CITY OF SUMNER
REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
FOR AN INDIRECT COST ASSESSMENT RATE MODEL
The City of Sumner solicits interest from consulting firms with expertise in providing professional services in the area of municipal financial analysis. Services are anticipated to be contracted for, and work completed in the 2024 calendar year. Additional studies and updates may be contracted for at the option of the City of Sumner over four (4) subsequent years.
The City of Sumner reserves the right to retain the services of responsive firm(s) for subsequent phases associated with this work.
The City of Sumner reserves the right to amend terms of this “Request for Qualifications” (RFQ), to circulate various addenda, or to withdraw the RFQ at any time, regardless of how much time and effort consultants have spent on their responses.
A full description of the City of Sumner, including the 2023/2024 Biennial Budget, may be found at sumnerwa.gov.
Prospective consultants will be held to Federal EEO requirements for federally funded projects and to the ADA and Civil Rights language adopted by the City of Sumner.
Project Description
The City of Sumner is seeking professional services for the development of a full cost allocation plan. The goal of this study is to create a rate model clearly supporting the indirect cost assessment of General Fund administrative expenses to user funds.
Technical Information
The City will furnish the selected consultant with all reasonably available records and information, including financial reports, performance indicators, and other relevant data. Additionally, the City will provide specific information as defined on the consultant’s data request, and staff support for assistance with data interpretation, as required.
Proposal Contact Person: Written technical questions regarding this RFQ are preferred and should be directed to Kassandra Raymond, Chief Financial Officer, at kassandrar@sumnerwa.gov. Please allow a minimum response time of two (2) business days.
Scope of Work
Project tasks shall include, but are not limited to, the following.
- Work with City staff to define the purpose, use, and goals for an overhead cost allocation plan to ensure that the developed plan will be both accurate and appropriate for the City’s current needs.
- Develop and prepare a detailed Full Cost Allocation Plan model to calculate the full costs of providing City services. Identify any unallowable costs under OMB 2 CFR part 200 and prepare a cost allocation model in accordance with the principles of OMB 2 CFR Part 200.
- Present “Draft” Cost allocation model to City Management for review. Collect and document comments and concerns from staff. Following discussion with staff, consultant will make the agreed upon changes to the plan.
- Prepare final plans for both the Full Cost Allocation Plan and OMB 2 CFR Part 200 plan. Provide three hard copies of the final plan as well as one electronic searchable Adobe PDF File.
- Provide City staff with a copy of the electronic model utilized to prepare the plans so that updates can be performed internally each year.
- Consult with City staff should the need arise to defend the cost allocation plan as a result of audit or other external challenges.
- The consultant should recommend other tasks deemed appropriate to achieve the objectives of this task.
Funding and Cost
A lump sum fee shall be negotiated with the selected consultant. The City anticipates that the contract will be based on hourly rate(s) not to exceed a maximum amount. A cost proposal is required as part of the submission. During the final selection process, the City may discuss available project funds and a firm scope of work that will obtain the City’s objectives within the available funds.
The City will not be liable for any costs incurred by the consultant in preparation of a submittal in response to this request, in conducting of a presentation, or any other activities related to responding to this RFP.
Schedule
The City would like all work performed under the contract to be completed within ninety (90) calendar days of the contract execution, with interim or draft reports available earlier for consideration and review. The following schedule is intended to provide interested firms information about the schedule anticipated by the City. This is an estimate only. The final schedule will be negotiated with the selected consultant.
- RFP Release Date: December 14, 2023
- Submittals Due: January 2, 2024
- Evaluate Submittals: January 3, 2024 – January 12, 2024
- Virtual Interviews (tentative, may or may not be required):
- Notify firms of apparent successful consultant/vendor: January 19, 2024
- Contract execution: February 2024
Format
The Statement of Qualifications (SOQ) should describe the composition of the proposed team, the qualifications of the key individuals identified on that team, and the relevant experience of the team on similar projects.
The Consultant’s SOQ should include the following information:
- The proposal should be accompanied by a brief introductory letter stating your firm’s interest in the project.
- Provide resumes of no more than three (3) key members of the proposed project team inclusive of key subconsultant who will work on this project.
- List projects of similar complexity and magnitude undertaken and completed in the past ten (10) years and provide references and a phone number for each reference.
- Reference projects should list the involvement of proposed project team members for whom resumes have been submitted.
- Provide management specifications to include a statement of assurance that listed team members, including those of subconsultants, will not be replaced without prior approval of the City.
The SOQ should consist of no more than ten (10) pages. The cover letter, front and back covers, and section dividers will not be counted in the ten (10) page limit.
Submittals shall be good for sixty (60) days from the due date of the RFQ.
Submittal Deadline:
There will be no pre-bid conference or formal bid opening.
