All Proposers are hereby notified that the DBE requirements of 49 CFR Part 26 apply to this Solicitation. All Proposers are hereby notified that there is No DBE participation goal established for this Contract, but the Authority strongly encourages the Proposer to use DBE companies for any subconsultant work necessary.  It is the policy of the Authority to practice nondiscrimination based on race, color, sex, or national origin in the award or performance of this Contract. The Authority encourages participation by all firms qualifying under this Solicitation, regardless of business size or ownership.

The resulting contract, if any, will be subject to contract compliance payment tracking, and the prime contractor and any DBE subcontractors shall provide any noted and/or requested contract compliance-related payment data electronically in the B2GNow Contract Compliance Program System. The prime contractor and all DBE subcontractors are responsible for responding by any noted response audit date or due date to any instructions or request for information, and to check the B2GNow Contract Compliance Program System on a regular basis. The prime contractor is responsible for ensuring all DBE subcontractors have completed all requested items and that their contact information is up to date.

Access information to the system will be provided to a designated point of contact with each contractor upon award of the contract. The B2GNow Contract Compliance Program System is
web-based and Contract Compliance Reporting – Vendor Training and can be accessed at the following Internet address:

https://jtafla.dbesystem.com/FrontEnd/EventList.asp

Professional Services (Non-CCNA)

Firm‐Fixed Price w/Economic Adjustment

The Contract period shall be for a five (5) year base with no additional options to renew.

1. This is a Best Value competitive negotiated procurement.  The Authority may make award, if any resulting from this solicitation to the highest ranked responsive proposer whose offer conforms to the solicitation, its selection criteria set forth in Section III and is determined to be responsible in accordance with the JTA Procurement Rule 002, which is incorporated herein by reference. Possesses the management, financial, technical, and appropriate capabilities necessary to fulfill the requirements of the Contract and is judged by an integrated assessment of the evaluation criteria to be most advantageous to the Authority, all factors considered.

2. For the purpose of this procurement, the Authority is seeking total cost with all technical factors considered. While price is a factor, it is not the leading factor in the evaluation process.

3. The Authority reserves the right to (1) reject any or all offers if such action is in JTA's interest, (2) accept other than the lowest offer, (3) waive informalities and minor irregularities in offers received (4) request clarification, additional information or reject any or all proposals, in whole or in part, and re-advertise, cancel, or postpone at any time with or without cause, without liability to any Proposer, (5) reserves the right to take into consideration the Proposer’s qualifications and past performance with JTA or any other entity in determining if the Proposer is responsible and qualified.

4. The Authority intends to evaluate proposals and may conduct discussions with proposer(s) with the most highly ranked proposal(s). A proposal may be eliminated from the competitive range if, in the opinion of the Evaluation Committee, the proposal has deficiencies so severe as to preclude resolution in time to be of service to the Authority or there is a need to limit the competitive range for the purpose of efficiency.

5. Each initial proposal should contain the proposer’s best terms from a cost or price technical standpoint.

6. Technical items will be evaluated by a numerical rating system.  The numerical rating/ranking depicts how well the proposer’s proposal meets the evaluation standards and solicitation requirements in the technical specifications. The Proposal Risk assesses the risks associated with the proposer’s proposed approach as it relates to accomplishing the requirements of the Request for Proposal. Performance Risk assesses the probability of the proposer successfully accomplishing the proposed effort based on the proposer’s demonstrated past and present performance.

7. Prospective Proposers are advised that award if any may be made without discussions or any contact with the Proposers concerning the offers received except for clarifications. Therefore, proposals should be submitted initially with the most favorable terms the prospective Proposer can submit to the JTA.

Respondent is hereby notified that Section 287.05701, Florida Statutes, requires that JTA may not request documentation of or consider a Proposer’s social, political, or ideological interests when determining if the Proposer is a responsible Proposer, and JTA may not give any preference to any Proposer based on that Proposer’s social, political, or ideological interests.

