ITN 26-03 Audit and Accounting Services.docx

Invitation To Negotiate

Title: Audit and Accounting Services for the Florida Prepaid College Board, Stanley G. Tate Florida Prepaid College Foundation, Inc., and Florida ABLE, Inc.

Issuer: Florida Prepaid College Board

ITN Number: ITN 26-03

Table of Contents

i

1. Introduction

About the Florida Prepaid College Board The Florida Prepaid College Board (Board) administers two Qualified Tuition Programs for the State of Florida pursuant to Section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code: the Stanley G. Tate Florida Prepaid College (Prepaid) Program and the Florida 529 Savings (Savings) Program. The Prepaid Program allows Florida families to prepay the cost of college tuition, required fees, and dormitory housing at a state college or university in Florida at a price lower than the projected future cost of enrollment. The Savings Program allows Florida families to invest for future higher education expenses.

The Board, an agency of the State of Florida created by Section 1009.97, Florida Statutes, has seven members who establish policy and monitor performance for the Prepaid and Savings Programs. The Board is administratively housed within the State Board of Administration (SBA) but exercises its powers independently. The Board employs an administrative staff of 20.

The Board is supported by two nonprofit direct-support organizations. The Stanley G. Tate Florida Prepaid College Foundation, Inc. (Foundation) administers college scholarship programs. Florida ABLE, Inc. (d/b/a ABLE United) administers Florida’s qualified ABLE program established under Section 529A of the Internal Revenue Code, which allows eligible individuals with disabilities to save and invest for qualified disability expenses on a tax-advantaged basis.

For more information about the Board, Foundation, and ABLE United, please visit their respective websites: myfloridaprepaid.com, floridaprepaidcollegefoundation.com, and ableunited.com.

Procurement Objective This Invitation to Negotiate (ITN) has been issued by the Board, pursuant to Section 287.057, Florida Statutes, to obtain written offers for services (Responses) from qualified firms (Respondents) to provide audit and accounting services for the Florida Prepaid College Board, Stanley G. Tate Florida Prepaid College Foundation, and Florida ABLE, Inc.

Minimum Qualifications for Respondents Respondents must affirmatively state, in writing, that as of the Response deadline, the Respondent:

1. Will assign an engagement partner who holds an active Certified Public Accountant (CPA) license in good standing and ensure all personnel performing audit services meet applicable professional qualification standards and comply with Generally Accepted Auditing Standards (GAAS), Government Auditing Standards (GAGAS), and the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct.

2. The Respondent’s proposed engagement partner must have at least five years of relevant experience providing audit and accounting services to governmental or nonprofit entities, or a combination thereof. This experience must include financial statement audit engagements of comparable size and complexity to the services required under this ITN. Preference will be given to Respondents whose proposed engagement partner has experience providing audit and accounting services to qualified tuition programs established under Section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code, qualified ABLE programs established under Section 529A of the Internal Revenue Code, or governmental pension plans at the federal, state, or local level.

3. Agrees to provide the services detailed in Section 3 and satisfy all other requirements of this ITN.

4. Is a legal entity duly authorized and licensed to practice public accounting in the State of Florida and maintains good standing with all applicable regulatory authorities and the state in which it is organized.

5. Has no material conflict of interest involving its organization, key professionals, Board staff, or members of the Board.

Any Respondent that does not satisfy the minimum criteria herein shall be rejected.

1.

Schedule and Communications

Schedule The following schedule is set forth for informational and planning purposes. The Board reserves the right to modify this schedule as necessary to effectively administer this procurement.

12:00PM (ET)

ITNinfo.Prepaid@MyFloridaPrepaid.com

12:00PM (ET)

ITNinfo.Prepaid@MyFloridaPrepaid.com

3:00PM (ET)

1801 Hermitage Blvd., Suite 210 Tallahassee, FL 32308

Tallahassee, FL 32308

Tallahassee, FL 32308

* Indicates public meeting. Notice of public meetings will be posted in the Florida Administrative Register (FAR).

Official Notices All notices, addenda, revisions, decisions, intended decisions, and other information relating to this procurement will be electronically posted on the State of Florida MyFloridaMarketPlace (MFMP) Vendor Information Portal. The Respondent is responsible for monitoring MFMP. The Board does not guarantee information obtained from other sources.

