(A) Conditions for use. Purchase orders or contracts, in an amount in excess of $10,000, shall be awarded by competitive sealed bidding unless the Director of Purchasing determines that an alternate method of source selection, as set forth herein and the referenced sections therein of this chapter, is appropriate.
(B) Invitation for bids. An invitation for bids shall be issued and shall include specifications and any other descriptions of the commodity, and all proposed and/or mandatory contractual terms, special terms and conditions applicable to the procurement, other legal and regulatory requirements, including, but not limited to, the requirements of Chapter 93 of the Code of Ordinances. With respect to any particular invitation for bids, the Director of Purchasing or the Corporation Counsel may vary any clauses that may have, prior thereto, been promulgated by the Department of Purchases for inclusion in all invitation for bids. However, the Director of Purchasing does not have the discretion to vary the specifically enumerated legal requirements of the code of ordinances.
(C) Public notice. Adequate public notice of the invitation for bids shall be given a reasonable time period prior to the date set forth therein for the opening of bids and in a manner that the Director of Purchasing determines will maximize public participation and competition in the competitive sealed bidding process.
(1) (a) Generally. The notice shall be inserted, at least ten calendar days before the final date of submitting bids, in the major daily newspaper published in the city and may, in the sole discretion of the Director of Purchasing, be posted on the Internet.
(b) Notice following pre-qualification of bidders. In the event of a multi-step competitive or sealed bid, the notice may be sent only to the vendors qualified to bid.
(2) (a) Each notice of a planned purchase under this chapter shall indicate the type of commodities or services to be purchased.
(b) The using agency shall provide the Director of Purchasing with special notice requirements necessary to comply with the provisions of federal or state grants, loans or reimbursement agreement, when applicable.
(D) Bid opening.
(1) Bids shall be opened publicly at the time and place designated in the invitation for bids. The amount of each bid, and such other relevant information as may be specified by policy adopted by the Director of Purchasing, together with the name of each bidder shall be recorded; the record and each bid shall be open to public inspection.
(2) Each bid shall be kept sealed or secured until opened publicly at the time stated in the notice soliciting the bid.
(E) Bid acceptance and bid evaluation. Bids shall be unconditionally accepted without alteration or correction, except as authorized in this chapter. The invitation for bid may set forth the evaluation criteria to be used. No criteria may be used in a bid evaluation that are not set forth in the invitation for bids. In the event there is no specific evaluation criterion set forth in the invitation for bids, evaluation will be based on a determination of the lowest responsible, qualified and responsive bidder as set forth in this chapter.
(1) Evaluation criteria. Bids shall be evaluated by the Director of Purchasing, or the using agency and/or consultants if so designated by the Director, based on the requirements set forth in the invitation for bids, which may include criteria to determine acceptability such as inspection, testing, quality, workmanship, delivery and suitability for a particular purpose.
(2) Objectively measurable criteria. Those criteria that will affect the bid price and be considered in evaluation for award shall be objectively measurable, such as discounts, transportation costs, and total or life cycle costs.
(F) Correction or withdrawal of bids; cancellation of awards. Correction or withdrawal of inadvertently erroneous bids before or after award, or cancellation of awards of contracts or purchase orders based on the bid mistakes, shall be permitted with the approval, in writing, of the Director of Purchasing. The actions of the Director of Purchasing shall take into consideration preservation of the integrity of the competitive sealed bidding process under this chapter.
(1) Prohibited practices following bid opening. After bid opening, no changes in bid prices or other provisions of bids prejudicial to the interest of the city or fair competition shall be permitted.
(2) Written determination regarding cancellation of awards or contracts or purchase orders. Except as otherwise provided by regulation and/or policy, all decisions to permit the correction or withdrawal of bids, or cancel awards of contracts or purchase orders based on bid mistakes shall be supported by a written determination made by the Director of Purchasing.
(G) Award.
(1) Lowest responsible, qualified and responsive bidder. The contract or purchase order shall be awarded with reasonable promptness by written notice to the lowest responsible, qualified and responsive bidder whose bid meets the requirements and evaluation criteria, if any, set forth in the invitation for bids, or criteria established by the Director of Purchasing.
(a) In considering past performance of a bidder for the purpose of determining the "lowest responsible, qualified and responsive bidder", the Director of Purchasing shall evaluate the skill, ability and integrity of the bidder in terms of the bidder's fulfillment of past contractual obligations and the bidder's experience or lack of experience in delivering equipment, materials, supplies or contractual services of the size or amount for which bids have been solicited.
(b) The Director of Purchasing may reject any or all bids or parts of bids or bids for any one or more commodities or contractual services, when he shall deem that the public interest will be served.
(2) Construction project exception: permissible adjustment of the bid price. Unless otherwise prohibited by federal or state law, regulation or agency requirement, with respect to construction projects only, the Director of Purchasing is authorized to negotiate an adjustment of the bid price, including changes in the bid requirements, with the low responsible and responsive bidder, in order to bring the bid within the amount of available funds, in the event:
(a) All bids for a construction project exceed available funds;
(b) The low responsible and responsive bid does not exceed the funds by more than 10%; and
(c) The time or economic considerations preclude re-solicitation of work of a reduced scope.
(H) Multi-step competitive sealed bidding. When it is considered impractical to initially issue an invitation for bid, the Director of Purchasing may issue a request for information or request for proposals (requesting technical information) or request for qualifications (requesting the qualifications of bidders) as the first step(s) in the process, to be followed by an invitation for bids which may be limited to those bidders who have been qualified under the criteria set forth in the first solicitation.
(Ord. passed 6-20-2005)