Training: Job Order Contracting

Arizona State University's Alliance for Construction Excellence will sponsor an all day training session on Job Order Contracting on Wednesday, August 4, 2010.

Agenda:  Topics to be covered include the following:

• History of Job Order Contracting (JOC)
• Legal/Operational Considerations
• JOC Process
• RFQ/RFP Roadmap
• Contracts
• Estimating
• Unit Price Book Overview
• Case Studies

Information and Registration:  Visit the website of the Alliance for Construction Excellence..

JOC Laws Vary:  Different states, as well as the federal government, has separate laws governing the use of Job Order Contracting.   This training will focus on Arizona State Law.  In Washington State, Job Order Contracting is authorized for specifically names types of public agencies in chapter 39.10 RCW.

4 Applications to Use Alternative Public Works

The State of Washington's Project Review Committee will meet on July 22, 2010 to consider applications for approval from three public agencies to use either Design-Build or General Contractor/Construction Manager (GC/CM) for the following four public works projects.  The links below will take you to the application submitted to the Project Review Committee.

• City of Bellingham: GC/CM for Post Point Wastewater Treatment Plant Improvements ($47.2 million)

• City of Everett: Design-Build for new Everett Municipal Court Building ($6 million)

• City of Everett: GC/CM for Water Pollution Control Facility, Phase C Expansion ($73 million)

• Sound Transit: Design-Build for South 200th Light Rail System Extension Project ($302.2 million)

The Project Review Committee will also consider the application from the University of Washington for renewal of their certification as an experienced public owner to use GC/CM for another three years without having to seek project specific approval.

Alternative public works contracting in the State of Washington is authorized in chapter 39.10 RCW.

Webinar: Bulletproof Your Bidding Process

I will be teaching at 1 hour webinar on a variety of public bidding issues.

Subject: Bulletproof Your Bidding Process: Keys to Minimize Liability 

When: August 12, 2010 from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. (Eastern Time).

Cost:  $199

Outline of Webinar:  Here are some of the subjects I'll be covering.

• Bid receipt and opening issues
• Managing addenda
• Mandatory pre-bid meetings
• Common bid irregularities
• Difference between material and immaterial irregularities
• Bidder responsibility criteria
• What bidding error can be corrected
• Managing requests for bid withdrawal (claims of error)
• Bid protests

More Information and Registration:  Visit the website of Government Educator, who is sponsoring the webinar..

Questions:  Please contact me if you have any questions about the webinar.

Seattle Schools Permit Performance of Work Prior to Contract Approval

The Washington State Auditor's Office recently issued an audit finding that the Seattle School District permitted work to be performed on a number of personal service contracts prior to execution of the contracts, in violation of the District's policies and procedures.  The audit also found instances where the District actually paid consultants for services prior to approval of the contracts.

Issue Unresolved Since Last Year:  According to the audit report, "this issue was brought to the District's attention in last year's audit.  It has not be resolved."

Response by School District:  This District concurred with the finding and "will continue to emphasize the importance of compliance with contracting requirements and will implement a specific set of consequences for non-compliance."

Audit Report:  To read the details of the audit report, click here, and go to page 22 of the report.

Lessons Learned:  Auditors will hold public agencies accountable not only for applicable laws and grant requirements, but for compliance with the agency's own policies and procedures.  It's a good idea to conduct a pre-audit on an annual basis of your agency's compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and policies.  Please contact me if you would like assistance in reviewing your agency's compliance with various contracting and procurement standards.

Free Prevailing Wage Training in Washington State

During July, August, and September 2010, the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries will be offering 16 free three-hour training sessions on prevailing wages at nine different locations across the state.  The workshops are geared for public agencies.

The following is the schedule:

• Tumwater (July 26, 2010 - 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.)
• Tumwater (July 26, 2010 - 1:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.)
• East Wenatchee (August 10, 2010 - 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.)
• Moses Lake (August 11, 2010 - 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.)
• Yakima (August 12, 2010 - 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.)
• Yakima (August 12, 2010 - 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.)
• Tukwila (August 24, 2010 - 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.)
• Tukwila (August 24, 2010 - 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.)
• Tukwila (August 25, 2010 - 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.) 
• Edmonds (August 31, 2010 -  8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.)
• Edmonds (August 31, 2010 - 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.)
• Bellingham (September 1, 2010 - 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.) 
• Bellingham (September 1, 2010 - 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.)
• Spokane Valley (September 10, 2010 - 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.) 
• Vancouver (September 16, 2010 - 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.)
• Vancouver (September 16, 2010 - 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.)

For more information and to register, click here.

Housing Authority Goes Out of Business

The Richland Housing Authority in Washington State closed down at the end of June "after years of financial struggle and uncertainty."

The Housing Authority lost Section 8 housing voucher funding after the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) found that the agency couldn't account for almost a half million dollars of Section 8 money. 

The Washington State Auditor's Office also issued findings in October 2009 about conflicts of interest of Housing Authority management, failure of the Housing Authority to adequately monitor contracts, and use of restricted funds for unallowable purposes.

For more information, visit the website of the Tri-City Herald.

More Than 400 E-Mail Subscribers to This Blog

My first blog entry for Mike Purdy's Public Contracting Blog was a little over three years ago on June 2, 2007.  

Almost 1,000 Blog Postings:  In that time, I've posted over 950 entries on a wide variety of public contracting subjects.  

Search the Blog:  From the blog home page, you can search for postings with the subject matter index, or through the Google search feature that only searches my blog.

Over 400 E-Mail Subscribers:  Two years ago, on July 9, 2008, I first began offering an e-mail subscription to the blog.   In just two years, the number of active e-mail subscribers has gone from zero to 412, as of today.

Tell Others:  If you know of others who could benefit from subscribing to the blog, please pass the word along.

Comments:  Thank you for the comments that many of you have made to me about the value of the blog to you. If you have suggestions for issues you would like to see addressed in the future, please contact me.