Revised 01GO-S2478 RFP Fiber Marketing and Construction Partner~1.docx

STATE OF NEVADA

DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATION

Purchasing Division 515 East Musser Street, Suite 300 │ Carson City, NV 89701 Phone: 775-684-0170 │ Fax: 775-684-0188

Solicitation: 01GO-S2478 For FIBER MARKETING AND CONSTRUCTION PARTNER for

HIGH SPEED NEVADA PHASE II – NEVADA MIDDLE MILE NETWORK

Release Date: 09/06/2023 Deadline for Submission and Opening Date and Time: 10/16/2023 @ 2:00 pm

Single point of contact for the solicitation:

Joel Smedes, Purchasing Officer II Phone, 775-684-0172 Email Address, j.smedes@admin.nv.gov

(TTY for Deaf and Hard of Hearing, 800-326-6868 Ask the relay agent to dial, 1-775-684-0188/V.)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

APPLICABLE REGULATIONS GOVERNING PROCUREMENT

All applicable Nevada Revised Statutes (NRS) and Nevada Administrative Code (NAC) documentation can be found at: www.leg.state.nv.us/law1.cfm.

SINGLE POINT OF CONTACT. Vendors and/or their representatives shall only contact the single point of contract or use the electronic procurement system regarding this solicitation until after a notice of award (NOA) has been issued. Failure to observe this restriction may result in disqualification of a proposal per NAC 333.155(3).

Prospective vendors are advised to review Nevada’s ethical standards requirements, including but not limited to NRS 281A, NRS 333.800, and NAC 333.155.

RECORDED PRE-BID CONFERENCE

PREBID CONFERENCE PARTICIPATION. All Applicants interested in submitting proposals are requested but not required to have at least one registered attendee attend the Applicant webinar at 10:00 AM PST on August 31, 2023. Registration link here:

Recording of Prebid conference:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Td7--mXqjVs

PROJECT OVERVIEW

The State of Nevada Purchasing Division, on behalf of Nevada Governor’s Office of Science Innovation and Technology (OSIT) and its partners, the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) and the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) is seeking proposals from qualified vendors for single private-sector middle mile fiber marketing and broadband infrastructure construction partner building the infrastructure necessary to provide affordable, reliable, scalable internet to communities in Nevada that have been underserved as described in the scope of work and attachments.

The State intends to award one (1) contract in conjunction with this Request for Proposals (RFP), as determined in the best interests of the State. OSIT shall administer contract(s) resulting from this solicitation. The resulting contract(s) are expected to be for a contract term of four years, subject to Board of Examiners approval.

HIGH SPEED INITIATIVE – MISSION AND PURPOSE

The recent COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated how important universal access to high-speed, reliable broadband and a connected device is for work, education, healthcare, and civic participation. Access to high-quality broadband should no longer be considered a luxury. Essential government services, educational and economic opportunities, business services, telemedicine, public safety, and staying connected with family and friends are all increasingly reliant on broadband networks. While many Nevadans are unable to access the Internet due to lack of connectivity infrastructure, others are unable to access the Internet because they cannot afford it or do not have a computer or laptop. We cannot afford to leave any community, rural or urban, behind as we work to close the digital divide.

The objective of the High Speed Nevada Initiative is universal access to modern broadband infrastructure that provides all Nevadans at their home or business access to an affordable, reliable, and scalable high-speed internet connection. While the federal government has allocated significant funds for broadband, needs in Nevada are also significant due to our geography, rough terrain, the remoteness of our population centers, and the lack of modern broadband infrastructure. The High Speed Nevada Initiative will combine federal, State, local, and private funding to begin to close the digital divide in Nevada and bring 21st Century infrastructure to every part of the state. The State will use available funds to invest in long-term, life-changing infrastructure assets that will benefit Nevadans in their homes, schools, and places of business for years to come.

EXPANSION OF MIDDLE MILE INFRASTRUCTURE

The objective of this RFP is to directly support recovery from the COVID-19 public health emergency by building the infrastructure necessary to provide affordable, reliable, scalable internet to communities in Nevada that have been underserved. The capital assets built with this RFP will work to correct inequities in access to critical education and health services, and provide Nevadans in these communities with modern, long-term, scalable internet access. The sole objective of building interconnectivity infrastructure linking rural unserved population centers with Internet Exchange facilities is to provide affordable and scalable Internet to households.