Please visit: vendor.myfloridamarketplace.com/search/bids Organization: State Board of Administration Agency Advertisement Number: 26-03 Communications and Restrictions Thereof In accordance with Section 287.057, Florida Statutes, Respondents to this solicitation or persons acting on their behalf may not contact, between the release of the solicitation and the end of the 72-hour period following the agency posting the Notice of Intended Award, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and state holidays, any employee or officer of the executive or legislative branch concerning any aspect of this solicitation, except in writing to the procurement officer or as provided in the solicitation documents. Violation of this provision may be grounds for rejecting a Response. The procurement officer for this procurement is:

Shanna Rains, ITN Administrator Email: ITNinfo.Prepaid@MyFloridaPrepaid.com The Board is the only entity authorized to issue news releases relating to this procurement and any resulting contract.

Description of Services

Services Respondents will perform the services below for the Board’s Prepaid and Savings Plans; the Foundation; and ABLE United, unless indicated otherwise. Services will be mutually agreed upon by the Board and Respondent(s) pursuant to this negotiation process and formally documented in Exhibit B of the resulting contract attached herein as Appendix A.

Prior fiscal year audited financial statements and Comprehensive Investment Plans for the Board’s Prepaid and Savings Programs, the Foundation, and ABLE United are available on their respective websites:

· myfloridaprepaid.com/board-reports/

· floridaprepaidcollegefoundation.com/resources/news-publications-and-events/

· ableunited.com/resources/forms-and-documents The contract covered by this ITN will begin with the June 30, 2027, fiscal year-end.

AUDIT AND ACCOUNTING SERVICES

· ANNUAL AUDIT SERVICES: Conduct an annual audit of the financial statements of the Board, Foundation, and ABLE United, which each have a fiscal year end date of June 30. The audit work will include the expression of an opinion on the financial statements and a report on internal controls over financial reporting. ABLE United’s annual audit services shall include a state single audit under the Florida Single Audit Act, Section 215.97, Florida Statutes, and applicable Rules of the Auditor General, including all required reports and schedules.

· Each audit report is to express an opinion as to whether the financial statements are fairly presented, in all material respects, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States.

· Each audit is to be conducted in accordance with the auditing standards generally accepted in the United States and the standards applicable to financial audits contained in “Government Auditing Standards” issued by the Comptroller General of the United States.

· Each audit report is to be completed no later than November 30 immediately following the fiscal year being audited, or in accordance with any other deadlines required by state or federal law or regulations.

· SPECIAL CONSULTING AND ADVISORY SERVICES: Provide special consultation and advisory services to the Board regarding various financial, accounting, and auditing matters while maintaining independence.

Contract The Board intends to enter into a written contract with the Respondent(s) that offers the best value to the Board for the services included in this solicitation, as determined by the Board. The contract will incorporate this solicitation and amendments thereof, the written requests for clarifications and the answers thereof, and the Response provided by the contracting Respondent, including any and all supplemental Responses as requested by the Board.

A copy of the contract, which details the responsibilities of the contracting Respondent(s), is provided as Appendix A. The Board reserves the right to modify this contract pursuant to the negotiations addressed herein.

If the language between this solicitation and the contract conflict with the terms of State of Florida General Contract Conditions (PUR 1000) or State of Florida General Instructions to Respondents (PUR 1001), incorporated herein by reference, this solicitation and the contract shall control.

Failure to meet any contractual obligations may result in cancellation of any award.

Response

Mandatory Requirements The Board has established certain mandatory requirements that must be included in a Response. The use of “shall”, “must”, or “will” (except to indicate simple futurity) indicates a mandatory requirement or condition. The words "should" or "may" indicate desirable attributes or conditions, but are permissive in nature. Deviation from, or omission of, such a desirable attribute will not by itself cause rejection of a Response.

Respondents who meet the minimum qualifications and that have satisfied the mandatory requirements will be considered; any Respondent who does not will be rejected.

Response Format and Content Respondents must provide the following information in the form/format specified. Failure to comply with the instructions herein is sufficient cause to reject a Response.

The Written Response Packet is included herein as Appendix B and includes the following forms:

Tab 1 – Invitation to Negotiate Acknowledgement The Invitation to Negotiate Acknowledgment must be completed and signed by an officer or agent of the Respondent who is empowered to bind the Respondent in a contract. An executed acknowledgement, with the requested materials that follow, constitute an offer from the Respondent to provide the services detailed in this solicitation under the contractual terms provided herein.

Tab 2 – Minimum Qualifications The Minimum Qualifications form represents a written attestation that the Respondent meets the minimum qualifications set forth in this solicitation.

Tab 3 – Organizational Experience The Organizational Experience form collects information about the Respondent, the assigned team, and the relevant experience thereof.

Tab 4 – Annual Audit Services The Annual Audit Services form collects information about the Respondent’s proposed approach, methodology, and ability to meet the audit and reporting requirements of Florida Prepaid College Board, Stanley G. Tate Florida Prepaid College Foundation, Inc., and Florida ABLE, Inc.

