IFB_10220162_Addendum___1_Questions_and_Answers.pdf

STATE OF CALIFORNIA – CALIFORNIA NATURAL RESOURCES AGENCY GAVIN NEWSOM, Governor

DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES

715 P STREET, 7th FLOOR P.O. BOX 942836

SACRAMENTO, CA 94236-0001

INVITATION FOR BID

ADDENDUM # 1

SOLICITATION # 10220162

NOTICE TO PROSPECTIVE BIDDERS

SEPTEMBER 22, 2026

To All Prospective Bidders:

I. DWR received the following question(s) for Invitation for Bid # 10220162 Data Processing, Printing, and Mailing Services.

Q1. Please identify the time zone applicable to all Bid Key Action Date times on page 4, including Technical Questions due September 17, 2026 at 8:00 AM; Answers by September 22, 2026 at 4:00 PM; Bids received by October 6, 2026 at 1:00 PM; and Bid opening October 6, 2026 at 1:30 PM.

A1. All times are in Pacific Standard Time.

Q2. Exhibit A, Section 5 lists FRN Mailing (4.h) completion as September 30th each year, while Exhibit A, Section 6.b, states that FRNs must be mailed by September 1st every year. Which date governs acceptance and performance expectations?

Could the Department please clarify the official required mailing deadline?

A2. At least one (1) mailer must be sent before September 1st per Water Code, but some years, we split the letters into batches so it’s not such a large volume going out at one time.

Q3. For Bid Sheet Item 5 and the FRN mailings under Exhibit A, please clarify the required mail class and presort level; whether postage is Contractor-funded, State-funded, or reimbursed; whether the Contractor or State will provide the applicable permit/indicia/meter account; and whether CASS/NCOA/Move Update, Intelligent Mail Barcode preparation, address-correction services, or undeliverable/return-mail processing are required. If any of these mailing methods are left to the Contractor’s proposed approach subject to DWR approval, please confirm.

A3. The Contractor will need to provide a postage quote for First-Class standard postage from USPS. There are no extra USPS services that we require. There is a line item for “Postage” on page 16 of the solicitation, Attachment I, Bid Sheet. Postage will be invoiced to DWR and reimbursed.

Q4. Postage Payment and True-Up Process Item 5 on Attachment I requires a per-piece cost for Postage across an estimated 325,000 pieces per year. Given that USPS postal rates fluctuate annually, will the contract allow for rate adjustments corresponding to official USPS price increases over the three-year term, or must the per-piece postage bid rate remain fixed for all three years? Do you have a preferred method for pricing postage, separating variable postage costs from the other material, printing, and handling rates?

A4. The contract will not allow for rate adjustments to USPS postage. Please provide quote for

First-Class standard postage to account for fluctuations. Attachment I, Bid Sheet, on page 16 of the solicitation states, “The rates listed on this Bid Sheet shall include every item of expense, direct and indirect, including taxes incidental to the specified rates.”

Q5. For Bid Sheet Items 2–4 (tri-fold letters; multi-property letters; additional pages), does DWR have mandatory specifications for paper stock, weight, finished size, color/ink, fold, variable-data production, proofing, and finishing, or are those production specifications to be Contractor-proposed subject to DWR approval? Are there bleeds?

A5. These production specifications are to be Contractor proposed and subject to DWR approval.

Q6. Volume Clarifications for Multi-Property Attachments Attachment I (Bid Sheet) lists

Item 3 as Multi-property letters (35,000 per year) and Item Item 4 as Additional pages (60,000 per year). Is there a standard or maximum page limit for the property list attachments sent to multi-property and public agency owners?

A6. No, there is no standard page limit. The number of pages will be based on the number of properties that are owned by that particular property owner/public agency.

Q7. Custom Map Layer Specifications and Data Formats Exhibit A, Task 1.d requires the Contractor to create, update, and provide custom map layers. What file formats (e.g. Esri Shapefile, File Geodatabase, GeoJSON) does DWR require for these GIS deliverables, and will DWR provide baseline GIS layer assets at contract award?

A7. We would need Shapefiles. DWR will provide baseline GIS layers.

Q8. Data Licensing and LightBox Vision Cost Responsibility Exhibit A, Task 1.b specifies that the Contractor must acquire parcel data using LightBox Vision parcel data while Attachment I (Bid Sheet) Item 1 includes a line item for Purchase Parcel data. Will the State provide access or credentials to an existing enterprise LightBox Vision agreement, or is the Contractor required to purchase and license this dataset directly from the third-party vendor?