In developing the High-Speed Nevada Initiative, the Nevada Governor’s Office of Science, Innovation and Technology undertook a detailed analysis of the availability of broadband infrastructure in the State. OSIT discovered that a significant deterrent to the deployment of high-speed, affordable, scalable last-mile residential, business and Community Anchor Institutions (schools, universities, libraries, healthcare providers, public safety, government, community centers, etc.) was the lack of middle mile infrastructure.

Middle mile infrastructure is fiber optic based broadband infrastructure that traverses major Interstate and US Highways in a state. It passes by rural population centers and through rural areas terminating in cities like Las Vegas and Reno. In cities such as Las Vegas and Reno (and Los Angeles, Portland, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, San Francisco and Seattle) major data centers/interconnect facilities exist that are on ramps to the Commodity Internet with access to the World Wide Web.

A lack of middle mile infrastructure in a region can result in both limited options and high costs for last mile broadband service providers to access high speed fiber-based transport services to access Commodity Internet Access and Commodity Peering Services. For residential and business consumers, this can often mean lower speeds and bandwidth, higher monthly service costs, and fewer service providers offering service in a given area.

NEVADA’S PLAN TO ADDRESS DEFICIENCIES IN ITS MIDDLE MILE

To address this need for middle mile infrastructure in Nevada, OSIT has applied for and received the following:

The Interstate 80 Route – United States Department of the Treasury – Capital Project Fund. The approval to use $76.6 million of the State of Nevada’s Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund funding to design, build, operate and maintain a buried, multi-duct route that spans the entirety of Interstate 80 in Nevada between mile-marker 0 at the Utah/Nevada border to mile marker 410.67 at the California/Nevada Border. The build is entirely in the Interstate 80 Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) Right of Way.

The Eastern Nevada Middle Mile (Eastern Route) - National Telecommunications and Information Agency (NTIA) Middle Mile Grant Program. The State of Nevada has applied for and received an NTIA middle mile grant to design, build, operate and maintain a buried, multi-innerduct route from a major Internet Exchange in Las Vegas (7135 S. Decatur Blvd, Las Vegas, NV, United States) to an interconnect point at Interstate 80 in Wells, NV (577 Wells Ave, Wells, NV 89835). This route follows Interstate 15 to the US Route 93 interchange in eastern Clark County and then along US 93 Route from Interstate 15 North to Wells, NV. The route is expected to be placed entirely within the NDOT Right of Way.

PARTIES - OSIT is partnering with the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) and the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) on these middle mile projects. NDOT has contributed cash, staffing and other in-kind match to the projects. NSHE’s NevadaNet staff will be the long-term interface from the State for interface with the Fiber Marketing and Construction Partner awarded under this RFP.

OBJECTIVES

OSIT, NDOT and NSHE ("State Partners") will plan to adopt fiscally sustainable middle-mile strategies in partnership with a Fiber Marketing and Construction Partner ("Applicant") in the operation of these networks. The State Partners recognize that interconnection between middle mile infrastructure last mile broadband providers is critical to achieving the universal access goal of the High Speed Nevada Initiative, as well as the goals of the United States Treasury and NTIA programs that funded these projects.

The Fiber Marketing and Construction Partner will, in concert and in consultation with the State Partners, design and construct the Interstate 80 route and the eastern Nevada Middle Mile fiber projects:

Finalize construction specifications.

Conduct environmental assessment and obtain all necessary environmental approvals.

Obtain all necessary access permits to construct the project.

Construct the broadband infrastructure.

Prior to completion of construction of the network begin to market the infrastructure and pre-sell dark fiber leases prior for each middle mile project prior to project completion.

Analyze and determine the parameters around the Fiber Marketing Partner offering its own Lit Transport and/or Lit Bundled Transport and Commodity Internet Access Services to third party service providers.

Comply with all State and federal reporting requirements.

Upon completion of the construction of the network, the State Partners will require that the Fiber Marketing and Construction Partner offer non-discriminatory interconnection to terrestrial and wireless last mile broadband providers and any other party making a bona fide request, on an open access and non-discriminatory basis.

