However, it is the vendor’s responsibility to check for any addenda that may be issued for this solicitation. Please acknowledge receipt of addenda by checking the appropriate spaces on the cover sheet of this RFP.

QUESTIONS

Questions arising subsequent to the issuance of this solicitation should be submitted through www.Civcast.com prior to forty-eight (48) hours before bid deadline. Questions received after this time may not be answered in a timely manner. Do not submit your questions in any other manner. Oral answers to questions of material nature are not binding.

SOLICITATION SCHEDULE

The schedule for the RFP process and the work is given below. All times indicated are Central Standard Time (CST). CITY may change this schedule at any time through the addenda process.

4. EVALUATION AND AWARD

Unless stated otherwise elsewhere in this Request for Proposals, all proposals of qualification submitted shall remain valid for a minimum of sixty (60) calendar days after the due date to allow adequate time for evaluation and award.

EVALUATION PROCESS

All submissions in response to this solicitation will be evaluated in a manner consistent with the CITY and all applicable rules and policies.

A proposal review committee will be assembled to perform the evaluations. In the initial phase of the evaluation process, the evaluation committee will review all proposals that have been received before the solicitation due date. Nonresponsive submissions (those not conforming to the solicitation requirements) will be eliminated. Each respondent bears sole responsibility for the items included or not included in the response submitted by that respondent. CITY reserves the right to disqualify any submission that includes significant deviations or exceptions to the terms, conditions, and/or specifications in this solicitation.

Once proposals have been submitted, the CITY evaluates the proposals and determines which of those are determined to be reasonably qualified for award. Those so determined will be reviewed and scored. Best and final offers ("BAFO") for those reasonably qualified may be obtained by allowing the submission of a BAFO before the final decision is made to award a contract.

CITY reserves the right to be the sole judge as to the overall acceptability of any submission or to judge the individual merits of specific provisions within competing offers.

Proposals will be reviewed by an evaluation committee composed of City staff. Proposals will be scored by the committee in each of the following categories using the maximum point values listed below:

5. COMPLETE PROPOSAL

Important Note: Your proposal must consist of your responses to Tabs A-E with the completed BID SHEET or it may be disqualified as non-responsive.

Tab A – Cover Sheet - Page 1 of this RFP and a brief statement explaining your ability to do the work.

Tab B – Qualifications A summary of your firm’s qualifications to provide those services that you select to offer from the PRICING FORM.

The successful bidder will be expected to provide (this may be through a subcontractor) one or more of the following services as relevant to the services you are offering in your bid:

Concrete Replacement (sidewalk, street paving)

TAB C – REFERENCES

Include at least three recent references for customers (preferably public agencies) for whom you have provided these services. Please include the customer’s name, address, contact person, phone number, and email address for each reference. The CITY reserves the right to contact or visit any of the respondent’s current and/or past customers to evaluate the level of performance and customer satisfaction.

Tab D – PRICING Complete the BID SHEET that offers unit cost pricing for the work described. The proposal to be submitted will be considered for award only for the sections completed on the BID SHEET. The respondent will not be considered for any section that is not completed.

Tab E – BID SECURITY Each Bid must be accompanied by a Bid bond or a certified or cashier’s check, acceptable to the Owner, in an amount not less than 5 percent (5%) of the total amount Bid, as a guarantee that the successful bidder will enter into the Contract Documents and execute the Bonds on the forms provided and provide the required insurance certificates and Bonds within seven (7) days after the date Contract Documents are received by the successful bidder. If a certified or cashier’s check is provided, the successful bidder shall deliver, at the bid opening address, the original certified or cashier’s check within one (1) business day of receipt of the bid opening.

RESPONDENT’S REFERENCE SHEET

PLEASE COMPLETE AND RETURN THIS FORM WITH THE SOLICITATION RESPONSE

SOLICITATION NUMBER: ____________________________________________________________ RESPONDENT’S NAME: __________________________________ DATE: _____________________ Provide the name, address, telephone number and E-MAIL of at least three (3) Municipal and/or Government agencies or firms of comparable size that have utilized similar service within the last two (2) years. City of Waller references are not applicable. References may be checked prior to award. Any negative responses received may result in disqualification of submittal.

