Bond and Other Debt Related Legal Services

The City of Orlando is conducting a Request for Qualification Statements (RQS24-0174) for Bond and Other Debt Related Legal Services, seeking to establish a legal team of up to three law firms to provide bond counsel and disclosure counsel services on an as-needed basis. The procurement is for comprehensive legal services related to municipal financial transactions, including bond issuances, credit agreements, debt exploration, and legal advice on reserve investments and arbitrage issues. Respondents must demonstrate extensive experience in various financial areas such as fixed and variable rate transactions, specific bond types (wastewater, parking system, tourist development), tax expertise, post-issuance compliance, derivatives market transactions, and taxable transactions. The evaluation will be conducted by an Advisory Committee using a point-based scoring system with three primary criteria: firm experience and qualifications (44 points), proposed legal team experience (40 points), and participation of City-certified Minority Business Enterprise (MBE), Women Business Enterprise (WBE), and Veteran Business Enterprise (VBE) firms (16 points). The solicitation was released on April 10, 2024, with electronic responses due by 2:00 pm local time on Wednesday, May 8, 2024, through the City's e-Procurement Portal, and a question submission deadline of April 26, 2024, at 5:00 pm.

The procurement includes specific requirements for minority and women-owned business participation, with goals of 18% Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) and 6% Women-Owned Business Enterprise (WBE) participation. Additional points can be earned by listing MBE and WBE subcontractors, making good faith efforts to achieve subcontracting participation goals, and being a certified MBE, WBE, or VBE firm. The contract is structured as a five-year agreement with potential extensions for two additional twelve-month periods, totaling up to 84 months. While no specific award value is explicitly stated, compensation will be negotiated on a per-transaction basis, taking into account the complexity of each transaction. The selected contractor will be required to maintain various insurance coverages, including Workers' Compensation, Commercial General Liability, and Professional Liability/Malpractice Insurance, with specific minimum coverage limits. The City prohibits the selected firms from engaging in activities that produce direct or indirect financial gain beyond the agreed-upon compensation and requires compliance with living wage requirements for contracts exceeding $100,000 annually. The contract does not guarantee a specific amount of work but establishes a framework for potential legal services assignments to be initiated by the City's Chief Financial Officer or Treasurer.