The pricing for a 30-year, dark fiber indefeasible right-of-use (IRU) contract is tentatively set at $800 to $1,500 per strand mile per year (depending on the number of miles) with an additional $350 per linear mile per year per lessee for maintenance. These rates will allow the proposed projects to facilitate expansion of private sector offerings in the areas. The fiber marketing partner will prioritize leases of dark fiber to last-mile service providers that agree to provide broadband access to unserved and underserved markets along the route. These rates can be adjusted for inflation and over time and can vary for a lease of spans that are less than an entire Interstate 80 route or the eastern Nevada middle mile route.

PROJECT OPPORTUNITY

The State Partners desire to have a “Fiber Marketing and Construction Partner” for the I-80 route and the eastern Nevada Middle Mile, hereinafter collectively referred to as the "Middle Mile Routes". This will include constructing the network and marketing approximately 288 fibers on all new build segments on the routes.

The preferred attributes of the marketing partner are as follows:

Skilled in design and construction of long-haul network segments including all aspects of environmental assessment, permitting, engineering, design and construction.

Existing wholesale service provider with industry contacts and a commitment to Nevada.

Experienced in the provision of lit services to other providers.

Experienced in IRU transactions with commercial business enterprises, public sector customers and other service providers.

Knowledge of NTIA Middle Mile program rules and sub-recipient status.

Knowledge of United States Treasury Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund program rules and sub-recipient status.

Fiber Network design, engineering, and construction – The State will choose a firm to design, engineer, construct, and market the I-80 project and the eastern Nevada middle mile project. The Fiber Marketing and Construction Partner will, at a high level, be responsible for:

Completion of the environmental assessment for the middle mile projects Obtain permits and easements necessary for completion of the middle mile projects.

Final design, engineering of the middle mile projects Sourcing all outside plant materials for the middle mile projects Sourcing all labor and construction equipment necessary for completion of the middle mile projects.

The Fiber Network Design, Engineering and Construction partner must track progress and costs for the I-80 project and the eastern Nevada Middle Mile Program separately and assist OSIT in filing progress reports with the United State Department of the Treasury (I-80 Project) and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (eastern Nevada Middle Mile) for the projects.

The State Partners are limited to the grant funds for expenditure on design and build of the network. The Fiber Marketing and Construction Partner should consider the amount of revenue share the partner desires from the Nevada Middle Mile Routes if the Partner has to make design, engineering and construction investments beyond the grant funding the State Partners have obtained for these projects.

FIBER DESCRIPTION

The entire route is being engineered for placement of two six-way innerduct systems. One six-way innerduct system will be controlled by the State Partners and used for State government purposes. The other six-way innerduct will be managed by the Fiber Marketing and Construction Partner for the sole purpose of reselling dark fiber and lit fiber services to third party service providers. Priority will be given to third party service providers who will serve unserved and underserved residences (residences with no access to service 100 Mbps download/100 Mbps upload or greater), businesses (businesses with no access to service 100 Mbps download/100 Mbps upload or greater) and Community Anchor Institutions (institutions with no access to service 1Gbps symmetrical service.

While the State Partners have planned for a solution where the fiber is buried underground in conduit, there may be areas where a direct buried fiber cable or aerial construction is more cost effective over a small footprint of the route.

SCOPE OR WORK-REQUIREMENTS

Terms and Process:

The RFP will seek an exclusive Applicant for the State Partners that will construct and market the middle mile fiber available for commercial use. The basic terms would be as follows:

The winning respondent will be the exclusive construction entity for the network.

Construction will include two (2) six-way innerduct systems.

The State Partners will retain one of the two (2) six-way innerduct systems to serve State needs.

Winning respondent will be the exclusive sales and marketing Partner or Agent for the remaining six-way innerduct system and the available strands of fiber and innerducts.

Respondents should have a high level of knowledge regarding the US Department of Treasury Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund and the NTIA Middle Mile Grant program and provide an RFP response which provides a revenue stream to the State Partners from:

Optional: The Applicants purchase of strands of fiber.

Applicant offered lit service to third party service providers.

Fiber IRU – The Applicant completing IRU arrangements for the State Partner’s fiber with third party purchasers using the State’s IRU template as the base agreement.

Innerduct Lease - The Applicant completing leases for innerduct leases for the State Partner’s empty innerduct with third party purchasers using the State’s innerduct lease template as the base agreement.

