RFP_18-707-25_Addendum_One.pdf

Department of Environmental

Conservation

Division of Administrative Services

555 Cordova Street Anchorage, Alaska 99501

DECDASProcurement@alaska.gov

RFP # 18-707-25 – Addendum One

To: Interested Parties of RFP 18-707-25 Date: Friday, September 6, 2024

From: Bryant Trujillo – Procurement Specialist 3 Subject: RFP # 18-707-25 Department of Environmental Conservation Addendum One Division of Administrative Services

The solicitation package for Request for Proposals (RFP) 18-707-25 – Air Quality’s Public Awareness Campaign for the State of Alaska, Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), Division of Air Quality is hereby clarified or changed as follows:

• Questions submitted by interested parties and answers provided by Division representatives.

Addendum One is hereby made part of the RFP, comprising three (3) pages.

All other terms and conditions for this RFP remain unchanged.

Issued by: Bryant Trujillo Title: Procurement Specialist 3 Email: decdasprocurement@alaska.gov mailto:DECDASProcurement@alaska.gov mailto:decdasprocurement@alaska.gov

RFP 18-707-25 – Air Quality’s Public Awareness Campaign Page 2 of 3

Questions & Answers

Question 1 – The inclusion of paid media in the current cost proposal disincentivizes offerors from assigning adequate and necessary budget, and more importantly does not benefit the State’s program. Would the State consider removing the paid media line item or assigning, for the purposes of the Task 1 exercise, a fixed paid media cost? This way, each vendor may be compared fairly and without harming the Program's already limited paid media budget.

Answer 1 – Per SEC 3.04 TASK I – COMPREHENSIVE OUTREACH CAMPAIGN FOR REGIONAL AIR QUALITY IMPROVEMENT on page 15 of the solicitation, the “campaign will include television advertisements, online and social media placements, radio spots, and direct mailers, which may consist of postcards directly mailed to approximately 20,000 residents.” The various media platforms in the list cater to different audiences, each associated with its respective costs. The State seeks proposals that effectively reach a significant portion of the targeted population while maintaining reasonable costs. The evaluation of each proposal includes two scores: a technical score and a cost score. A proposal without sufficient justification for minimizing paid media without a clear strategy for reaching the targeted audience may result in a lower technical score. For more information regarding the evaluation process, please refer to SECTION 5. EVALUATION CRITERIA & VENDOR SELECTION beginning on page 26 of the solicitation.

Question 2 – The current cost proposal includes a rate for the position of Media Buyer. However, it is standard in the advertising business to not charge for the media buyer’s time as agencies receive media commission, in the form of a discount from media vendors, on all media placed on behalf of the client. Will we be allowed to assign a zero-dollar rate for our media buyer without being deemed nonresponsive?

Answer 2 – To aid the evaluation and award process, we request the position of Media Buyer – as listed in SEC. 1.04 PRIOR EXPERIENCE on page 5 of the solicitation – be assigned an hourly rate. Failure to do so may result in an offeror’s proposal being deemed non-responsive.

Question 3 – The current cost proposal allows for additional positions to be added without being evaluated.

Since Task 1 is essentially an exercise for the purpose of determining the budget for the cost proposal, offerors could be inclined to add higher rates to the unevaluated positions and low-ball the evaluated positions for the purpose of winning points. Essentially, offerors could underbid the contract and inflate it after winning. Instead of the current format would the State consider one of the following?

Limit positions to the categories provided; or

Allow additional positions but require a rate and corresponding assignment of hours that would then be evaluated in addition to the categories provided.

Answer 3 – As noted in SEC 3.04 TASK I – COMPREHENSIVE OUTREACH CAMPAIGN FOR REGIONAL AIR QUALITY IMPROVEMENT on page 15 of the solicitation under Labor, “If additional staff is used to complete this request, list each position alongside the applicable hourly rate and quantity of hours in the lines provided below the prepopulated list of four (4) required staff.” The State’s intent is for the offeror to disclose all known personnel related to the initiative. The rates for additional personnel and those of the four (4) required staff members may be subject to negotiation before the contract’s award. All rates disclosed must be evidentially justifiable.

RFP 18-707-25 – Air Quality’s Public Awareness Campaign Page 3 of 3

The proposal documents require individual acknowledgment of all addenda to the drawings and/or specifications. This is a mandatory requirement, and any proposal received without acknowledgment of receipt of addenda may be classified as non-responsive.

End of Addendum