A8. The Contractor will be required to purchase parcel data directly from the third-party vendor but will be reimbursed as part of the contract. Attachment I, Bid Sheet, on page 16 of the solicitation states, “The bidder hereby agrees to provide all labor, materials, licenses, permits, and transportation necessary to perform all services required for the foregoing titled work in accordance with the Scope of Work, Exhibit A. The rates listed on this Bid Sheet shall include every item of expense, direct and indirect, including taxes incidental to the specified rates.”

Q9. Please clarify whether the awarded Contractor will be expected to provide all technology, software, systems, and data-processing capabilities necessary to perform the Scope of Work, or whether DWR anticipates making any existing Contractor-provided technology, software, licenses, systems, or workflows available to the awarded Contractor.

A9. The Contractor would be expected to provide all necessary equipment to perform the work.

DWR will not provide any equipment. Attachment I, Bid Sheet, on page 16 of the solicitation states, “The bidder hereby agrees to provide all labor, materials, licenses, permits, and transportation necessary to perform all services required for the foregoing titled work in accordance with the Scope of Work, Exhibit A. The rates listed on this Bid Sheet shall include every item of expense, direct and indirect, including taxes incidental to the specified rates.”

Q10. Can vendors attach additional documentation to further illustrate our offering? If so, will this be considered in scoring?

A10. No. DWR will evaluate only the required documents outlined in the Bid Checklist on page

15 of the solicitation.

Q11. If DWR requests material changes to the FRN format, data requirements, map layers, processing requirements, or other deliverables during the three-year term, please clarify how costs associated with those changes will be addressed.

A11. There will be no cost adjustments to the quotes provided in Attachment I, Bid Sheet if DWR requests material changes.

Q12. Evaluation Section C.5.e references option years, while the Notice and Bid Sheet describe an anticipated three-year term without defined option periods. Please reconcile this language and confirm the contract period(s) bidders must price on the Bid Sheet.

A12. This is general template language. This Invitation for Bid (IFB) does not include option years; therefore, the language in Section C.5.e., Evaluation and Selection Process, on page 7 does not apply to this solicitation.

Q13. Please confirm that only Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise (DVBE) companies can bid on this contract.

A13. No. This IFB has a DVBE participation requirement, which means either the primary Contractor has to be DVBE-certified or the primary can subcontract a component of the work to a DVBE-certified vendor.

Q14. If we are committed to using a DVBE subcontractor, is it required to include the selected DVBE subcontractor in Attachment VI, form DWR 9526 Bidder Certification of DVBE Participation on page 22 of the solicitation, or can that be provided at a later date if chosen as the awardee?

A14. You must provide the DVBE subcontractor information with your bid submission. Please see the answer to the following question.

Q15. If the prime bidder is a DGS/OSDS-certified DVBE and will self-perform a commercially useful function, may the prime’s own DVBE self-performance count toward the mandatory 3.0% DVBE participation requirement, or must the 3.0% be met through DVBe subcontractor(s)? Please also clarify how that participation should be reflected on DWR 9526 and DGS PD 843 (and related DVBE bid forms).

A15. This IFB has a DVBE participation requirement, which means either the primary

Contractor has to be DVBE-certified or the primary can subcontract a component of the work to a DVBE-certified vendor.

Regarding Attachment VI, form DWR 9526 Bidder Certification of DVBE Participation on page 22 of the solicitation, “DVBE Program participation is required in solicitation” needs to be checked in Section 1 – DVBE Participation Program. The primary Contractor will need to complete Sections 2, 3, and 4. Section 5 will need to be completed only if Options C or D were checked in Section 4.

Regarding Attachment VII, form DGS PD 843 Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise on page 23 of the solicitation, the DVBE vendor will need to complete the form.

Attachment VIII, DGS PD 05-105 Bidder Declaration on page 24 will also need to be completed accordingly and included in the bid submission.

As mentioned in Section I.1. on page 13 of the solicitation, The Department’s SB/DVBE Program Manager offers a pre-review of a bidder’s DVBE documentation prior to bid submission. The email address is SB.DVBE@water.ca.gov. Please allow at least five (5) working days for pre-review of the DVBE documentation.

*End of Addendum* mailto:SB.DVBE@water.ca.gov