Type of Fiber Transactions – Lit Service: The Applicant's proposal should demonstrate a history of selling lit service to commercial customers. These would be via strands that the partner would acquire from the State Partners. The State Partner’s main desire for the fibers designated for commercial use is to provide attractive pricing to wholesale and last mile commercial providers to increase the availability of affordable wholesale and last mile broadband in unserved/underserved areas. When offering the price, the partner would either pay to the State Partners for purchased strands of fiber, offer the State Partners a share of the gross lit services revenue generated from lit services sales to third party service providers or offer some combination of the above (fiber strand purchase and percentage of gross revenue).

Type of Fiber Transactions – IRU/Dark Fiber: The Applicant's proposal should further demonstrate the ability to transact IRU and lease transactions for dark fiber and innerduct to commercial customers and other wholesale or last mile service providers. The State Partners main desire for the fibers designated for commercial use is to provide attractive pricing to wholesale and last mile commercial providers to increase the availability of affordable wholesale and last mile broadband in underserved areas. When offering the percentage of the gross revenues provided to the State Partners from IRUs and the commission the Applicant would receive from such transactions, respondents should weight offered price to service providers at a slightly higher priority than the State Partner’s revenue stream.

Commissions & Revenue: For each IRU arrangement or innerduct lease closed, Applicant would receive a commission. The proposed percentage commission received by the Applicant should be clearly stated. The State Partners realize that specific IRUs will have varying terms and conditions. For a fiber IRU or innerduct lease, the Applicant should quote proposed Applicant commission on a standard 30-year agreement with equal payments, encompassing the entire IRU or lease price, the first 3 years of the agreement.

Applicant and the State Partners – Ongoing Sales and Marketing Interface:

Initial period of exclusivity would be 10 years.

Applicant and the State Partners would set goals for IRUs for each year.

Applicant and the State Partners will evaluate Applicant progress first on a monthly basis and after the first year if the agreement is in place, quarterly in subsequent years.

The State Partners would have final right of review and refusal for all IRU agreements.

If Applicant purchases or IRUs fiber as part of the State Partner’s accepted offer, Applicant agrees to be designated a sub-recipient of the NTIA Middle Mile grant and the US Treasury Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund. An outline of the some of the requirements of subrecipients appears in Exhibit A. Note, the sub-recipient designation requires the sub-recipient to be subject to all flow down clauses of the grant, including nondiscrimination and open interconnect requirements contained in the Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund and NTIA Middle Mile grant Notices of Funding Opportunity.

The State Partners will retain ownerships rights to all IRU’d fiber. The State Partner’s standard IRU agreement will be the base agreement for all IRU transactions.

The State Partners, because they are the grant recipient often receives direct inquiries from parties interested in IRUs or lit service purchases. Applicant and The State Partner’s will agree to a process by which the State Partners pass sales leads to the Applicant. The process will involve a 48-hour turnaround follow-up by the Applicant with prospect.

Other Considerations

Electronics – for all lit service on Applicant purchased fiber. Applicant will procure fiber from The State Partners and Applicant will procure its own electronics.

IRUs – 30-year term renewable is the standard.

Ongoing costs of operation – pole attachments (most is buried), land leases, etc. Need to be included in pricing.

Build routes and specifications of fiber specifications-mutually determined by the State Partners and the Applicant.

The Fiber Network Design, Engineering and Construction partner must track progress and costs for the I-80 project and the eastern Nevada Middle Mile Program separately and assist OSIT in filing progress reports with the United State Department of the Treasury (I-80 Project) and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (eastern Nevada Middle Mile) for the projects.

The State of NV is limited to allotting only the following grant amounts to the Design, Engineering and Construction of the I-80 Middle Mile and the Eastern NV Middle Mile. There should be no expectation of additional State or federal funding beyond these amounts. Applicants must commit to completing both projects with each project’s respective budget. Funding for one project cannot be used to complete the other project. The budgets included the grant applications are included in Exhibit D.

I-80 Middle Mile: $73,657,978.62 Eastern Nevada Middle Mile: $79,066,233.30

Summary of Proposed Commission, Costs and Services

Applicant will define the financial parameters for three types of transactions (Lit Fiber, Dark Fiber, Innerduct Leases) within this proposal. The Applicant may propose to exempt revenue from existing long-haul customers that it will propose to port to the new network (see Section d).

