PROCUREMENT PRINCIPLES - BEST VALUE

801 CMR 21.00 empowers departments to procure commodities and services at the “best value” for the department and the Commonwealth. Departments may pursue procurements that achieve a balance of interests and offer the best “deal” or “value” by developing solicitation evaluation criteria that measure factors beyond cost. A procurement is considered in the best interest of the Commonwealth (providing the best value) when it balances the nine guiding principles of procurement.

A best value procurement:

• Supports the achievement of required performance outcomes;
• Generates the best quality and economic value;
• Is timely;
• Minimizes the burden on administrative resources;
• Expedites simple purchases;
• Allows flexibility in developing alternative procurement and business relationships;
• Encourages competition;
• Encourages the participation of quality vendors; and
• Supports Commonwealth and department procurement planning.

WHAT ABOUT “SOLE SOURCE” PROCUREMENTS?

“Sole source” procurements are unpopular with contractors, except the contractor being granted the sole source contract, and counterproductive for departments because they eliminate competition and the “pool” from which departments select quality contractors. This prevents qualified contractors, including small, minority or women owned businesses and businesses owned by individuals with disabilities from competing for Commonwealth contracts.

801 CMR 21.00 does not recognize sole source procurements. Although sole-source procurements have been successfully implemented in other procurement markets, past practice has indicated that this exception was subject to abuse, and was often used as a last resort, “last minute” method to procure contracts.

Sole source contracts do not promote the defined procurement principles. The publication of a Request for Response (RFR) is an excellent and quick way to solicit responses from potential qualified bidders who may not be immediately apparent or known to the department.

The concept of open and fair public competitive procurement is designed to provide a broad “opportunity” for bidders to compete for Commonwealth contracts. The only way to guarantee this opportunity is adequately furnished is to ensure that at least some method of competitive procurement is used to solicit a reasonable number of qualified bidders.

The goal of competitive procurement is to supply the department with a group or “pool” of the most qualified bidders to provide the best quality of contract commodities or services at the least or most reasonable cost to the Commonwealth. This is especially relevant given the competitive economic climate, the reduction of many department appropriations, and the Commonwealth’s commitment to the cost-effective provision of governmental services.

It is also foreseeable that certain bidders may be the only bidders that appear to be available or authorized to provide a commodity or service. Unique licensing restrictions or training requirements may limit the availability of qualified bidders.

For example, a contractor may sometimes restrict maintenance services on lease equipment to only licensed repairmen of the contractor. In other situations, the majority of qualified bidders reside out of state, and contracting for certain commodities or services would be inefficient or costly.

Even in these situations, where there appears to be no other qualified bidders, a department must attempt at least some form of verification. If the RFR elicits only one response the department may proceed with a contract. If additional qualified bidders respond to the RFR, then the basis for a competitive procurement is established. A new competitive procurement will be necessary at the end of this contract, since there is no guarantee that other equally or more qualified bidders have not entered the competitive marketplace since the contract was first awarded.

LISTING OF MINIMUM CONTENTS OF A REQUEST FOR RESPONSE (RFR)

This section identifies the minimum information constituting an RFR, including:

1. Description or purpose of the procurement

2. Acquisition method (fee-for-service, outright purchase, rental, term lease, Tax Exempt Lease-Purchase or license)

3. Request for single or multiple contractors

4. Use of a procurement by a single or multiple departments

5. Anticipated duration of contract including renewal options

6. Anticipated expenditures and compensation structures

7. Performance and contract specifications

8. Instructions for submission of responses

9. Deadline for responses and procurement calendar

10. RFR attachments/required specifications

Considerations that are not included in the RFR may not be used in the selection or ranking of a bidder. For example, if bidders will receive additional credit or will be ranked higher for offering a Boston regional office location, having certain national accreditation, or meeting the unique linguistic and cultural needs of the consumers, these criteria should be included as part of the RFR so that bidders know they have the opportunity for additional points or a higher rank if they offer these options. Conversely, if this information was not requested in the RFR, bidders who failed to offer these options may not be penalized.

