Financing of Vehicles

The City of Emporia, Virginia is requesting proposals from qualified licensed and insured financial institutions to provide up to $651,565 in tax-exempt lease purchase financing for vehicles and equipment, with proposals due October 13, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. The RFP was posted September 29, 2026, and Addendum 1 was issued October 7, 2026.

The financing covers four items: a knuckle boom trash truck ($300,000), a Bobcat forklift ($55,000), three police cruisers ($197,460), and a multipurpose officer transit van ($99,105). The City offers lease purchase terms of three, five, and seven years with equal annual principal payments plus interest payable annually on July 1, subject to annual appropriation of funds. The fixed interest rate must remain firmly fixed for the entire loan period and cannot exceed 5.0 percent per year. The lease purchase agreement shall be fully amortizing, with funds drawn down at closing. Prepayment is permitted no later than one year from the first payment upon no more than 30 days' notice at a redemption price not exceeding 101 percent of the principal component of the payment plus accrued interest. The City will not pay bank closing costs or annual fees, except for escrow-arrangement fees that the City accepts.

The anticipated closing date is on or about November 13, 2026, with the first lease payment expected no later than July 1, 2027. The City reserves the right to award the contract in total, by item, by group of related items, or to make multiple awards.

Evaluation criteria and stated weighting are proposed interest rate (40 percent), capability and skills to provide financing promptly (20 percent), related experience in providing lease purchase financing for similar local government entities (20 percent), and conditions of the lease purchase agreement and associated documents (20 percent). Proposals must remain firm for 60 days from submission. The City encourages participation from small businesses, women-owned, minority-owned, and service-disabled veteran-owned businesses in accordance with Virginia procurement regulations.