One signed original and two (2) copies of the proposal package shall be delivered by 2:00 p.m. on January 2, 2024 to the attention of Kassandra Raymond, Chief Financial Officer, at the following address:
City of Sumner
1104 Maple Street
Sumner, WA 98390
Additionally, the respondent shall submit one (1) electronic copy via e-mail (Adobe PDF format) to kassandrar@sumnerwa.gov.
Any proposal received after the specified date and time may be rejected and not receive any further consideration by the City; postmarks or facsimiles will not be accepted. Respondents should allow sufficient delivery time to insure receipt on or before the stated deadline. Respondents assume the risk for the delivery method chosen. The City assumes no responsibility for delays caused by any delivery service. All submittals and any accompanying documentation becomes the property of the City, become public information upon receipt, and will not be returned.
Selection Procedure
After the deadline for acceptance of proposals, the SOQs will be reviewed and evaluated by an Evaluation Committee comprised of, but not limited to, City staff, appointed or elected officials, and individuals chosen by Finance staff to participate. The Evaluation Committee will rate written proposals based on the evaluation criteria listed above.
The City reserves the right at its sole discretion to reject any and all proposals received without penalty and not to issue a contract as the result of this RFQ. The City also reserves the right to waive minor administrative irregularities contained in any submittal.
The City may choose to interview the top firms as ranked by the Evaluation Committee. Information from the interviews along with feedback from references will be incorporated into the final rankings.
If a contract cannot be negotiated with the top ranked firm, the City will contact the next firm in line and attempt to negotiate with that firm. The process will be repeated until an agreement is reached.
The final selection, if any, will be that proposal which, in the opinion of the City after review of all submissions by the evaluation committee, best meets the requirements set forth in the RFQ and is in the best interest of the City.
Evaluation Criteria
Submittals will be evaluated and ranked based on the following criteria:
- Qualification of the proposed project manager and key staff members;
- General approach and plan to meet the requirements of the RFQ as well as an overall ability to successfully complete the project within the stated schedule;
- Consultant’s approach to the City’s project as demonstrated in a description of their approach to the work;
- Experience and expertise in writing and presenting reports for local government officials is desired, including the development of findings, conclusions, and recommendations; and
- Demonstrated ability of the consultant to perform high quality work, control costs, meet schedules, prepare documentation, and ensure project commitments are met.
City Contract
The scope of work described herein shall be authorized by a contract. The final contract scope and schedule will be negotiated with the selected consultant. A sample City of Sumner contract is attached. Consultant should carefully review the sample contract to familiarize with the stated terms and conditions.
One original copy of the RFQ proposal will require an original signature upon submittal. A signature will also be required as part of the contract process.
The City reserves the right to make an award without further discussion of the proposal submitted. Therefore, the proposal should be submitted initially on the most favorable terms that the consultant can propose. The submittal shall specifically stipulate the proposal is predicated upon acceptance of all terms and conditions in the RFQ.
Consultant shall be prepared to accept this RFQ for incorporation into a contract resulting from this RFQ. It is understood that the proposal will become part of the official file on this project without obligation to the City. This RFQ does not, however, obligate the City to contract for services specified herein.
Proprietary Information/Public Disclosure
Material submitted in response to this RFQ shall become property of the City.
All proposals shall remain confidential until the contract, if any, resulting from this RFQ is fully executed. Thereafter, the proposal(s) shall be deemed public records as required by RCW Chapter 42.56 and other applicable laws.
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Information
The City of Sumner in accordance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (Section 504) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), commits to nondiscrimination on the basis of disability, in all of its programs and activities. This material can be made available in an alternate format by emailing the Contact person.
Title VI Statement
The City of Sumner, in accordance with the provisions of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (78 Stat. 252, 42 U.S.C. 2000d to 2000d-4) and Federal Regulations, hereby notifies all bidders that it will affirmatively ensure that in any contract entered into pursuant to this advertisement, disadvantaged business enterprises as defined at 49 CFR Part 26 will be afforded full and fair opportunity to submit bids in response to this invitation and will not be discriminated against on the grounds of race, color, national origin, or sex in consideration for an award.
Federal Emergency Management Agency Assurances
Agencies shall read and document that they will comply with the assurances and certifications contained in FEMA Form 20-16A, Assurances – Non construction Programs; FEMA Form 20-16B, Assurances-Construction Programs; FEMA Form 20-16C, Certifications Regarding Lobbying; Debarment, Suspension, and Other Responsibility Matters; and Drug-Free Workplace Requirements; SF LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (If applicable). Agencies shall further agree that they will include the clause title “Certification Regarding Debarment, Suspension, Ineligibility and Voluntary Exclusion-Lower Tier Covered Transaction,” provided by the FEMA Regional Office, without modification, in all lower tier covered transactions and in all solicitations for lower tier covered transactions. (Refer to 44 CFR Part 17.)
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