Lit Services: The first transaction is identification of an arrangement by which the Applicant would bring capital to the project for the purchase of packet routing and/or optical gear for the purposes of being able to provide lit services to third party service providers along the Middle Mile routes. This financial model could be by either:

A direct lease of strands of fiber from the State Partners from which to offer lit services with its equipment with no revenue share to the State Partners. The Applicant should designate the specific count of dark fiber stands it will require to provide the lit service and the terms under which the partner will lease the dark fiber from the State Partners.

A revenue sharing arrangement whereby the Applicant provides the equipment and offers the State Partners a share of the gross revenues from lit services.

In all cases, the Applicant should indicate what type of lit services, and at what prices, it would intend to offer lit service across the completed infrastructure. The Applicant should also outline its proposed Service Level Agreement terms for lit services to third party service providers including:

Uptime Latency Packet Loss Jitter Mean time to respond for outages Mean time to repair for outages Service credit table for outages

Dark Fiber. The second transaction is when the Applicant secures an IRU agreement with a third party for a portion of The State Partners’ fiber. The Applicant should indicate the commission it would require on such a transaction and over what period the commission should be paid. For example, if the Applicant sells a 20- or 30-year IRU to a customer that is payable over the first three years, the Applicant should indicate how it desires to have its commission paid (all front end loaded, over three years, etc.). The State Partners are willing to consider IRU payment plans that are outside the normal 100% upfront two tranche payments (50% at lease signing and 50% at fiber test and turnover to lessee).

The State Partner’s strong preference on most routes, is IRUing “whole route” strands on the entire I-80 route and the entire eastern Nevada Middle Mile route rather than breaking the route into segments and potentially devaluing the potential high value routes. The State Partner’s understand that there may be specific interest in fibers in metro Las Vegas/Clark County and in metro Reno/Washoe County.

Innerduct. The third transaction is when the Applicant secures a long-term capital lease agreement with a third party for an empty innerduct in the State Partner’s multi-duct system. The Applicant should indicate the commission it would require on such a transaction and over what period the commission should be paid. For example, if the Applicant sells a 20 or 30 year innerduct IRU to a customer that is payable over the first three years, the Applicant should indicate how it desires to have its commission paid (all front end loaded, over three years, etc.). The State Partners are willing to consider IRU payment plans that are outside the normal 100% upfront two tranche payments (50% at lease signing and 50% at innerduct turnover to lessee).

The Applicant’s requirement for innerduct leases on most routes, is leasing innerduct on the “whole route” innerduct on the entire I-80 route and the entire eastern Nevada Middle Mile route rather than breaking the route into segments and potentially devaluing the potential high value routes. For each type of service/lease, the Applicant should address:

The service and/or lease agreements the Applicant would propose to use with the third-party customer or lessee. Note that in the case of fiber or innerduct capital leases, the State of Nevada would be the Lessor.

For the sales process, the Applicant should address how it would:

Identify potential customers/leases Market the State Partner’s fiber/innerduct assets Market the Applicant’s lit services Adhere to the open access requirements outlined by the NTIA and the United States Department of the Treasury (Treasury) in the enabling legislation and Notice of Funding Opportunities for the programs that are funding the Middle Mile routes. These are linked and outlined in Appendix A of this RFP.

Assist the State of Nevada in filing progress reports with to the NTIA and the Treasury. The content of these reports is contained in the enabling legislation and Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs) for the programs that are funding the Middle Mile routes. These are linked and outlined in Appendix A of this RFP.

To accomplish the High Speed Nevada Initiative’s mission to help private sector last mile carriers expand their service territories, the Applicant should address any innovative ideas for supplying low cost wholesale and Internet Access services to last mile carriers who service underserved areas. The Applicant should develop a mechanism for identifying difficult to serve areas in Nevada and how Middle Mile access could assist.

Existing Long-Haul Customers. If the Partner is using the Nevada routes to provide services to existing Long-Haul Customers and there is no direct interconnection of this customer from a Nevada based facility to the Nevada middle mile segments, the Applicant is exempt from providing the State a revenue share from revenue derived from this customer. For example, if Company X is an existing long-haul customer of the Partner and Company X’s services from the Partner will be ported over to the new fibers, and Company X requires no additional interconnects within the State of Nevada, then Company X revenue may be listed as exempt from State revenue share.

