Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Fighting the busyness:  The holiday season is often accompanied by even more busyness than what we usually experience during the year.  But it would be nice if it were a quieter time - a time to wait and prepare, a time to reflect and rejoice, a time to spend away from work and with family and friends. 

3 week break from this blog:  And so in the spirit of slowing down over the holidays, I will take a break from writing this blog for a couple of weeks.  I know that many of you will also be taking time off over the holidays, and I don't want to clutter your in-box with yet more e-mails to read come the first of the year.  I'll resume writing this blog in early January (unless there are any very time urgent subjects to communicate before then).  

Enjoy the holidays:  Until January, step back from your routines and enjoy the sights, smells, tastes, and meaning of this season, savoring each relationship, and remembering that each day we experience is a gift of grace.

President Obama's card:  Below is the President's holiday greeting card for 2012:

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Mike Purdy's Public Contracting Blog 
© 2012 by Michael E. Purdy Associates, LLC 
http://PublicContracting.blogspot.com

Report Recommends Reauthorization of Alternative Public Works Contracting Laws

JLARC recommendations:  In a December 5, 2012 proposed final report, the staff of the Washington State Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee (JLARC) has recommended that the three alternative public works contracting methods of Design-Build, General Contractor/Construction Manager (GC/CM), and Job Order Contracting be reauthorized prior to their termination on June 30, 2013.  JLARC will meet in January to vote on adopting the report.

CPARB recommendations:  JLARC's review of RCW 39.10 (alternative public works contracting) was required by the Legislature and their recommendations will be important for the Legislature in considering reauthorization of RCW 39.10.  In addition, the Capital Projects Advisory Review Board (CPARB) made decisions and voted at their meeting of December 13, 2012 on specific language of the proposed reauthorization legislation.  Click here for a markup draft of the RCW 39.10 that CPARB considered along with a number of specific policy issues identified in the comments.  Not all of the items were approved by CPARB.

Mike Purdy's Public Contracting Blog 
© 2012 by Michael E. Purdy Associates, LLC 
http://PublicContracting.blogspot.com

Job Opening: Contract Specialist with Private Company in Portland, Oregon

Manufacturing Company in the Portland, OR Metro Area

• Position:  Contract Specialist

• Location:  Portland, Oregon

• Closing Date:  Open until filled

• Salary:  $55,000 to $70,000 per year

• Job Summary: The manufacturing company seeking to fill this position through Aerotek is involved in a significant amount of contracting with the government, including the federal government.  The individual in this position will be responsible for composing contract letters, processing change orders, and manipulating files within MS Excel.  An understanding of engineering and manufacturing terminology is required.

• For More Information and to Apply:  Click here.  

Mike Purdy's Public Contracting Blog 

© 2012 by Michael E. Purdy Associates, LLC 

http://PublicContracting.blogspot.com

IRS Increases 2013 Mileage Reimbursement Rate

The IRS has announced an increase in the standard mileage reimbursement rate from 55.5 cents a mile to 56.5 cents a mile, effective January 1, 2013.  Click here to read the announcement from the IRS.

Some Agencies Set Own Rate:  It's a good thing to remember, however, that not all state and local agencies may have adopted this standard on their contracts.  For example, under State of Washington guidelines issued from the Office of Financial Management (OFM), as of October 1, 2012, the authorized reimbursement rate for mileage was only 51 cents.

Check Invoices and Contracts:  If you're a public agency, make sure you check invoices carefully so that you pay the contractual mileage reimbursement rate you've agreed to.  If you're a contractor doing business with the government, review your contract before submitting an invoice so that you submit the correct rate on your invoices.

Mike Purdy's Public Contracting Blog 
© 2012 by Michael E. Purdy Associates, LLC 
http://PublicContracting.blogspot.com

3 Tools to Enforce Contractor Performance

There are three primary tools available to public agencies that are used to enforce lack of compliance by contractors on public works construction projects.

Bid guaranty:  If the contractor who has been awarded a public works project fails to execute the contract (sign it), a public agency may be compensated through the contractor's bid guaranty that was submitted with the bid.  Some of the common forms of bid guaranties are bid bonds, cashier's checks, certified checks, personal money orders, or cash.  A bid guaranty is for a specific percentage of the bid amount, typically 5%.