Company’s Name ____________________________________________ Name of Contact _____________________________________________ Title of Contact ______________________________________________ E-Mail Address ______________________________________________ Present Address _____________________________________________ City, State, Zip Code __________________________________________ Telephone Number (____)______________ Fax Number: (____)__________________

Company’s Name ____________________________________________ Name of Contact _____________________________________________ Title of Contact ______________________________________________ E-Mail Address ______________________________________________ Present Address _____________________________________________ City, State, Zip Code __________________________________________ Telephone Number (____)______________ Fax Number: (____)__________________

Company’s Name ____________________________________________ Name of Contact _____________________________________________ Title of Contact ______________________________________________ E-Mail Address ______________________________________________ Present Address _____________________________________________ City, State, Zip Code __________________________________________ Telephone Number (____)______________ Fax Number: (____)__________________

FAILURE TO PROVIDE THE REQUIRED INFORMATION WITH THE SOLICITATION RESPONSE MAY AUTOMATICALLY DISQUALIFY THE RESPONSE FROM CONSIDERATION FOR AWARD

GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS (CONTRACT TERMS)

1. Sales Tax. The CITY is exempt from Texas limited sales, federal excise and use tax, and does not pay tax on purchase, rental, or lease of tangible personal property. A tax exemption certificate will be issued upon request.

2. Labor Classification and Minimum Wage Scale.

(A) General: Chapter 2258 of the Texas Government Code provides that any political subdivision of the State of Texas shall determine the general prevailing wage rate received by the classes of workers employed on projects similar to this Project and shall specify in the call for bids and in the Contract Documents the minimum wage rates which must be paid for each type of worker. This statute further provides that the Contractor or subcontractors must pay, as penalty to Owner, Sixty Dollars ($60.00) for each worker employed for each calendar day or part of the day that the worker is paid less than the wage rates stipulated in the Contract. Owner is authorized to withhold from the Contractor the amount of this penalty from any payment due under the Contract Documents. The statute likewise requires that the Contractor and subcontractors keep an accurate record of the names and occupations of all persons employed by them on the construction of the Project and to show the actual per diem wages paid to each worker. These records are open to the inspection of Owner.

(B) The minimum wage rates that apply to this Contract are specified in Attachment A of Section I. Contractor and subcontractors must review and ascertain such wage rates and pay at least such minimum rates.

3. Conditions. CITY reserves the right to accept or reject any and/or all submissions or to cancel this notice at any time.

a. A response to this solicitation does not commit CITY to a purchase contract, or to pay any costs incurred in the preparation of such a response.

b. Unless the respondent specifies in the proposals, CITY may award the contract for any items/services or group of items/services in the solicitation and may increase or decrease the quantity specified.

c. CITY reserves the right to hold and accept any proposals received by the submission deadline for a period of ninety (60) days after the deadline if a determination has not been made for an award.

d. CITY reserves the right to negotiate the final terms of any and all purchase contracts with respondent(s) selected and such contracts negotiated as a result of this solicitation may be re-negotiated and/or amended in order to successfully meet the agency needs.

e. CITY reserves the right to waive any defect in this procurement process or to make changes to this solicitation, as it deems necessary. CITY will provide notifications of such changes, via an Addendum, to all respondents recorded in its official record as having received or requested solicitation.

f. CITY reserves the right to contact any individual, agencies, or employers listed in a submission, to contact others who may have experience and/or knowledge of the respondent's relevant performance and/or qualifications; and to request additional information from any and all respondents.

g. CITY reserves the right to conduct a review of records, systems, procedures, etc., of any respondent. This may occur prior to, or subsequent to, the award of a purchase contract. Misrepresentation of the respondent's ability to perform as stated in the qualification submittals may result in cancellation of the contract award.

h. CITY reserves the right to withdraw or reduce the amount of the award, or to cancel any contract resulting from this procurement if adequate funding is not available.

i. Respondent shall not, under penalty of law, offer or provide any gratuities, favors, or anything of monetary value to any officer, member, employee, or agent of CITY for the purpose of, or having the effect of, influencing favorable disposition toward their own submission or any other submitted hereunder.

j. No employee, officer, or agent of CITY shall participate in the selection, award, or administration of a contract if a conflict of interest, real or apparent, exists.

k. Respondent shall not engage in any activity that will restrict or eliminate competition. Violation of this provision may cause the respondent's bid to be rejected. This does not preclude joint ventures or subcontracts.