Last Mile Internet Access

Part of the purpose of the State Partners pursuit of Middle Mile grant funds is to bring last mile broadband services to consumers in unserved and underserved areas. Major portions of the I-80 route and the eastern Nevada Middle Mile route could be used to serve last mile customers (Consumers and small businesses) in rural areas. Special consideration will be given to respondents who will propose plans for marketing and special lit service and IRU pricing for last mile carriers (wired or wireless based) in an underserved area.

The State Partners are willing to consider reducing its share of revenue for last mile carriers who deploy service in unserved and underserved area.

The State Partners have formed a network of contacts with groups interested in the deployment of last mile services in underserved areas. Respondents should put forth a plan for engaging these contacts

ATTACHMENTS

ATTACHMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE. To be read and not returned.

Terms and Conditions for Services Terms and Conditions for Goods General Terms and Conditions

ATTACHMENTS FOR REVIEW. To be read and not returned (unless redlining).

Middle Mile Construction and Marketing Agreement Contract

PROPOSAL ATTACHMENTS. To be completed and returned.

Scope of Work – Technical Requirements Exhibits Power Point Deck from Recorded Prebid Conference Proposed Staff Resume Reference Questionnaire Attachments for Signature

Vendor Information Response Vendor Certifications Certification Regarding Lobbying Confidentiality and Certification of Indemnification

TIMELINE

QUESTIONS. All questions regarding this solicitation shall be submitted using the Bid Q&A feature in NevadaEPro.

TIMELINE. The following represents the proposed timeline for this project.

All times stated are Pacific Time (PT).

These dates represent a tentative schedule of events.

The State reserves the right to modify these dates at any time.

EVALUATION

Evaluation and scoring are conducted in accordance with NRS 333.335 and NAC 333.160-333.165.

Proposals shall be kept confidential until a contract is awarded.

In the event the solicitation is withdrawn prior to award, proposals remain confidential.

The evaluation committee is an independent committee established to evaluate and score proposals submitted in response to the solicitation.

Financial stability shall be scored on a pass/fail basis.

Proposals shall be consistently evaluated and scored based upon the following factors and relative weights.

Evaluation Criteria Specifics:

Applicant Experience Expertise and ability of the applicant to carry out the work required by the RFP, including:

Prior Engineering and Construction Experience.

Prior Marketing Experience.

References.

Presentations

Applicant Capacity Experience and capacity of the Applicant’s proposed project team in successfully managing engineering, design, construction, and marking of similar projects.

Experience and capacity of the Applicant’s proposed team to carry out engineering, permitting, construction, and maintenance;

Ability to recruit and train engineering, design and construction labor.

Applicant’s financial strength, sustainability, and investment potential to support scope of work/project.

The extent to which the applicant has past legal, contractual or labor violations.

The Applicant’s capacity to complete the project given its other projects and workload. Following the evaluation and scoring process specified above, the State may require vendors to make a presentation of their proposal to the evaluation committee or other State staff, as applicable.

The State, at its option, may limit participation in vendor presentations to vendors above a natural break in the relative scores from technical and cost scores.

Following the presentations, the combined technical, cost, and presentation scores will become the final score for a proposal.

The State reserves the right to add additional criteria or presentations.

The State reserves the right to forego vendor presentations and select vendor(s) based on the written proposals submitted.

Applicant Construction and Marketing Approach Response addresses all fiscal, construction, design and engineering standards in a manner that meets or exceeds the State Partners’ expectations.

Applicant’s proposed investment in construction of the network and in offering dark and lit fiber services to third parties.

Reasonableness and commitment to accountability for engineering, design and construction timeline Comprehensive timeline for engineering, design and construction phase submitted with proposal.

Adherence to OSIT reporting standards for design, engineering and construction progress reports.

Comprehensiveness of plan to develop last mile partnerships in underserved areas.

Plan to complete construction of the network within the budget OSIT has provided.

Labor and Workforce Commitment and Plan for hiring Nevada-based personnel for engineering, design, construction, and marketing of the network.

Commitment to meeting labor workforce requirements, payment, and training standards.

Commitment to hiring programs that include outreach to non-traditional workers.

Demonstration of career ladders and/or company-funded training and education opportunities that allow workforce to advance and reskill themselves.

Commitment to working with the State on workforce development to ensure a diverse pipeline of skilled broadband workers in Nevada.

NEVADA-BASED BUSINESS PREFERENCE

The State awards a five percent (5%) preference to Nevada-based businesses pursuant to NRS 333.3351 to 333.3356, inclusive.