TAB 5 – Special Consulting and Advisory Services The Special Consulting and Advisory Services form collects information about the Respondent’s additional consulting and advisory capabilities, approach to providing ongoing accounting and financial reporting support, and resources available to enhance Board staff knowledge and expertise while maintaining auditor independence.

TAB 6 – Pricing Schedule The Pricing Schedule represents the price offered for the services set forth in this solicitation. The Respondent, if awarded the contract, will receive compensation under the contract resulting from this procurement based upon the agreed upon price contained in the Pricing Schedule.

The forms provided herein are made available in Microsoft Word on the Board’s website for ease of completion.

Please visit: myfloridaprepaid.com/board-reports/.

Delivery A Respondent, including any Related Entities, may submit only one Response. Submission of more than one Response by a Respondent, or by the Respondent and a Related Entity, shall cause the rejection of all Responses submitted by the Respondent and the Related Entity. For this purpose, “Related Entity” means any corporation, partnership, limited partnership, limited liability company, or other entity, including, but not limited to, any parent company, subsidiary company, predecessor company, successor company or any member of an affiliated group of corporations, as defined in Section 1504 of the Internal Revenue Code.

Responses must be complete on the date delivered. Additional information submitted after the Response, or separate from the Response, will not be considered unless specifically requested by the Board and only to the extent requested.

The Respondent is responsible for the timely and proper delivery. Responses that, for any reason, are not delivered timely will be retained by the Board but will not be considered.

Delivery to the Board Each Response shall be prepared simply and economically providing a straightforward and concise delineation of the Respondent’s capabilities to satisfy the requirements of this procurement.

Each Respondent shall deliver one complete electronic submission in Word or PDF format to ITNinfo.Prepaid@MyFloridaPrepaid.com. Links or references to content outside of the Response will not be considered.

Conflicts of Interest Any award is subject to Chapter 112, Florida Statutes. Respondents must disclose actual or potential conflicts involving the Respondent, its proposed subcontractors, assigned personnel, Board staff, or Board members, including relationships that could impair independence or objectivity.

Response Tenure All Responses are valid for one hundred eighty (180) days from the due date. The period of time during which Responses are valid will be tolled during the pendency of any proceeding related to any contract awarded pursuant to this procurement.

ITN Process

Overview This is a multi-phase competitive procurement process, pursuant to Section 287.057, Florida Statutes, whereby all Respondents shall receive fair and equal treatment. Respondents will not be eliminated from consideration until the posting of the Notice of Intended Award.

Requests for Clarification Prior to the Written Request for Clarification deadline, the Board will accept requests for clarification from prospective Respondents. Questions concerning the conditions and/or specifications of this procurement must be addressed in writing, using the Request for Clarification Form provided in Appendix C. Written Requests for Clarification delivered to the ITN Administrator in a proper and timely manner will receive a written answer communicated publicly via MFMP.

Requests for clarification and answers thereto shall be considered an addendum to, and an integral part of, this solicitation document.

Mandatory Requirements Assessment Upon timely and proper receipt, each Response will be reviewed to determine whether the Respondent meets the minimum qualifications and satisfies mandatory requirements set forth in this solicitation. The Board reserves the right to determine which Responses meet the minimum criteria and the right to accept Responses that deviate in a minor or technical fashion, as determined by the Board.

This assessment is binary (pass/fail); there are no points awarded for meeting the minimum qualifications or satisfying the mandatory requirements. Respondents that do not meet the minimum qualifications or satisfy the mandatory requirements will be removed from consideration.

Evaluation Phase Each Response for which the Respondent meets the minimum qualifications and satisfies the mandatory requirements will be evaluated, independently, by members of an Evaluation Team appointed by the Board.

Response Evaluation The Evaluation Team will award points individually for each component and each Response in the following areas:

Organizational Experience Evaluation In evaluating Organizational Experience, evaluators will give preference to the proposed engagement partner’s experience with Section 529 qualified tuition programs, Section 529A qualified ABLE programs, and governmental pension plans. Such experience is preferred but is not required to satisfy the minimum qualifications.

Pricing Schedule Evaluation Each Pricing Schedule Response will be evaluated for a maximum of 200 points: up to 150 points for annual audit services and up to 50 points for hourly rates for special consulting and advisory services.

Annual audit pricing will be evaluated relative to the lowest responsive annual audit price using the following formula:

(X/N) × P = Z; where:

X = Lowest responsive combined price for annual audit services for the Board, Foundation, and ABLE United for Years 1–5;

N = Respondent’s combined proposed price for annual audit services for the Board, Foundation, and ABLE United for Years 1–5;

P = Maximum points available for annual audit pricing (150);

Z = Awarded points.