APPENDICES

801 CMR 21.00: Procurement of Commodities or Services, Including Human and Social Services

808 CMR 1.00: Compliance, Reporting and Auditing for Human and Social Services

FORMS – CONTRACT

Request for Verification of Taxation Reporting Information

Commonwealth Terms and Conditions

Commonwealth Terms and Conditions for Human and Social Services

Standard Contract Form

Standard Contract Amendment Form

Purchase of Service Attachments

Change in Contractor Identity Form

Equipment/Services Confirmation Form

Contract Review Form

FORMS - RFR ATTACHMENTS/OTHER

Additional Environmentally Preferable Product Information

Affirmative Action Plan Form

Authorization for Electronic Funds Payment  Business Reference Form

Consultant Contractor Mandatory Submission Form

Contractor Authorized Signature Verification Form 

Northern Ireland Notice and Certification

RFR - Optional Specifications

RFR - Required Specifications

Sample Reference Review Form

Sample Response Evaluation Scorecard

Tax Compliance Certification Instructions

OTHER PROCUREMENT INFORMATION

Acquisition of Durable Commodities

Analyzing a Financial Statement

Environmentally Preferable Products Program

Guidelines on Material Changes in a Contractor’s Identity

Incidental Purchasing Quick Reference Guide

Performance Contracting

Procurement Groups

Procurement Group to Object Code Crosswalk

Purchase of Service Budget Attachments - Fiscal Specifications 

Purchase of Service (POS) Capital Items Procurement Policy

Request for Response (RFR) Checklist

Request for Response/Contract Duration

Use of a Procurement by a Single or Multiple Departments

The following is a listing of some of the most common items that should be contained in a procurement file (if applicable) at the completion of the process:

·         The four components of the contract:

·         Standard Contract Form (executed) - Original or certified copy with applicable attachments, amendments and other negotiated items. Note: if the record copy is on file at the Office of the Comptroller or at OSD, the procurement file must contain a copy. See Chapter 5 for further guidance in this area.

·         Copy of Commonwealth Terms and Conditions (applicable version) or verification that this form has been filed on the MMARS Vendor File.

·         Request for Response (including all applicable attachments). This requirement is met by either a hard copy of the RFR or, if the RFR was posted on Comm-PASS, a screen print of the Comm-PASS closed solicitations summary page verifying the location of the RFR (including the RFR Reference Number) on Comm-PASS.

·         Selected bidder’s response (including any negotiated items and additional conditions)

·         Notes, minutes or other related materials generated during the RFR development and selection process.

·         Record keeping related to purchase and use of Environmentally Preferable Products.

·         Copies of written questions and answers provided by the PMT.

·         List or sign-in sheet at bidder’s conference (if offered).

·         Notification list (if applicable).

·         Any correspondence to and from bidders distributed manually or posted on Comm-PASS.

·         Evaluation criteria and any amendments (with reasons for the amendments).

·         Responses from non-selected bidders.

·         Notes from bidder presentations and demonstrations.

·         Notification of contract execution.

·         Completed evaluation forms and any minutes or notes from evaluation committee meetings.

·         Contractor Authorized Signature Verification Form (large procurements).

·         Affirmative Action Plan or Form (large procurements).

·         Clarification documents (if required).

·         Reference checks.

·         Recommendation for selected bidder(s).

·         Requests for and any correspondence resulting from any debriefing requests.

WHAT ARE EVALUATION CRITERIA?

Evaluation criteria are the factors an agency uses to determine which of several competing proposals submitted in response to an RFP would best meet the agency’s needs. In establishing effective evaluation criteria, an agency must clearly identify the factors relevant to its selection of a contractor and then prioritize or weigh these factors according to their importance in satisfying the agency’s needs in the procurement. Together, the proper identification and weighing of the evaluation criteria will form an evaluation plan that will provide the agency with a common standard by which to judge the merit of competing proposals. This allows the agency to rank the proposals received while simultaneously providing offerors with a fair basis for comparison. As importantly, when evaluation criteria are properly selected and weighed, the proposals received will accurately reflect the offeror’s understanding of the solicitation and the offeror’s ability to deliver what the agency needs.