Nevada-based business is defined in NRS 333.3352(1).

The term ‘principal place of business’ has the meaning outlined by the United States Supreme Court in Hertz Corp v. Friend, 559 U.S. 77 (2010), typically meaning a business’s corporate headquarters.

To claim this preference a vendor must indicate it on their vendor account and submitted Quote in NevadaEPro.

This preference cannot be combined with any other preference, granted for the award of a contract using federal funds, or granted for the award of a contract procured on a multi-state basis.

INVERSE PREFERENCE

The State applies an inverse preference to vendors that have a principal place of business in a state other than Nevada and that state applies an in-state preference not afforded to Nevada based vendors, pursuant to AB28 passed in the 81st session of the Nevada Legislature.

The amount of the inverse preference is correlated to the amount of preference applied in the other state.

Vendors who meet this criterion must indicated it on their submitted Quote in NevadaEPro.

This preference cannot be combined with any other preference, granted for the award of a contract using federal funds, or granted for the award of a contract procured on a multi-state basis.

MANDATORY MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

Pursuant to NRS 333.311 a contact cannot be awarded to a proposal that does not comply with the requirements listed in this section. Proposal shall include confirmation of compliance with all mandatory minimum requirements.

NEVADA LAW AND STATE INDEMNITY. Pursuant to NRS 333.339, any contract that is entered into may not: (1) Require the filing of any action or the arbitration of any dispute that arises from the contract to be instituted or heard in another state or nation; or (2) Require the State to indemnify another party against liability for damages.

NO BOYCOTT OF ISRAEL. Pursuant to NRS 333.338, the State of Nevada cannot enter a contract with a company unless that company agrees for the duration of the contract not to engage in a boycott of Israel. By submitting a proposal or bid, vendor agrees that if it is awarded a contract, it will not engage in a boycott of Israel as defined in NRS 333.338(3)(a).

INDEMNIFICATION. Required contract terms on Indemnification: "To the fullest extent permitted by law, Contractor shall indemnify, hold harmless and defend, not excluding the State’s right to participate, the State from and against all liability, claims, actions, damages, losses, and expenses, including, without limitation, reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs, arising out of any breach of the obligations of Contractor under this contract, or any alleged negligent or willful acts or omissions of Contractor, its officers, employees and agents. Contractor’s obligation to indemnify the State shall apply in all cases except for claims arising solely from the State’s own negligence or willful misconduct. Contractor waives any rights of subrogation against the State. Contractor’s duty to defend begins when the State requests defense of any claim arising from this Contract."

LIMITED LIABILITY. Required contract terms on Limited Liability: "The State will not waive and intends to assert available NRS Chapter 41 liability limitations in all cases. Contract liability of both parties shall not be subject to punitive damages. Damages for any State breach shall never exceed the amount of funds appropriated for payment under this Contract, but not yet paid to Contractor, for the Fiscal Year budget in existence at the time of the breach. Contractor’s tort liability shall not be limited."

CONTRACT RESPONSIBILITY. Awarded vendor shall be the sole point of contract responsibility. The State shall look solely to the awarded vendor for the performance of all contractual obligations which may result from an award based on this solicitation, and the awarded vendor shall not be relieved for the non-performance of any or all subcontractors.

DATA ENCRYPTION. State IT requires that data be encrypted in transit and in rest.

STATESIDE DATA. State IT requires that State data assets must be maintained in the United States and data will not be held offshore.

NEVADA BUSINESS LICENSE. Pursuant to NRS 353.007, prior to contract execution awarded vendor must hold a state business license pursuant to NRS chapter 76 unless exempted by NRS 76.100(7)(b).

DISCLOSURE. Each vendor shall include in its proposal a complete disclosure of any alleged significant prior or ongoing contract failures, contract breaches, any civil or criminal litigation or investigations pending which involves the vendor or in which the vendor has been judged guilty or liable.

CRITICAL ITEMS

In addition to the Scope of Work and Attachments, the items listed in this section are critical to the success of the project. These items will be used in evaluating and scoring the proposal. Vendor proposal should address items in this section in enough detail to provide evaluators an accurate understanding of vendor capabilities. Proposals that fail to sufficiently respond to these items may be considered non-responsive.

