A. Purchases Not Requiring Sealed Bids:
1. Purchases costing less than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) in total, shall not require bids of any type. Purchases shall not be artificially divided so as to constitute a small purchase under this section.
2. Purchases costing more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) but less than twenty five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) in total, shall require two (2) to three (3) telephone bids.
3. Purchases made through the cooperative purchasing contracts administered by the state division of purchasing.
4. Purchases made from a single source provider.
5. Purchases required during an emergency, i.e., an imminent threat to the public health, welfare or safety. However, as much competition as practical should be obtained; and, such purchases should be limited to amounts necessary to the resolution of the emergency.
6. Purchases in excess of one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) require town council approval.
B. Purchases Requiring Sealed Bids:
1. Contracts shall be awarded by competitive sealed bidding, except as otherwise provided by this chapter.
2. An invitation for bids shall be issued when a contract is to be awarded by competitive sealed bidding. The invitation shall include a purchase description and all contractual terms and conditions applicable to the procurement. Public notice of the invitation for bids shall be given at least twenty one (21) days prior to the date set forth therein for the opening of bids. The notice may include publication in newspaper of general circulation.
3. Any procurement in excess of twenty five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) shall require a legal notice in a local newspaper of general circulation.
4. Bids shall be opened publicly in the presence of one or more witnesses at the time and place designated in the invitation for bids. The amount of each bid and any other relevant information, together with the name of each bidder, shall be recorded. The record and each bid shall be open to public inspection.
5. Bids shall be unconditionally accepted without alteration or correction, except as authorized in this chapter. Bids shall be evaluated based on the requirements set forth in the invitation for bids.
6. Correction or withdrawal of inadvertently erroneous bids before and after award, or cancellation of awards or contracts based on such bid mistakes, shall be permitted. After bid opening, no changes in bid prices or other provisions of bids prejudicial to the interest of the town or fair competition shall be permitted. All decisions to permit the correction or withdrawal of bids or to cancel awards or contracts based on bid mistakes shall be supported by a written determination made by the purchasing agent.
7. The contract shall be awarded with reasonable promptness, by written notice, to the lowest bidder whose bid meets the requirements and criteria set forth in the invitation for bids.
C. Cancellation And Rejection Of Bids: An invitation for bids, a request for proposals or other solicitation may be canceled, or any or all bids or proposals may be rejected, in whole or in part, as may be specified in the solicitation, when it is in the best interests of the town. The reasons shall be made part of the contract file.
D. Use Of Competitive Sealed Proposals In Lieu Of Bids: When the purchasing agent determines in writing that the use of competitive sealed bidding is either not practicable or not advantageous to the town, a contract may be entered into by competitive sealed proposals. Competitive sealed proposals are most appropriately used for professional service type contracts.
1. Proposals shall be solicited through a request for proposals. Public notice of the request for proposals shall be given at least twenty one (21) days prior to the advertised date of the opening of the proposals.
2. Proposals shall be opened so as to avoid disclosure of contents to competing offerors during the process of negotiation. A register of proposals shall be prepared and shall be open for public inspection after contract award.
3. The request for proposals shall state the relative importance of price and other evaluating factors.
4. Offerors shall be accorded fair and equal treatment with respect to any opportunity for discussion and revision of proposals, and revisions may be permitted after submissions and prior to award for the purpose of obtaining best and final offers. In conducting discussions, there shall be no disclosure of any information derived from proposals submitted by competing offerors.
5. Award shall be made to the person whose proposal is determined, in writing, to be the most advantageous to the town, taking into consideration price and the evaluation factors set forth in the request for proposals. No other factors or criteria shall be used in the evaluation. The contract file shall contain the basis on which the award is made.
E. Architect, Engineer Services: Architect and engineer services are qualification based procurements. Requests for such services should be publicly announced. Contracts should be negotiated by the town based on demonstrated competence at fair and reasonable prices.
F. Determination Of Nonresponsibility Of Bidder: Determination of nonresponsibility of a bidder or offeror shall be made in writing. The unreasonable failure of a bidder or offeror to promptly supply information in connection with an inquiry with respect to responsibility may be grounds for a determination of nonresponsibility with respect to the bidder or offeror. Information furnished by a bidder or offeror pursuant to this subsection shall not be disclosed outside of the purchasing division without prior written consent by the bidder or offeror.
G. Cost Plus A Percentage Of Cost Contracts Prohibited: Subject to the limitations of this section, any type of contract which will promote the best interests of the town may be used; provided, that the use of a cost plus a percentage of cost contract is prohibited. A cost reimbursement contract may be used only when a determination is made in writing that such contract is likely to be less costly to the town than any other type or that it is impracticable to obtain the supplies, services or construction required except under such a contract.
H. Required Contract Clauses:
1. The unilateral right of the town to order, in writing, changes in the work within the scope of the contract that do not alter the scope of the contract work.
2. Variations occurring between estimated quantities of work in a contract and actual quantities.
3. Suspension of work ordered by the town. (2016 Code)