ESBD_487597_1770246146898_RFQ26-2 Delinquent Tax Attorney.pdf

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATION (RFQ) No. 26-2

Paris Junior College

Delinquent Tax Attorney

SOLICITATION SCHEDULE

This schedule may be modified or changed at the sole discretion of PJC.

CONTACT INFORMATION

Thad Turman, Director of Purchasing, Business Services

Paris Junior College

2400 Clarksville St.

Paris, Texas 75460

Office: 903-782-1203

E-Mail: tturman@parisjc.edu

ACTION DATE

Issue RFQ 02/04/2026

Question and/or Clarifications Deadline 02/20/2026

Issuance of final addendum, if necessary. 02/11/2026

Submit all qualifications before 2pm CST to PJC Business Office/hardcopy or email.

03/16/2026

Recommendation of award and approval to enter into contract.

Award will be announced after approval received. 04/25/2026 mailto:kcarlton@parisjc.edu

SCOPE OF WORK

1. General

Paris Junior College (“PJC” or the “College”) is soliciting sealed qualification statements from qualified law firms to provide delinquent property tax collection services within the taxing area of the college, on behalf of the PJC college district.

Responding firms must demonstrate relevant experience and a verifiable history of successfully administering delinquent tax collection programs within the State of Texas.

All services shall be performed in full compliance with applicable federal, state, and local laws, codes, statutes, and regulatory requirements.

PJC is a public community college organized under Chapter 130 of the Texas Education Code and is tax-exempt under the laws of the State of Texas.

2. Scope of Work

This Scope of Work defines the requirements for the provision of delinquent property tax collection services to PJC. The selected firm(s) shall provide all delinquent ad valorem tax collection services within the College’s taxing area, as authorized by Texas law, including but not limited to the services described herein:

2.1. Perform all necessary services required to collect delinquent taxes, including penalty fees and interest, while ensuring that the process is carried out in an accurate, ethical, and lawful manner.

2.2. Assist in delinquent collections as authorized under Sections 6.30 and 33.07 of the Property Tax Code.

2.3. Other services may be requested of the firm related to delinquent ad valorem property tax matters.

2.4. Must have a minimum of five (5) years’ experience in filing and processing delinquent tax collection claims.

2.5. Must have at least five (5) years of experience in delinquent tax collection.

2.6. Must be licensed by the State Bar of Texas as a licensed attorney(s) to perform legal services and conform to the highest ethical standards of attorney practices and or professional services.

2.7. Enforce by lawsuit, or otherwise, the collection of all delinquent taxes, penalties, and interest owed to PJC.

2.7.1. No lawsuit shall be filed to collect a tax on real property unless a title search has been conducted on the property. Before filing a delinquent tax lawsuit on real property, attorney shall provide the collector with a copy of title search that has been completed on the property.

2.8. The designated tax collection entity for each county shall furnish all necessary tax information to the awarded firm. The awarded firm shall determine the name, identity and location of necessary parties and procure necessary legal descriptions of property and recover the costs of obtaining such information.

2.9. Advise appropriate County Tax Assessor-Collector’s Office of errors, double assessments, and other discrepancies coming under observation during the progress of the work.

2.10. Intervene on behalf of PJC in all lawsuits for delinquent ad valorem taxes filed by any other taxing unit or Attorney on property located within boundaries.

2.11. Prepare and send notices to delinquent taxpayers to foreclose tax liens and otherwise facilitate collection of delinquent taxes.

2.12. Sell all properties seized or ordered sold pursuant to foreclosure of a tax lien.

Property shall be sold in accordance to the Texas Property Tax Code. All Properties struck off under the County’s name or any other taxing jurisdiction that the College collects for shall be re-sold in accordance with the Texas Property Tax Code and at no additional cost to PJC.

2.13. Must have or obtain computer hardware and software that is compatible with the Tax Assessor-Collector’s Office within thirty (30) days of awarded contract.

2.14. Advise PJC on legal issues that arise in the process of delinquent tax collection and any other legal services offered.

2.15. Provide legal and technical support to PJC in the annual preparation of the College’s tax rate, including assistance with statutory calculations, certification timeline, compliance with Truth-in-Taxation requirements, and coordination with the Tax Assessor-Collector, as requested by the College.

