Bass, Minnows, and Carp for Hatcheries

The Commonwealth of Kentucky, Finance and Administration Cabinet, on behalf of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, issued Request for Bid (RFB) 758 2200000164 seeking vendors to establish a master agreement for the procurement of live fish species for state hatcheries. The solicitation requests 2,500,000 hybrid striped bass (4-5 days old), 7,600 pounds of brood stock minnows, 4,400 pounds of small minnows, 1,500 pounds of additional brood stock minnows, and 500 grass carp (10-12 inches), with all deliveries to be coordinated with hatchery managers at Minor Clark Fish Hatchery in Morehead, Kentucky and Pfeiffer Fish Hatchery. Bidders may respond for all line items, individual line items, or any combination thereof, with pricing quoted on an F.O.B. Destination Freight Prepaid and Allowed basis excluding federal excise tax and Kentucky sales or use tax. The initial contract period runs one year from January 26, 2022, with optional renewal for four additional one-year periods subject to written approval and potential renegotiation of terms. Award will be determined using a best value ranking approach allocating 90 points to price (with the lowest bidder receiving maximum points) and 10 points to delivery performance (measured in working days with one percent per day deducted from invoices for late deliveries). Written questions were due September 28, 2021 at 10:00 AM ET, with the final bid closing date of October 6, 2021 at 1:30 PM ET. All bids must be submitted electronically through the Kentucky eProcurement system; vendors must register in the Commonwealth Vendor Self Service System and comply with all Kentucky tax registration and affidavit requirements prior to award.

Kentucky resident bidders receive reciprocal preference consideration in the evaluation process, and qualified bidders including Kentucky Correctional Industries, Kentucky Industries for the Blind, and qualifying nonprofit agencies serving individuals with severe disabilities receive preference points of 20 and 15 percent respectively. Vendors must submit Revenue Form 10A100 (Kentucky Tax Registration Application), certificates of authority if applicable, the required Annual Affidavit and Other Affidavits documenting compliance with Kentucky campaign finance laws and tax obligations, and EEO forms if applicable prior to award. The Commonwealth reserves the right to cancel the RFB if responses exceed available funding and may cancel the contract with thirty days' notice, and past vendor performance may be considered in award determinations with poor performers potentially deemed non-responsible. No incumbent vendors or existing contractors are identified in the solicitation documents, and no specific budget or award value is stated in the procurement materials, indicating that pricing will be determined competitively through the bidding process based on vendor submissions for each line item.