The calculated points will be rounded to the nearest whole number. Decimal values below 0.50 will be rounded down; decimal values of 0.50 or greater will be rounded up.

Each evaluator will also award up to 50 points based on the reasonableness and competitiveness of the Respondent’s proposed hourly rates for special consulting and advisory services, considering the position types and qualifications associated with those rates.

The Respondent’s total Pricing Schedule score will equal the points awarded for annual audit pricing plus the points awarded for special consulting and advisory services hourly rates.

Ranking of Respondents and Selection of the Shortlist for Negotiation After the Evaluation Team has evaluated each Response independently, the individual scores will be aggregated to determine the total score for each Response. The Respondents will be ranked based on the total score for their Response, and the Board will select the highest-ranked Respondents, within a competitive range, for negotiation (Shortlist).

The Board intends to select up to five (5) Respondents for the Shortlist. However, the Board reserves the right, after posting notice thereof, to expand the shortlist to include additional responsive Respondents for negotiation. The Board will provide individual notice to each Shortlist Respondent.

Negotiation Phase The Board will appoint a Negotiation Team to conduct negotiations with the Shortlist Respondents. The Board intends to negotiate concurrently with the Shortlist Respondents, however, the Board may change the method of negotiation (e.g., concurrent versus by order of ranking), if it determines that doing such would be in the best interest of the Board.

When negotiations have been completed, the Board will award a contract to the responsive and responsible Respondent(s) that the Board determines will provide the best value to the Board. The Board will provide public notice of selection via Notice of Intended Award posted on MFMP.

General Information

Legal Requirements Applicable provisions of all federal, state, county, and local laws, will govern development, submittal and evaluation of all Responses received hereto and will govern any and all claims and disputes that may arise between persons submitting a Response and the Board. Lack of knowledge by any Respondent will not constitute a cognizable defense against the legal effect thereof.

Board Rights The Board, in its sole discretion, may take any of the following actions and may determine the scope and manner of such actions, the Respondent(s) affected, and whether to provide concurrent public notice of such decision:

1. Modify this solicitation, after posting notice thereof.

2. Review and rely on relevant information contained in a Response.

3. Change the members of the Evaluation Team and/or Negotiation Team.

4. Request supplemental Responses from a Respondent.

5. Contact previous clients of a Respondent, as identified by the Respondent, to inquire about the Respondent’s ability to deliver on the services offered.

6. Expand the Shortlist, after posting notice thereof, to include additional responsive Respondents.

7. Require any or all Respondent(s) to address services, prices, or conditions offered by any other Respondent.

8. Schedule additional negotiating sessions with any or all Respondent(s).

9. Decline to conduct further negotiations with any Respondent.

10. Reopen negotiations with any Respondent.

11. Require any or all Respondent(s) to provide a best and final offer.

12. Take any administrative steps deemed necessary to determine final award, including additional fact-finding, evaluation, or negotiation where necessary and consistent with the terms of this procurement.

13. Arrive at an agreement with any Respondent, finalize principal contract terms and terminate negotiations with any or all other Respondents, regardless of the status of, or scheduled negotiations with, such other Respondents.

14. Accept or reject any and all Responses and to award the contract in the best interests of the State of Florida.

Public Access to Records Responses to this solicitation shall result in the Respondent waiving any and all rights relating to confidentiality, or claims thereof, upon delivery to the Board. All electronic and written communications pertaining to this procurement, whether sent from or received by the Board, and all Responses including, without limitation, administrative information, proposed services/commodities, and price will be subject to disclosure after contract award as required under Chapter 119, Florida Statutes.

Negotiations between the Board and Respondent are exempted from being held as public meetings by Section 286.0113(2)(a), Florida Statutes. In addition, strategy meetings held by Negotiation Team are also exempted by Section 286.0113(2)(a), Florida Statutes.

Property of Board All Responses become the property of the Board upon receipt and will not be returned to the Respondent. The Board has the right to use any and all ideas or adaptations of ideas contained in any Response received in for this solicitation. Selection or rejection of the Response will not affect this right. All Responses become public documents upon submission. All materials and data produced for the Board under the contract resulting from this solicitation will be owned by the Board unless otherwise agreed to in writing by the Board.

Cost of Developing and Submitting Responses Neither the Board nor the State of Florida is liable for any of the costs incurred by the Respondent in preparing and/or submitting a Response.

Appendix A: Contract

Appendix B: Written Response Packet

Appendix C: Request for Clarification Form