l. All proposals submitted must be an original work product of the respondent. The copying, paraphrasing, or other use of substantial portions of the work product of others and submitted hereunder, as original work of the respondent is not permitted. Failure to adhere to this instruction may cause the proposal submission(s) to be rejected.

m. The only purpose of this solicitation is to ensure uniform information in the selection of proposals and procurement of services. This solicitation is not to be construed as a purchase contract, or as a commitment of any kind, nor does it commit CITY to pay for costs incurred prior to the execution of a formal contract unless such costs are specifically authorized in writing by CITY.

n. The contents of a successful proposal submission may become a contractual obligation, if selected for award of a contract. The failure of the respondent to accept this obligation may result in cancellation of the award. No plea of error or mistake shall be available to the successful respondent as a basis for release of proposed services at stated price/cost. Any damages accruing to CITY as a result of the respondent's failure to contract may be recovered from the respondent.

o. A contract with the selected respondent may be withheld at the sole discretion of CITY if issues of contract compliance or questioned/disallowed costs exist, until such issues are satisfactorily resolved. Award of contract may be withdrawn by CITY if resolution is not satisfactory to CITY.

4. Insurance Requirements For the entire term of the Agreement (“Term”), CONTRACTOR shall maintain Comprehensive General Liability insurance coverage of $1,000,000 per occurrence, $2,000,000 in the aggregate or medical malpractice insurance (whichever applies). CONTRACTOR shall also maintain the following insurance: (a) Worker’s Compensation coverage with statutory limits for the State of Texas, including Employers Liability coverage of $500,000 per accident (contractors that opt out of workers compensation for their employees will not be considered for contract);Commercial Automobile Liability coverage of $1,000,000 Combined Single Limit; (iii) for engineers and architects only: Professional Liability coverage of $1,000,000 per occurrence; and (iv) for builders only: Builder’s Risk coverage in the amount of the construction cost, including protection against named windstorm and flood. All policies must contain a waiver of subrogation against the CITY. Comprehensive General Liability and Commercial Automobile Liability policies must be named CITY as Additional Insured. CONTRACTOR shall pay all insurance deductibles and deductibles must not exceed $10,000 unless approved in advance by CITY.

CONTRACTOR shall provide City Certificates of Insurance evidencing these insurance requirements prior to the start of work. The CONTRACTOR shall notify the CITY in the event of any change in the required coverage or cancellation and shall give such notices not less than 30 days prior to the change or cancellation. The CONTRACTOR shall provide a replacement Certificate of Insurance prior to such change or cancellation. The CONTRACTOR agrees to waive all the CONTRACTOR’S, its officers, employees, agents, assigns, and successors’ rights of subrogation, except under the Professional Liability, against the CITY, its officers, employees, and elected representatives for injuries, including death, property damage, or other loss covered by insurance and the CONTRACTOR will provide a waiver of subrogation endorsement against the CITY. The CITY must be named or listed on the endorsement.

COVERAGES SHALL BE WITH A COMPANY (WITH AT LEAST AN A-BEST RATING) ACCEPTABLE TO THE CITY PURCHASING AND RISK MANAGEMENT DIVISION AND A COPY OFTHE CERTIFICATE OF COVERAGE SHALL BE DELIVERED TO THE CITY ON OR BEFORE THEDATE OF THIS AGREEMENT. At all times during the term of a contract resulting from this procurement, the contractor shall procure, pay for, and maintain, with approved insurance carriers, the minimum insurance coverage and limits required to do business in the state of Texas.

5. Indemnification Contractor shall defend, indemnify, and hold harmless CITY, CITY’S affiliates, and any of their respective directors, officers, employees, agents, subcontractors, successors, and assigns from any and all suits, actions, claims, demands, judgments, liabilities, losses, damages, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and court costs) (collectively, “Losses”) arising out of or relating to: (is) Services performed and carried out pursuant to the contract; (ii) breach of any obligation, warranty, or representation in the contract, (iii) the negligence or willful misconduct of contractor and/or its employees or subcontractors; or (iv) any infringement, misappropriation, or violation by contractor and/or its employees or subcontractors of any right of a third party; provided, however, that contractor shall have no obligation to defend, indemnify, or hold harmless to the extent any losses are the result of CITY ’s gross negligence or willful misconduct.

