BILL REQ. #: H-1656.1
State of Washington | 62nd Legislature | 2011 Regular Session |
Read first time 02/15/11. Referred to Committee on State Government & Tribal Affairs.
AN ACT Relating to the alternative subcontractor selection process; and amending RCW 39.10.385.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1 RCW 39.10.385 and 2010 c 163 s 1 are each amended to read
as follows:
As an alternative to the subcontractor selection process outlined
in RCW 39.10.380, a general contractor/construction manager may, with
the approval of the public body, select a mechanical subcontractor, an
electrical subcontractor, or both, using the process outlined in this
section. This alternative selection process may only be used when the
anticipated value of the subcontract will exceed three million dollars.
When using the alternative selection process, the general
contractor/construction manager should select the subcontractor early
in the life of the public works project.
(1) In order to use this alternative selection process, the general
contractor/construction manager and the public body must determine that
it is in the best interest of the public. In making this determination
the general contractor/construction manager and the public body must:
(a) Publish a notice of intent to use this alternative selection
process in a legal newspaper published in or as near as possible to
that part of the county where the public work will be constructed.
Notice must be published at least fourteen calendar days before
conducting a public hearing. The notice must include the date, time,
and location of the hearing; a statement justifying the basis and need
for the alternative selection process; and how interested parties may,
prior to the hearing, obtain the evaluation criteria and applicable
weight given to each criteria that will be used for evaluation;
(b) Conduct a hearing and provide an opportunity for any interested
party to submit written and verbal comments regarding the justification
for using this selection process, the evaluation criteria, and weights
for each criteria;
(c) After the public hearing, consider the written and verbal
comments received and determine if using this alternative selection
process is in the best interests of the public; and
(d) Issue a written final determination to all interested parties.
All protests of the decision to use the alternative selection process
must be in writing and submitted to the public body within seven
calendar days of the final determination. Any modifications to the
criteria and weights based on comments received during the public
hearing process must be included in the final determination.
(2) Contracts for the services of a subcontractor under this
section must be awarded through a competitive process requiring a
public solicitation of proposals. Notice of the public solicitation of
proposals must be provided to the office of minority and women's
business enterprises. The public solicitation of proposals must
include:
(a) A description of the project, including programmatic,
performance, and technical requirements and specifications when
available;
(b) The reasons for using the alternative selection process;
(c) A description of the minimum qualifications required of the
firm;
(d) A description of the process used to evaluate qualifications
and proposals, including evaluation factors and the relative weight of
factors;
(e) The form of the contract, including any contract for
preconstruction services, to be awarded;
(f) The estimated maximum allowable subcontract cost; and
(g) The bid instructions to be used by the finalists.
(3) Evaluation factors for selection of the subcontractor must
include, but not be limited to:
(a) Ability of the firm's professional personnel;
(b) The firm's past performance on similar projects;
(c) The firm's ability to meet time and budget requirements;
(d) The scope of work the firm proposes to perform with its own
forces and its ability to perform that work;
(e) The firm's plan for outreach to minority and women-owned
businesses;
(f) The firm's proximity to the project location;
(g) The firm's capacity to successfully complete the project;
(h) The firm's approach to executing the project;
(i) The firm's approach to safety on the project;
(j) The firm's safety history; and
(k) If the firm is selected as one of the most qualified finalists,
the firm's fee and cost proposal.
(4) Any bidder wishing to protest the qualified finalist bidders
selection must submit written notice to the general
contractor/construction manager and public body of its protest no later
than two full business days following receipt of written notice of the
decision. If the general contractor/construction manager and the
public body receive a written protest, the general
contractor/construction manager cannot proceed to the next phase of the
selection process until the public body has reviewed the grounds for
the protest and issued a written final determination on the protest to
all interested parties.
(5) The general contractor/construction manager shall establish a
committee to evaluate the proposals. At least one representative from
the public body shall serve on the committee. Final proposals,
including sealed bids for the percent fee on the estimated maximum
allowable subcontract cost, and the fixed amount for the subcontract
general conditions work specified in the request for proposal, will be
requested from the most qualified firms. The general
contractor/construction manager and the public body shall select the
firm submitting the highest scored final proposal using the evaluation
factors and the relative weight of factors identified in the
solicitation of proposals. The scoring of the nonprice factors must be
made available at the opening of the fee and cost proposals. The
general contractor/construction manager may not evaluate or disqualify
a proposal based on the terms of a collective bargaining agreement.
(((5))) (6) If the general contractor/construction manager is
unable to negotiate a satisfactory maximum allowable subcontract cost
with the firm selected deemed by public body and the general
contractor/construction manager to be fair, reasonable, and within the
available funds, negotiations with that firm must be formally
terminated and the general contractor/construction manager may
negotiate with the next highest scored firm until an agreement is
reached or the process is terminated.
(((6))) (7) If the general contractor/construction manager and the
public body receive((s)) a written protest from a finalist bidder,
((it)) the general contractor/construction manager may not execute a
contract for the subject work with anyone other than the protesting
bidder, without first providing at least two full business days'
written notice to all bidders of the intent to execute a contract for
the subcontract bid package. The protesting bidder must submit written
notice to the general contractor/construction manager and the public
body of its protest no later than two full business days following the
bid opening. If the general contractor/construction manager and the
public body receive a written protest, the general
contractor/construction manager cannot execute a contract for the
subcontractor bid package until the public body has reviewed the
grounds for the protest and issued a written final determination on the
protest to all interested parties.
(((7))) (8) With the approval of the public body, the general
contractor/construction manager may contract with the selected firm to
provide services during the design phase that may include life-cycle
cost design considerations, value engineering, scheduling, cost
estimating, constructability, alternative construction options for cost
savings, and sequencing of work; and to act as the mechanical or
electrical subcontractor during the construction phase.
(((8))) (9) The maximum allowable subcontract cost must be used to
establish a total subcontract cost for purposes of a performance and
payment bond. Total subcontract cost means the fixed amount for the
detailed specified general conditions work, the negotiated maximum
allowable subcontract cost, and the percent fee on the negotiated
maximum allowable subcontract cost. Maximum allowable subcontract cost
means the maximum cost to complete the work specified for the
subcontract, including the estimated cost of work to be performed by
the subcontractor's own forces, a percentage for risk contingency,
negotiated support services, and approved change orders. The maximum
allowable subcontract cost must be negotiated between the general
contractor/construction manager and the selected firm when the
construction documents and specifications are at least ninety percent
complete. Final agreement on the maximum allowable subcontract cost is
subject to the approval of the public body.
(((9))) (10) If the work of the mechanical contractor or electrical
contractor is completed for less than the maximum allowable subcontract
cost, any savings not otherwise negotiated as part of an incentive
clause becomes part of the risk contingency included in the general
contractor/construction manager's maximum allowable construction cost.
If the work of the mechanical contractor or the electrical contractor
is completed for more than the maximum allowable subcontract cost, the
additional cost is the responsibility of that subcontractor. An
independent audit, paid for by the public body, must be conducted upon
completion of the contract to confirm the proper accrual of costs as
outlined in the contract.
(((10))) (11) A mechanical or electrical contractor selected under
this section may perform work with its own forces. In the event it
elects to subcontract some of its work, it must select a subcontractor
utilizing the procedure outlined in RCW 39.10.380.