2.16. File claims and represent PJC in all Delinquent Taxes involved in bankruptcy and/or any federal agencies and correlate all PJC representation with PJC legal counsel and evaluation committee at no additional expense to PJC.

2.17. Serve as an authorized agent of PJC in conducting a taxable value audit.

3. Reports

3.1. Prepare quarterly delinquent tax collection progress reports to PJC, including reports on property sales and re-sales and upon request make presentations before the College’s Board of Trustees.

3.2. Submit a yearly report to Paris Junior College Board of Regents on collection of delinquent taxes.

3.3. At a minimum, quarterly and annual reports should include, where applicable:

3.3.1. Total delinquent tax amount outstanding at period start and end

3.3.2. Total collections during the reporting period

3.3.3. Breakdown of collections by Type (voluntary payments, litigation, bankruptcy, foreclosure, resale)

3.3.4. Number of active lawsuits filed and resolved

3.3.5. Number of properties sold, resold, or struck off

3.3.6. Status of bankruptcy and other complex cases

3.3.7. Comparative year-over-year collection data

4. Special Requirements

4.1. Provide legal assistance and/or opinions to PJC and/or the Tax Assessor- Collector regarding any problems involving ad valorem taxes within 5 to 10 working days.

4.2. Provide a website and posts tax sale property listings for the benefit of the public and provide Internet accessible property tax sales and resale information over the Internet.

4.3. Provide a toll free 800 telephone number for PJC taxpayers.

4.4. Providing such additional services as the PJC Board of Trustees may deem advisable to expedite the collection of delinquent taxes.

4.5. Provide other information and training to PJC staff and administrators as requested.

5. Contract Term The contract term, if any, for contract(s) awarded from this solicitation will be three (3) years with renewal options of two (2) one-year time periods subject to the termination provisions as further described in the sample contract terms and conditions on the Attachments tab section of this solicitation.

6. Evaluation Criteria An Evaluation Committee will review all qualification statements according to the criteria stated herein. The committee’s evaluations will be based on all available information, including qualification statements, subsequent interviews/presentations, reports, discussions, reference checks, and other appropriate reviews.

Proposals will be evaluated using a 1–5 scoring scale for each criterion, multiplied by the assigned weight to determine total points.

Scoring Scale:

• 5 – Excellent: Exceeds requirements in a clearly beneficial way

• 4 – Very Good: Fully meets requirements with strengths

• 3 – Satisfactory: Meets requirements adequately

• 2 – Marginal: Partially meets requirements

• 1 – Unsatisfactory: Does not meet requirement

Evaluation Section Weight (%) Section 1: Qualifications and Experience of Firm 20% Section 2: Qualifications and Experience of Personnel 20% Section 3: Scope Understanding, Approach, and Management 35% Section 4: References 20% Section 5: Exceptions to Terms and conditions 5% Total 100%

The evaluation committee will independently score each proposal. Final scores will be calculated by multiplying the rating (1–5) by the corresponding weight percentage for each section.

The College’s Evaluation Committee will evaluate and rank each submittal based on the criteria detailed above. The highest rated proposer(s) evaluated by the Committee may be invited to participate in a presentation and/or interview with the Evaluation Committee at the discretion of the College. If presentations or interviews are conducted, they will be evaluated on the following criteria:

Presentation/Interview Max Points Presentation 20 Interview 20 Total 40

Paris Junior College (PJC)’s Evaluation Committee will evaluate and rank each submittal based on the criteria detailed above.

QUALIFICATION STATEMENT RESPONSE REQUIREMENTS

All qualification statements must be submitted TBD. These requirements include, but are not limited to, the following:

Written Response:

Written Response shall be submitted as an attachment to the proposal submission and shall include responses to Section 1 – 5. Written Response shall be a single PDF document with a maximum of twenty (20) pages (numbered 1-20). Sections must be in order and clearly labeled as outlined below.

Include a cover sheet that includes your firm’s name, representative, and contact information. Coversheet does not count towards the 20-page limit.

1. Qualifications and Experience of Firm

1.1. Include a description of the firm including firm’s history and size. Provide information regarding how long the proposer has provided the services requested in this RFQ.