6. FORCE MAJEURE

It is expressly understood and agreed by both parties that, if the performance of any provision of a contract resulting from this procurement is delayed by force majeure, defined as reason of war, civil commotion, act of God, governmental restriction, regulation or interference, fire, explosion, hurricane, flood, failure of transportation, court injunction, or any circumstances which are reasonably beyond the control of the party obligated or permitted under the terms of the contract to do or perform the same, regardless of whether any such circumstance is similar to any of those enumerated herein, the party so obligated or permitted shall be excused from doing or performing the same during such period of delay, so that the period of time applicable to such requirement shall be extended for a period of time equal to the period of time such party was delayed. Each party must inform the other in writing within a reasonable time of the existence of such force majeure.

7. FORM 1295

The Texas Legislature has adopted House Bill 1295. In summary, the law states that a governmental entity or state agency may not enter into certain contracts with a business entity unless the business entity submits a disclosure of interested parties (Form 1295) to our agency prior to the award of certain contracts. The disclosure of interested parties must be completed electronically and submitted through the Texas Ethics Commission website. If the requirement applies to the contract resulting from this RFP, CITY will notify the vendor that the disclosure is required and will provide a specific contract number for inclusion in the submittal. For more information about the process, please visit the following website: https://www.ethics.state.tx.us/whatsnew/FAQ Form1295.html.

8. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

Contractor shall not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, religion, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin. Contractor shall take affirmative actions to ensure that applicants are employed, and that employees are treated, during their employment, without regard to their race, religion, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin. Such actions shall include, but not be limited to, the following: employment, upgrading, demotion, or transfer; recruitment or recruitment advertising; layoff or termination; rates of pay or other forms of compensation; and selection for training, including apprenticeship.

9. DAVIS-BACON ACT. Where the project is subject to the Davis Bacon Act, the Contractor agrees to comply with all applicable provisions of 40 USC § 3141- 3148.

10. DRUG-FREE WORKPLACE. Contractor shall provide a drug free workplace in compliance with the Drug Free Workplace Act of 1988.

11. TEXAS CORPORATE FRANCHISE TAX CERTFICATION. Pursuant to Article 2.45, Texas Business Corporation Act, state agencies may not contract with for profit corporations that are delinquent in making state franchise tax payments.

12. TEXAS STATE SALES TAX.

The City of Waller is tax exempt. No sales tax will be charged on any products or services. Materials incorporated into this project are exempt from State Sales Tax according to the provisions of the Texas Tax Code, Chapter 151, Subsection H. City will not pay any sales tax included in a Contractor’s invoice.

The City of Waller cannot exempt any other person/vendor from applicable sales taxes that may be required of them in relation to this project. The Contractor must obtain a limited sales, excise and use tax permit or exemption certificate which shall enable him to buy the materials to be incorporated into the work without paying the tax at the time of purchase.

13. GOVERNING LAW. Any contract resulting from this solicitation shall be governed in all respects by the laws of the State of Texas and any litigation with respect thereto shall be brought in the courts of the State of Texas. The Vendor shall comply with applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations.

CONDITIONS

1. Scope of Work Contractor shall furnish all necessary labor, materials (excluding those specifically provided by CITY), consumable materials, tools, equipment, transportation, skills, expertise, supervision, insurance, taxes (excluding Texas sales and use taxes and municipal sales taxes), permits, licenses, bonds, and all other items of expense and services necessary to safely and satisfactorily perform natural gas line construction, improvements and maintenance. Work will be performed on an as needed basis, with detailed instructions being provided in the work order, sketches, maps and drawings and will be in accordance with the provisions described herein.

The Contractor's responsibility shall include the performance of all operations necessary to furnish Buyer with completed gas transportation and/or distribution lines ("lines") ready for service. Said lines shall include pipe, valves, fittings, and any other material or equipment specified in the work order and associated documents. Contractor shall prepare the lines for service by making the necessary connections to existing facilities.

Receiving, unloading, handling, and storing of all materials, pavement breaking, ditching, tunneling, boring, excavating, cleaning, swabbing, inspecting of pipe, tacking and welding of pipe, fittings and any pertinent equipment, application of joint coating materials, furnishing labor and materials necessary for pressure testing, locating and repairing leaks indicated by test, purging, backfilling, rolling and compacting backfill, cleanup, maintaining required traffic control and warning signals for the protection of the public.

