Police Uniforms, Ballistic Shields and Fire Body Armor

The City of Tucson Police Department and Tucson Fire Department seek to establish an annual requirements contract for the procurement of formal uniforms, general uniforms, ballistic shields, and body armor vests for departmental personnel. This solicitation is structured in three separate groups: Group A encompasses police uniforms and accessories including Class A and Class B formal and patrol uniforms with alterations and embellishment services; Group B covers patrol ballistic shields certified to NIJ Level III+ or IV standards; and Group C addresses fire department body armor systems including ballistic carriers, Level IIIA soft armor panels, Level III+ steel hard armor plates, and ballistic helmets. Vendors are permitted to submit proposals for one or more categories without requirement to bid all groups. The estimated annual usage for the Tucson Police Department is approximately $300,000, with the contract term set for one year from award with City options to extend for up to four additional one-year periods. Vendors must demonstrate the capability to provide both in-person and online web-based ordering systems with employee account tracking for uniform orders and stipend balance management, maintain local inventory of standard sizes with delivery timelines ranging from same-day to 30 days depending on availability, and carry comprehensive insurance including general liability of $1,000,000 per occurrence, professional liability of $1,000,000 per claim, and cyber liability of $2,000,000 per claim. All products must be NIJ-certified and compatible with existing deployed equipment, with strict interchangeability requirements for Group C items and no substitutions permitted without written City approval. The pre-submittal meeting is scheduled for April 27, 2026 at 12:00 p.m. via Microsoft Teams, with a question submission deadline of May 1, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. and proposal submittal deadline of May 26, 2026 at 2:00 p.m.; all submissions must be made electronically through the City's online bidding portal. Evaluation criteria include qualifications and experience, method of approach, and price proposal, with pricing submitted on the provided Price Page reflecting percentage discounts off catalog pricing. Items are available for pickup at the contractor's location or shipped F.O.B. Destination, Freight Prepaid, to designated TPD and TFD locations.

The contract incorporates extensive federal compliance requirements due to funding from multiple federal sources including Federal Transit Administration grants, Housing and Urban Development funding, and American Rescue Plan Act resources. Contractors must comply with disadvantaged business enterprise participation requirements under 49 CFR Part 26, Buy America provisions for manufactured products exceeding $100,000, Davis-Bacon prevailing wage standards for applicable activities, debarment and suspension certifications for contracts exceeding $25,000, Section 3 HUD Act requirements mandating that 25 percent or more of labor hours be performed by Section 3 Workers with 5 percent performed by Targeted Section 3 Workers, anti-lobbying certifications for bids exceeding $100,000, equal employment opportunity obligations under Executive Order 11246, and compliance with the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act for contracts exceeding $100,000. The contract will be made available to public agencies nationwide through the Axia Cooperative purchasing program, with an estimated nationwide annual volume of $10,000,000 and an expected administrative fee of 2 percent of total net sales payable monthly by the selected supplier. No specific incumbent vendors or current contractors are identified in the solicitation documents. Vendors must submit pricing information including unit prices before and after proposed discount percentages, extended prices, and manufacturer price list details including name, number, and effective date. The contract structure allows flexible vendor participation across the three product groups based on vendor capabilities and specialization, with payment terms and volume discounts to be negotiated as part of the vendor selection process.