P25-002 - Actuarial Services

The Town of Portsmouth, Rhode Island is seeking professional actuarial services through Request for Proposal (RFP) #P25-002, specifically targeting comprehensive pension and other post-employment benefit (OPEB) plan valuations for fiscal years ending June 30, 2025, 2026, 2027, and 2028. The selected consultant will be responsible for performing annual pension plan valuations, OPEB plan valuations, reviewing actuarial assumptions, preparing comprehensive valuation reports, and presenting findings to the Pension Board and Town Council. Key qualifications include at least five years of experience providing pension services to Rhode Island municipal government entities and having three Rhode Island clients with similar pension service contracts. The proposal evaluation will be based on four equally weighted criteria (25 points each): demonstration of experience, quality of past performance, professional experience of individual advisors, and cost. The proposal submission deadline is February 27, 2025, at 1:00 p.m. EST/EDT, with a bid opening scheduled for 2:00 p.m. the same day. The current incumbent vendor is GovInvest, Inc., which has provided evaluations for fiscal years ending 6/30/2022, 6/30/2023, and 6/30/2024.

The RFP does not specify explicit set-aside designations or restrictions for disadvantaged enterprises. The Town requires the successful bidder to produce required reports by October 1st to meet state reporting requirements and ensure financial statements are submitted by December 31st. Current fee structures indicate historical costs of $33,075 for pension services and $13,781.25 for OPEB services in fiscal year 2023, suggesting a potential contract value around $47,000 annually. While specific experience in Rhode Island municipal government is preferred, the Town has demonstrated flexibility by allowing firms without a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries on staff to bid, provided they have qualified actuarial professionals. The current financial documentation reveals a net pension liability of $45,016,654 and a net OPEB liability of $14,055,130. The Town reserves the right to reject any or all bids and select the proposal deemed most beneficial to the municipality, indicating a comprehensive and competitive procurement process.