2. Multiple Contracts

• An award will be made for each section on the BID SHEET. There will be a primary award and, at the CITY’s discretion, a secondary and tertiary award for each item. The secondary and tertiary contract awards WILL ONLY be used when the primary contract cannot meet the CITY’s performance requirements for an individual work order.

• A contract will be executed for each vendor awarded a primary, secondary or tertiary award and the contract shall contain in its Appendix those awarded items. There will not be a separate contract executed for each line item.

• The CITY reserves the right to bypass a contractor for the issuance of work orders if the contractor has not met performance requirements on previous work orders. The CITY also reserves the right to terminate any contract without cause at any time.

3. Task Orders The quantity and description of the tasks to be performed, and the notice to proceed with the work, shall be submitted to the contractor through the issuance of an executed written work order document prepared by either the CONTRACTOR or the CITY. The work order and its accompanying notice to proceed may also be initiated with an email from the City staff member containing the task instructions. Individual work orders upon execution will become a part of the agreement. A copy of the approved written work order is required to be submitted as documentation accompanying any invoice submitted to the CITY for payment.

• Vendor must be able to provide service twenty-four (24) hours a day, seven (7) days a week, three hundred sixty-five (365) days a year, including holidays for the duration of the agreement.

• The City of Waller expects the Vendor to give “priority” service to any call for repairs for the CITY. Gas line infrastructure in some cases is a matter of public safety. Therefore, reliable emergency response capabilities are critical. Vendor must commit to the following response times:

Under normal working conditions, no more than four (4) hours shall elapse from time of call to time of arrival.

In the event of an emergency, the successful bidder shall have a crew at the designated site within one (1) hour of the call from the City of Waller.

It is the responsibility of the Vendor to provide an up-to-date list of names and contact numbers of on-call personnel. The CITY will contact the Vendor by phone as emergencies occur and will provide as much information as available about the emergency work assignment, including the location(s), type of work and site condition(s).

Service will be performed in a variety of government locations throughout the City of Waller. All unique requirements and or regulations for each type of repair shall be strictly followed by the Vendor and Vendor’s employees.

The City of Waller’s “normal business hours” are defined as being 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday.

Contractor shall designate one (1) person with the company to act as the point of contact for the CITY. The Contractor shall provide the CITY a cell phone number and email address for this person. Phone calls made by the CITY shall be returned by the Contractor within one (1) hour and emails shall be responded to within twenty-four (24) hours. If a new person is assigned as point of contact for the CITY, the CITY shall be notified within twenty-four (24) hours of the change.

PROCESS

4. Safety Measures. Vendor shall take all necessary precautions for the safety of employees on the worksite and shall erect and properly maintain at all times, as required based on job conditions and process of the work, all necessary safeguards for the protection of the workmen and public including traffic control, warning signs, and barricades.

5. Brand Names. Where equipment or materials are specified by a trade or brand name, it is not the intention of the CITY to discriminate against an equal product of another manufacturer but rather to set a definite standard of quality and/or performance and to establish an equal basis for the evaluation of bids. Where the words "equivalent" or "equal to" are used, they shall be understood to mean that the thing referred to shall be, in the opinion or judgment of the Professional, the equivalent of or equal to the product or item specified by name. Unless otherwise specified, all materials shall be the best of their respective kinds and shall be, in all cases, fully equivalent to approved samples. Notwithstanding that the words “equivalent", "equal to" or other such expressions may be used in the specifications in connection with a material, manufactured article or process, the material, article or process specifically designated shall be used unless a substitute shall be approved in writing by the Professional. The Professional has the right to require the use of such specifically designated materials, articles or processes.

6. WEEKEND WORK HOURS. Construction work under this Contract requiring an inspector will not be performed on weekends or holidays unless the following conditions exist:

a. The project being constructed is essential to the City of Waller’s ability to provide the necessary service to its citizens; or

b. Delays in construction are due to factors outside the control of the Contractor. The Contractor is approaching the penalty provisions of the Contract and can show that he has made a diligent effort to complete the Contract within the allotted time.

