Harp Trapping Surveys FY2019 - FY2020

The Commonwealth of Kentucky, through the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet's Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, is procuring personal service contracts to conduct harp trapping surveys and monitoring of bat hibernacula populations affected by white-nose syndrome. The contractor will be responsible for conducting harp trapping and mist netting surveys at cave entrances in Wayne, Elliott, Menifee, and Estill counties during fall 2019 (September 1–October 31) and spring 2020 (April 1–21), with a maximum of 12 nights of total survey work across up to three sites. Deliverables include species identification, body metrics collection, photographic documentation of species identification characteristics, white-nose syndrome symptom identification, and compliance with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decontamination protocols, with fall survey reports due November 15, 2019, and spring survey reports due May 15, 2020. Mandatory qualifications include valid current federal and state endangered species permits for threatened and endangered bat surveys, suitable photography equipment, at minimum two harp traps with two complete bat processing equipment sets, and at least three rabies-vaccinated staff members. The evaluation criteria allocate 300 points to qualifications and experience—awarding up to 150 points for years of experience conducting threatened and endangered bat surveys in Kentucky caves and mines and up to 150 points for minimum five years of experience identifying all Kentucky bat species—and 200 points to cost proposal based on the lowest price per night of survey work. The RFP was issued May 20, 2019, with proposals due June 10, 2019, at 3:30 PM Eastern Time; no bidders' conference was held.

The contract is subject to Kentucky Model Procurement Code provisions, including resident bidder reciprocal preferences and qualified bidder preferences. The anticipated contract term runs from April 1, 2019, through June 30, 2020, with two potential renewal options for additional two-year terms at the agency's discretion, subject to funding and approval by the Secretary of the Finance and Administration Cabinet and the Legislative Research Commission's Government Contract Review Committee. Contractors must provide all labor, materials, transportation, and software at their own expense; the Commonwealth will provide no materials, transportation, or software support. Proposals must be submitted in sealed packages with three hard copies of technical materials and three copies of cost materials, along with completed solicitation forms, required affidavits, and a transmittal letter, physically delivered to the Purchasing Section at the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, 1 Sportsman's Lane, Frankfort, Kentucky 40601. Electronic and facsimile proposals are not accepted. The specific contract value or budget range is not disclosed in the solicitation documents, with compensation structured as a cost-per-night rate for survey work to be negotiated based on the vendor's proposal.