1.2. Describe previous experience with PJC or other public entities and/or colleges.

Provide a list of current contracts your firm has with taxing jurisdictions within the State of Texas.

1.3. Address customer service strategies for delivering a high level of customer service and handling customer complaints. Describe how your organization handles complaints, comments, or suggestions received.

1.4. List the number of years of ad valorem tax collections experience including number of years of experience in Texas and/or experience serving taxing jurisdictions for Paris Junior College.

1.5. Describe the success of your efforts in performing tax collection work with other tax jurisdictions. Include collection percentages and how they are calculated.

2. Qualifications and Experience of Personnel

2.1. Include a project-staffing plan and organizational chart for all proposed key staff members who will be assigned to the collections team. Identify their respective responsibilities for collection efforts. If personnel substitutions are contemplated on a contingency basis, they should also be identified.

2.2. Provide brief resumes for key staff members outlining the qualifications and experience directly related to this RFQ.

2.3. Describe the professional development training that is provided to personnel.

Who undergoes the training and how often?

2.4. Describe the frequency your firm evaluates staff and what type of performance evaluation system is used.

3. Scope Understanding, Approach, and Management

3.1. Describe how your services meet the scope and requirements listed in this RFQ.

Address any variances between your services and the scope.

3.2. Describe your delinquent tax collection techniques and procedures. Provide a sample of actual notice letters and statements. Include an annual proposed mailing schedule clearly indicating the type of mailing schedule.

3.3. Describe your procedures for filing lawsuits and indicate how they are monitored. Include procedures for selecting accounts for litigation and the firm’s approach to hand complex litigation and examples. Provide a sample of your firm’s title research provided to the collector before filing a delinquent tax lawsuit.

3.4. Describe your collection procedures for accounts in bankruptcy.

3.5. Describe your policies and practices related to partial payments or payment agreements or other arrangements with the taxpayer.

3.6. Describe procedures and experience in tax warrants and collection of judgments by execution and sale.

3.7. Describe other tax-related services that your firm provides.

3.8. How will you provide delinquent tax reports (DTR) to PJC (electronically or hard copy)?

3.9. Describe your ability to provide collection services in a bilingual

(English/Spanish) community.

3.10. Provide your 1-800 telephone number for customer service. Is it staffed with bilingual customer service personnel?

3.11. Provide detailed information on computer facilities, including hardware and software, to be used in the performance of work

4. References

4.1. The proposer shall provide at least five (5) references on recent projects for which the proposer's company is currently providing or has provided the same type and level of service required in this RFQ within the past three years. Include the name, telephone number, and valid email address of a reference person who may be contacted for further information. It is highly preferable that these references are for other colleges or public sector accounts comparable in size or larger.

4.2. All references will be contacted by email. Evaluations will be based on responses received from references. It is advisable to notify your references ahead of time that a reference will be requested by email.

5. Exceptions to Terms and Conditions An exception includes any addition, deletion, or other modification. Submit exceptions to terms and conditions as an attachment in the Response Attachment.

5.1. If you have any “EXCEPTIONS TO TERMS AND CONDITIONS” you must submit a written summary of each exception to this RFQ, including the scope, specifications, and/or sample contract, as applicable. The summary shall include supporting justification that clearly identifies the specific reference, page, section, and sub-section of the change, relevance of the change, the vendor’s rationale for the change, and benefit to the College for accepting the change for the submitted exceptions to be considered in the evaluation.

5.2. The College’s evaluation of submitted exceptions will address the quantity of exceptions, type of exceptions, and justification(s) for exceptions. Fewer exceptions and/or exceptions with a lower risk to the College, if accepted, will equate to a higher score.

5.3. Any exceptions not explicitly stated may not be considered during contract negotiations, if any. The submittal of exceptions to terms and conditions does not guarantee the College’s acceptance of exceptions. The College reserves the right to accept or reject any exceptions as necessary to negotiate a mutually beneficial contract.

List of Response Attachments:

Include the following documents in the Response.

All forms are available to download TBD. Except when listed as Optional, all Response Attachment documents are required and failure to provide a required document may deem the proposer non-responsive and disqualify the response from consideration for award.

1. Written Response

2. Conflict of Interest form

3. Proof of Insurance Requirements

4. References

5. Exceptions to Terms and Conditions (optional)