Before construction work requiring an inspector is to be performed on weekends or holidays, the Contractor must notify the CITY's representative not less than three (3) full working days prior to the weekend or holiday the Contractor desires to do work and obtain written permission from the CITY's representative to do such work. The final decision on whether to allow construction work requiring an inspector on weekends or holidays will be made by the CITY’s representative.

In any event, if a condition should occur or arise at the site of this project or from the work being done under this Contract which is hazardous or dangerous to property or life, the Contractor shall immediately commence work, regardless of the day of the week or the time of day, to correct or alleviate such condition so that it is no longer dangerous to property or life.

7. Materials and Workmanship. The intent of these contract documents is that only materials and workmanship of the best quality and grade will be furnished. The fact that the specifications may fail to be sufficiently complete in some detail will not relieve the Contractor of full responsibility for providing materials of high quality and for protecting them adequately until completion of the project and acceptance by the CITY. The presence or absence of a representative of the CITY on the construction site will not relieve the Contractor of full responsibility for complying with this provision. The specifications for materials and methods set forth in the contract documents provide minimum standards of quality which the CITY believes necessary to procure a satisfactory project.

8. Guarantees and Warranties. All equipment and materials incorporated in the project and all construction shall be guaranteed against defective materials and workmanship. Prior to final acceptance, the Contractor shall furnish the CITY with a written general guarantee which shall provide that the Contractor shall remedy any defects in the work, at no cost to the CITY, and pay for any and all damages of any nature whatsoever resulting from such defects when such defects appear as a result of defective materials or workmanship within one (1) year from the date of final acceptance of the work.

Neither the final payment nor certificate nor any provision in this Contract shall relieve the Contractor of responsibility for faulty materials or workmanship, and he shall remedy any defects due thereto and pay for any damage to other work resulting therefrom, which shall appear within a period of one (1) year from the date of work performed.

9. Protection of the Work. The Contractor shall be responsible for the care, preservation, conservation and protection of all materials, supplies, machinery, equipment, tools, apparatus, accessories, facilities and all means of construction, and any and all parts of the work, whether the Contractor has been paid, partially paid or not paid for such work until the date the City issues its certificate of completion to the Contractor.

10. Protection of Subsurface lines and structures. It shall be the Contractor's responsibility to prosecute the work in such a way as to exercise due care to locate and prevent damage to all underground pipelines, utility lines, conduits or other underground structures which might or could be damaged by Contractor during the construction. The City of Waller agrees that it will furnish Contractor with the approximate location of all such underground lines and utilities which it has knowledge. However, such fact shall not relieve the Contractor of his responsibilities aforementioned and it shall be the responsibility of the Contractor to determine for himself the exact location and depth of any utilities which exist in the project site. All such underground lines or structures cut or damaged by Contractor during the prosecution of the work shall be repaired immediately by Contractor, at Contractor's expense, to the satisfaction of the CITY.

11. Traffic Control, Barricades, and Safety Measures.

The Contractor shall, at his own expense, furnish and erect such traffic control, barricades, fences, lights and danger signals, and shall take such other precautionary measures for the protection of persons, property and the work as may be necessary.

The Contractor will be held responsible for all damage to the work due to failure of barricades, signs and lights to protect it; and when damage is incurred, the damaged portion shall be immediately removed and replaced by Contractor at his own cost and expense. The Contractor's responsibility for maintenance of barricades, signs and lights shall not cease until the date of issuance to Contractor of the CITY's certificate of acceptance of the project.

The Contractor will be held responsible for all damage to the work which may occur prior to final acceptance by the CITY regardless of the adequacy of protective barricades and lighting, and when damage is incurred, the damaged portion shall be immediately removed and replaced by Contractor at his own cost and expense.

When construction begins on a street, the Contractor shall maintain traffic on the streets at all times. Contractor shall also make necessary provisions to allow ambulance, police, fire and other emergency vehicles access to the street.

During construction, the Contractor shall allow resident traffic access to the street with proper guidance, direction, flagmen and traffic control and only at such times that damage will not occur to the new construction or to the vehicles.

All traffic control devices, placement and activities shall be as per the latest edition of the Texas Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (TMUTCD). If there is any conflict between the MUTCD and traffic control requirements within the Contract Documents, the CONTRACTOR shall notify the CITY immediately.

In so far as possible, the CONTRACTOR shall schedule and conduct street operations in the intersections as rapidly as possible to minimize the length of…