2026-2027 Storm Response Services-Storm Patrol

Central Florida Electric Cooperative, Inc. (CFEC), which serves 37,130 active services across Alachua, Dixie, Gilchrist, and Levy Counties in north central Florida, is issuing a Request for Proposal (RFP) for storm response services covering the 2026-2027 period. The procurement seeks qualified contractors to provide all necessary labor and equipment to restore power following hurricanes, storm surges, and tornadoes. Specific services include bird-dogging, circuit evaluation, damage assessment, and safety standby operations such as downed wire guard duties. Contractors must submit comprehensive proposals including proof of required insurance, resumes, three letters of reference, completed rate sheets for both 2026 and 2027, and disclosure of any litigation, debarment, or default history from the past five years. Hourly pricing must encompass all labor costs (operators, laborers, supervisors), equipment, materials, supplies, maintenance, repairs, parts, fuels, lubricants, cellular phones, transportation, and housing if required. Evaluation will be based on cost/price (0-30 points), prior experience (0-20 points), references (0-20 points), technical merit (0-15 points), and responsiveness to proposal (0-15 points), with a minimum qualifying score of 70 points required. The proposal submission deadline is 3:00 p.m. on February 27, 2026, through the VendorLink portal, with written questions for clarification accepted until 3:00 p.m. on February 11, 2026, directed to cbeauchamp@cfec.com. Proposal evaluation is scheduled for March 19, 2026, with contract award anticipated on April 3, 2026, and the contract term extends through December 31, 2027, with start dates and durations determined on an as-needed basis based on storm events.

Insurance requirements constitute a significant qualification threshold, including comprehensive general liability coverage of $1,000,000 per occurrence and $3,000,000 aggregate, excess liability of $2,000,000, business automobile liability of $1,000,000 per occurrence and $3,000,000 aggregate, workers' compensation at statutory limits, and employer's liability of $500,000 per accident, with CFEC named as additional insured on all policies. The RFP does not indicate specific set-aside designations for disadvantaged enterprises or restrictions on organizational type eligibility. No incumbent vendors or current contractors are identified in the available documentation. CFEC reserves the right to award to the best overall responsive proposal rather than the lowest bidder and does not disclose bid tabulations as it does not meet the definition of a state and local government agency. No specific award value or budget range is provided in the procurement documents, with pricing to be determined through the hourly rate submissions and actual storm response requirements during the contract period.