TIPS FOR GOVERNMENT BIDDINGOffice of Procurement Services

June 11, 2020Rfalanga@LakeCountyFL.gov

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OUTLINE• Government Procurement Objectives• Vendor Requirements• Responding to Solicitations / Best Practices• Contract Relations• Communication• How to Start• Question & Answer Period

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GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT OBJECTIVES

• Procurement departments work with internal divisions to provide clear, concise, and reasonable specifications or scopes of work while preventing restriction of competition.

• Vendors are an essential element in meeting any community’s needs.• A key goal of the purchasing function is to enable full and open

competition.• The best pricing, the best value, and the fairest process occur with

more vendors interested in government contracts.

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VENDOR REQUIREMENTS

• Registered as a vendor in the State of Florida (www.sunbiz.org).• Proper Professional Licenses.• Business Tax Receipt (not required for Lake County solicitations).• Insurance - specific to each solicitation.• Bonds, if required.

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RESPONDING TO SOLICITATIONS• Search government websites for services offered.

• Look for when contracts expire, scope of work, contacts, current pay structure.• Solicitations can be formal or informal, depending on dollar amount or

complexity of the project.• Use caution when using clearing houses such as DemandStar, BidSync, BidNet.

• BID – Some bids close without any submittals.• Read the solicitation documents thoroughly and carefully. Follow all

instructions.• Start submittal package right away. • Evaluation criteria is published. • Search the procurement website for existing or past contracts for the same solicitation.• Provide the number of copies required by the solicitation.• Responses are sealed and submitted by a specified date and time.

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RESPONDING TO SOLICITATIONS• Confirm with insurance agent any costs to meet requirements.

• Vendors must have the capability to obtain the insurance required in the solicitation.• Ask for a sample Certificate Of Insurance (COI) • It is not required to purchase additional insurance to submit a bid/proposal, simply

provide proof of insurability. • Vendor shall provide proof of insurance after recommendation of award.

• If an attorney will be involved in contracting, have them review early on.• Contact the designated procurement representative and ask for needed

clarifications or explanations.• No deviations from the stated terms or conditions are allowed.• There’s always a question and answer period – ask questions and raise any concerns.

• Attend pre-bid meetings.• React to any addenda issued.

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RESPONDING TO SOLICITATIONS• LATE BIDS/PROPOSALS CAN NOT BE ACCEPTED. • Submit proposal prior to closing date/time.

• Complete any forms provided in the solicitation.• Include all supporting documents or samples requested.• Confirm all documents requiring a signature are signed by an authorized agent for

the company.• Contracting Officers can confirm documentation questions.

• Quote pricing that covers all contractual requirements. • Price items using units of measure stipulated in the solicitation. If the pricing

section is not clear, contact the procurement representative for clarification.• Mathematical errors may deem submittals non-responsive. EACH cost cell may

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RESPONDING TO SOLICITATIONS• Submittals are considered public record under the Florida Sunshine Law.• Solicitations are opened in a public forum.

• Pricing may or may not be released. • All proposals are held for 30 days or until posting of the recommendation of award.

• Governments may have a local preference policy.• Some solicitations are exempt from the policy as they are prohibited by certain funding

sources.

• Collaboration as a prime and subcontractor is encouraged, collusion is not and is illegal.

• Purchasing cards (PCards – Mastercard, Visa) are widely used for small non-recurring purchases; advise departments if credit cards are accepted.

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CONTRACT RELATIONS

• Understand the terms of the contract and follow the contract.• Awarded vendors work directly with the County Project Manager

assigned.• Issues or concerns must be addressed through the County Project

Manager as soon as possible.• Contact the Contracting Officer if issue cannot be resolved.• Piggybacking of contracts is a common practice. Entities can utilize contracts for

the purchase of goods and services if the same is being purchased and the contract has been awarded through acceptable competitive procedures.

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COMMUNICATION SKILLS

• Direct bid questions to Procurement, not the departments.• Governments have websites. Look for the Procurement or Purchasing

contact list. Search the site for services of interest. Email or call to discuss services available.

• Vendors should attend pre-bid conferences and ask questions.• Notate any issues with the solicitation, contact the contracting officer

assigned.• Staff contact information is on the website. Use it.

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GETTING STARTED

• Register using the Vendor Registration System: • Visit LakeCountyFL.gov• click on Doing Business with Lake County• click on Register as a Vendor

• Current registrants should verify information is up-to-date (address, contact, & commodity codes).

• Registration is required to bid but not a guarantee of work.

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CONCLUSION

• The purpose of this presentation is to promote full and open competition and encourage maximum vendor participation in government purchasing programs. Governments need quality Vendors in order to provide services citizens desire. Topics discussed:

• Government procurement objectives• Vendor requirements• Responding to Solicitations/ Best practices• Contract relations• Communications• How to start

• Lake County’s Procurement Services Department is here to help. Call or email.

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QUESTION & ANSWER SESSION

What questions do you have?Mission Statement:• The Office of Procurement Services supports Lake County departments and

agencies in obtaining the commodities and services required to accomplish goals and objectives at the best value in a timely, ethical, and professional manner.

RFalanga@LakeCountyFL.gov

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QUESTIONNAIRESurvey for Small Businesses that can provide Transit Services with commodities and services such as: operations, janitorial, construction of bus stops, advertising, graphics, towing, mechanical services, fleet parts, uniforms, safety equipment, and others.

Do you know the qualifications for being certified as a Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE)? Click here to see qualification requirements

Do you consider yourself a DBE? Are you a Certified DBE?

Do you know how to get certified as a DBE? List of Certifying Agencies Are you willing to review Office of Transit Services DBE plan? Submit comments to rfalanga@lakecountyfl.gov .

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