(A) Conditions for use. Whenever professional services are required and the county does not have an existing satisfactory relationship for services of the requisite type, or except in the case of an emergency, purchases of professional services of $25,000 or more shall be made in accordance with qualifications-based selection requirements as found the state’s Local Government Professional Services Selection Act, being 50 ILCS 510/0.01 et seq. Types of professional services subject to these requirements include: engineers; architects; and land surveyors.
(B) Invitation to submit qualifications. A statement of interest and a request for qualifications shall be issued and shall include a description of the scope of services to be rendered as approved by the requesting department head, evaluation requirements, and all applicable contractual terms and conditions in a form as reviewed and approved by the State’s Attorney’s Office and the County Auditor.
(C) Notice. Whenever professional services are required and the county does not have an existing satisfactory relationship for services of the requisite type, an advertisement shall be placed in a secular daily newspaper of general circulation in the county. The advertisement shall request a statement of interest in the specific project and statements of qualifications from any firms that have not yet filed statements of qualifications with the county government. The advertisement shall state a specific day, hour, and place the statements are due. A copy of the notice shall be sent to the Auditor.
(D) RFQ review. Statements of qualifications must be in writing and shall be reviewed by at least three of the following county officials: requesting department head; assistant department head; County Administrator; Auditor; Assistant State’s Attorney; and chairperson or member parent committee, when applicable. At a minimum, the submitter’s qualifications and the extent to which each statement of qualifications conforms to the evaluation criteria, together with the name of each submitter, shall be recorded in summary form. The summary and each statement of qualifications shall be open to public inspection.
(E) Evaluation of qualifications. Evaluations shall be based on the requirements set forth in the RFQ, which may include criteria to determine acceptability, such as their perceived competence and expertise relative to the project, the cost of their services, their ability to complete work within a required time frame, their past record in performing similar work, and their ability to work with county staff and elected officials.
(F) Consultant selection. The evaluation summary will be submitted to the requesting department’s parent committee, who will review the analysis and select one or more submitters for interview. Following the interview(s) the parent committee shall forward its recommendation of selection to the full County Board for consideration. The County Board and/or the Internal Control Officer who initiated the bidding process may then direct contract negotiations take place with its first choice consultant. Should these negotiations fail. The Board, if applicable, may then direct contract negotiations take place with its next choice consultant.
(G) Contract award. Once contract negotiations have been successful, the parent committee shall submit for ratification of the contract to the County Board, and/or the Internal Control Officer who initiated the bidding process may ratify the contract.
(Prior Code, 1 TCC 2-4)