Liquidated damages:  If the contractor does not complete the work in a timely manner, consistent with the number of days provided for in the contract, a public agency may assess liquidated damages against the contractor for every day that substantial completion of the project is delayed until final completion.  Liquidated damages are not a penalty and must be specified in the contract.  Substantial completion occurs when the agency has beneficial use and occupancy of the facility for its intended purpose, even if all of the punch list items or other administrative matters have not been completed or resolved.

Performance bond:  If the contractor does not satisfactorily complete the work, goes out of business, declares bankruptcy, or otherwise disappears and does not perform the work they contracted with the public agency to perform, a public agency may contact the bonding company (surety) that provided a performance bond.  Under the terms of a performance bond, the surety agrees to complete the work consistent with the contract by either providing funding to the contractor, obtaining a new contractor to complete the work, or pay the public agency the dollar amount of the performance bond for the agency to complete the work.

Mike Purdy's Public Contracting Blog 
© 2012 by Michael E. Purdy Associates, LLC 
http://PublicContracting.blogspot.com

Ensuring No Conflict of Interest for Consultant Evaluation Committee Members

One of the issues that can cause challenges, protests, and a lack of public confidence in the evaluation of proposals and qualifications on RFPs and RFQs occurs when a member of the evaluation committee has a conflict of interest with one or more of the proposers.

Subjective nature of evaluation process:  The evaluation process for selecting consultants and service providers based on RFPs or RFQs is, by its nature, more subjective than making selection decisions on bids where an award is based on price only.

Types of conflicts of interest:  Conflicts of interest can occur in the following situations:

• An evaluator has a financial or personal relationship with one of the proposers.  

• A member of the evaluator's immediate family has a financial or personal relationship with one of the proposers.

• There is an appearance or perception of a conflict of interest for an evaluator or member of the evaluator's immediate family, which, even if not real, may be just as damaging or problematic to the process, the project, and the reputation of the evaluator.

Require evaluators to sign statement:  My practice has been to require members of the evaluation committee to sign a Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality Statement before they are given the proposals to review. 

Here's language on the conflict of interest that I've included in the statement:

I understand and agree that I do not have a conflict of interest of a financial, relational, or other nature with any of the firms or key personnel of any of the firms I will be evaluating, and that there is no perception or appearance of such a conflict of interest that could arise.  I further agree that no member of my immediate family has any such conflict of interest.  "Immediate family" means a spouse or domestic partner, child, child of a spouse or domestic partner, sibling, sibling of a domestic partner, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, parent, parent of a spouse or domestic partner, a person for whom I am a legal guardian, or a person claimed as a dependent on my most recently filed federal income tax return.  The firms who have submitted proposals for this project are: [list firms here]

Practical steps:

• Code of Ethics:  Review your agency's code of ethics governing behavior of employees involved in procurement and contracting.  If you don't have such a code, develop one.

• Conflict of Interest Statement:  Ensure that evaluators of proposals and qualifications sign a Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality Statement before they are provided with proposals and qualifications to review and score.  If there is a conflict of interest, or an apparent conflict of interest, they should be replaced on the evaluation committee with another member who does not have a conflict of interest.

• Training:  Provide regular training for your agency's personnel on the importance of ethics in public procurement and contracting.

Mike Purdy's Public Contracting Blog 
© 2012 by Michael E. Purdy Associates, LLC 
http://PublicContracting.blogspot.com

Design-Build Certification Workshop

Design-Build Certification Workshop

When:   January 13 - 18, 2013 (7:15 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.)

Where:  Spokane, Washington (222 Wall Street, Wheatland Bank Building)

Sponsored by:  Design Build Institute of America (DBIA).  This week long certification workshop is designed to provide all of the core classes in one week required for obtaining certification by DBIA as a DBIA professional.

Cost:  

• $2,150 (DBIA members)
• $3,150 (Non DBIA members)

Schedule and Agenda:

• Day 1:  Fundamentals of Project Delivery
• Day 2: Principles of Design-Build Project Delivery
• Day 3: Design-Build Contracts & Risk Management
• Day 4: Post Award Design-Build
• Day 5: Certification Exam Prep

Information and Registration:  Click here.

Mike Purdy's Public Contracting Blog 
© 2012 by Michael E. Purdy Associates, LLC 
http://PublicContracting.blogspot.com