If a Contract is awarded, all prices are to remain firm for a period of one (1) year from the effective date of the contract.  The Authority will consider price escalation or de-escalation on prior to the annual anniversary date of the contract.  Escalation and de-escalation will be reviewed by the Authority on an item-by-item basis.  Proposers who are awarded a Contract and become Suppliers, Contractors or Consultants may request increases or decreases in price as follows:

Within at least ninety (90) days prior to the expiration of the current contract term, the Proposer may submit a written request for escalation or de-escalation only on items for which it can no longer honor the awarded price.  The request must include the Authority's stock number, if applicable, a brief description of the item, and a new price that will remain firm until the next anniversary date of the contract term.

The Authority reserves the right to:

1. Grant or decline any request for escalation or de-escalation with or without cause.
2. Request documentation from the referenced parts manufacturer justifying any requested increase.  In the event of such request the Authority will only allow the Proposer to increase its Proposal price by the amount of the actual increase as provided by the parts manufacturer. 
3. The justification for the increase shall be based on an average of the previous twelve (12) months of the overall Consumer Price Index (CPI).

Any decision of the Authority to grant or decline a request for price adjustment will be at the Authority’s sole discretion and its decision shall be final. Annual rate adjustments for services will be at the discretion of the Authority. Minimum wage as approved/amended will be adjusted through a contract amendment.

Proposers must be in good standing and authorized to transact business in the State of Florida, and must not be listed in the System for Award Management (SAM) as an excluded party.  In addition, all licenses required for Proposers whose businesses and professions are regulated by the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation must be active and current at the time of the proposal submission.

Failure to demonstrate compliance may result in being deemed non-responsive.

The Contract, if awarded, may require a Performance Bond and/or a Payment Bond.  Specific bonding and insurance requirements are set forth in the Solicitation package. Insurance shall be written by an insurer who holds a current Certificate of Authority pursuant to Chapter 624, Florida Statutes, and who has a most recently published rating by A.M. Best & Company of “A-” or better.

All questions or concerns regarding this solicitation must be submitted on the eProcurement Portal prior to 12:00 pm (EST) on Tuesday, October 22, 2024. You will not be able to send messages after this time. Late questions may be answered at the sole discretion of the Authority. All responses to questions will be uploaded to the Portal and issued in an Addendum, on Friday, October 25, 2024. Please contact the Procurement Department at [email protected] regarding any questions or concerns prior to the questions deadline.

From the date of the initial publication of this Solicitation until the contract is awarded and the protest period has expired, all communication relating to this Solicitation, with the exception of Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) related questions, shall be sent to:

Carolyn Pride

Procurement Manager

Email: [email protected]

(904) 632-3820

All DBE questions shall be addressed to Ken Middleton at [email protected] or 904-598-8728. This includes questions related to certification or assistance with finding certified DBE’s to partner with.

If you are not sure who to send a question to, please send it to [email protected] and it will be forwarded to the appropriate personnel.

All other communication to the JTA or any JTA employee, consultant, or Board Member regarding this Solicitation is prohibited, unless made in accordance with JTA's Solicitation and Award Protest Rule. The JTA Board of Directors has established a zero tolerance policy and the JTA will disqualify any Proposer who makes or causes to be made, directly or indirectly, any improper communication. Nothing contained in this paragraph prohibits JTA personnel from initiating contact with a Proposer and subsequent communication related thereto for the purpose of obtaining additional information that is relevant to the Solicitation.

Proposers are hereby notified that the JTA is subject to the Florida Public Records Law and the Government in the Sunshine Act, as set forth in Florida Statutes Chapters 119 and 286; as such, most communications to the JTA are subject to public disclosure, and the selection meeting(s), if any, will be open to the public.

All JTA contracts are subject to funding availability and are not binding upon the Authority until duly executed by the Authority and delivered to the Proposer.