CONTRACT FORM. The State strongly prefers vendors agree to the terms of the attached Middle Mile Construction and Marketing Agreement Contract as is. Ability to agree to contract terms is a high priority to the State. Vendors who cannot agree to the contract as is must include a redlined Word version of the attached Middle Mile Construction and Marketing Agreement Contract with their proposal response. To the extent a vendor has prior contractual dealings with the State, no assumption should be made that terms outside those provided herein have any influence on this project.

INSURANCE SCHEDULE

The State strongly prefers vendors agree to the terms of the attached Insurance Schedule as is. Vendors who cannot agree must explain which areas are causing non-compliance and attach a red line if necessary.

Awarded vendor shall maintain, for the duration of the contract, insurance coverages as set forth in the fully executed contract.

Work on the contract shall not begin until after the awarded vendor has submitted acceptable evidence of the required insurance coverages.

Failure to maintain any required insurance coverage or acceptable alternative method of insurance shall be deemed a breach of contract.

VENDOR BACKGROUND

Company background/history and why vendor is qualified to provide the services described in this solicitation.

Provide a brief description of the length of time vendor has been providing services described in this solicitation to the public and/or private sector.

VENDOR STAFF RESUMES

A resume shall be included for each proposed key personnel, see Proposed Staff Resume.

A resume shall also be included for any proposed key subcontractor personnel.

SUBCONTRACTORS

Subcontractors are defined as a third party, not directly employed by the contractor, who shall provide services identified in this solicitation. This does not include third parties who provide support or incidental services to the contractor.

Proposal should include a completed Vendor Information Response form for each subcontractor.

Vendor shall not allow any subcontractor to commence work until all insurance required of the subcontractor is provided to the vendor.

Vendor proposal shall identify specific requirements of the project for which each subcontractor shall perform services.

How the work of any subcontractor(s) shall be supervised How channels of communication shall be maintained How compliance with contracts terms and conditions will be assured Previous experience with subcontractor(s)

VENDOR FINANCIAL INFORMATION

The information requested in this section is designated as confidential business information by the Administrator pursuant to NRS 333.020(5)(b) and is not public information pursuant to NRS 333.333.

This information should be submitted as a separate attachment, flagged as confidential in NevadaEPro.

Proposing vendor shall provide the following financial information and documentation:

Dun and Bradstreet Number Federal Tax Identification Number The last two (2) full years and current year interim:

1. Profit and Loss Statements

2. Balance Statements

BUSINESS REFERENCES

The information requested in this section is designated as confidential business information by the Administrator pursuant to NRS 333.020(5)(b) and is not public information pursuant to NRS 333.333.

Vendors shall provide a minimum of three (3) business references from similar projects performed for private and/or public sector clients within the last five (5) years, see Reference Questionnaire.

The purpose of these references is to document relevant experience and aid in the evaluation process.

Business references should return Reference Questionnaire directly to Single Point of Contact via email.

Business references will not be accepted directly from proposing vendor.

Business references shall not be requested from the soliciting agency.

The State will not disclose submitted references, but will confirm if a reference has been received.

The State reserves the right to contact references during evaluation.

SUBMISSION CHECKLIST

This section identifies documents that shall be submitted to be considered responsive. Vendors are encouraged to review all requirements to ensure all requested information is included in their response.

Proposals must be submitted as a Quote through NevadaEPro, https://NevadaEPro.com.

Vendors are encouraged to submit a single file attachment per proposal section if possible.

Technical proposal information and Cost proposal information shall not be included in the same attachment.

Cost proposal attachment shall not be flagged as confidential in NevadaEPro.

Additional attachments may be included, but are discouraged and should be kept to a minimum.

TECHNICAL PROPOSAL

Title Page Table of Contents Response to Mandatory Minimum Requirements Response to Critical Items Response to Scope of Work Proposed Staff Resumes Other Informational Material

PROPRIETARY INFORMATION. If necessary. Attachment should be flagged confidential in NevadaEPro.

Title Page Table of Contents Trade Secret information, cross referenced to the technical proposal

COST PROPOSAL

VENDOR FINANCIAL INFORMATION. Attachment should be flagged confidential in NevadaEPro.

SIGNED ATTACHMENTS

Vendor Information Response Vendor Certifications Confidentiality and Certification of Indemnification Certification Regarding Lobbying

OTHER ATTACHMENTS. If necessary, not recommended.

REFERENCE QUESTIONNAIRES. Not submitted directly by vendor.

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