Procurement Development Application - AdDistrictSelection (2024)

Notice: All Letters of Response are required to be submitted via E-mail. The size limit for Letters of Response has been increased to 1MB. Please read the Response Procedure carefully!

The Department reserves the right to reject all Proposals and/or to waive minor irregularities.
The Department of Transportation anticipates seeking professional consultant services on the projects listed in this advertisem*nt. Consideration will be given to only those firms that are qualified pursuant to law and that have been prequalified by the Department to perform the indicated MAJOR Type(s) of Work. Prime Consultants must be prequalified in at least one or more of the MAJOR Types of Work specified in the advertisem*nt. A prequalified subconsultant(s) may be used to meet the other Types of Work specified in the advertisem*nt. Persons and firms used whether prime consultant or subconsultant, can only perform the work for which they are prequalified with the Department, in accordance with Rule Chapter 14-75, Florida Administrative Code. Consultants technically prequalified but without unlimited audit status, will only be considered as primes for projects less than $500,000. Any firm not prequalified by the Department and desiring consideration for these projects must submit a completeRequest for Prequalification Applicationto co.profserv@dot.state.fl.us by the advertised Letter of Response Deadline Date and Time. Please call 850-414-4597 if you have any questions on the prequalification process. A Department approved overhead audit (Technical Prequalification + Approved Unlimited Audit) is required for projects $500,000 or more. The technical work type(s) and audit must be approved by the shortlist date referenced in the advertisem*nt in order for the responding firm to be considered responsive for shortlisting.
CONSULTANT ELIGIBILITY:It is a basic tenet of the Department's contracting program that contracts are procured in a fair, open and competitive manner. The Department requires that Consultants representing the Department must be free of conflicting professional or personal interests. In order to prevent potential conflicts of interest, the Department has established guidelines to be followed by professional services Consultants. Please familiarize yourself with the requirements of Procedure No. 375-030-006, also known as: "Conflict of Interest Procedure for Department Contracts". By submitting a Letter of Response, the Consultant certifies that they are in compliance with Procedure No. 375-030-006. This procedure is available at the following link:Professional Services Publications Menu. In addition to the restrictions identified in Procedure No. 375-030-006, please be advised of the following prohibition: A consultant firm or its affiliate who was the Designer or Engineer of Record is precluded from bidding on the same project as the Construction contractor, or as a member of the construction team (subcontractor).
COMPLIANCE WITH NONDISCRIMINATION STATUTES AND AUTHORITIES: Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. § 2000d et seq., 78 stat. 252), (prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin); and 49 CFR Part 21; The Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970, (42 U.S.C. § 4601), (prohibits unfair treatment of persons displaced or whose property has been acquired because of Federal or Federal-aid programs and projects); Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1973, (23 U.S.C. § 324 et seq.), (prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex); Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, (29 U.S.C. § 794 et seq.), as amended, (prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability); and 49 CFR Part 27; The Age Discrimination Act of 1975, as amended, (42 U.S.C. § 6101 et seq.), (prohibits discrimination on the basis of age); Airport and Airway Improvement Act of 1982, (49 USC § 471, Section 47123), as amended, (prohibits discrimination based on race, creed, color, national origin, or sex); The Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987, (PL 100-209), (Broadened the scope, coverage and applicability of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, The Age Discrimination Act of 1975 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, by expanding the definition of the terms “programs or activities” to include all of the programs or activities of the Federal-aid recipients, sub-recipients and contractors, whether such programs or activities are Federally funded or not); Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability in the operation of public entities, public and private transportation systems, places of public accommodation, and certain testing entities (42 U.S.C. §§ 12131 -- 12189) as implemented by Department of Transportation regulations at 49 C.F.R. parts 37 and 38; The Federal Aviation Administration’s Non-discrimination statute (49 U.S.C. § 47123) (prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, and sex); Executive Order 12898, Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations, which ensures non-discrimination against minority populations by discouraging programs, policies, and activities with disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental effects on minority and low-income populations; Executive Order 13166, Improving Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency, and resulting agency guidance, national origin discrimination includes discrimination because of limited English proficiency (LEP). To ensure compliance with Title VI, you must take reasonable steps to ensure that LEP persons have meaningful access to your programs (70 Fed. Reg. at 74087 to 74100); Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, as amended, which prohibits you from discriminating because of sex in education programs or activities (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq).
FEDERAL DEBARMENT:By submitting a Letter of Response, the consultant certifies that no principal (which includes officers, directors, or executives) is presently suspended, proposed for debarment, declared ineligible or voluntarily excluded from participation on this transaction by any Federal Department or Agency.
PUBLIC ENTITY CRIMES:A person or affiliate who has been placed on the convicted vendor list following a conviction for a public entity crime may not submit a bid, proposal, or reply on a contract to provide any goods or services to a public entity; may not submit a bid, proposal, or reply on a contract with a public entity for the construction or repair of a public building or public work; may not submit bids, proposals, or replies on leases of real property to a public entity; may not be awarded or perform work as a contractor, supplier, subcontractor, or consultant under a contract with any public entity; and may not transact business any public entity in excess of the threshold amount provided in s. 287.017 for CATEGORY TWO($35,000) for a period of 36 months following the date of being placed on the convicted vendor list.
INSPECTOR GENERAL:The Vendor/Contractor agrees to comply with section 20.055(5), Florida Statutes, and to incorporate in all subcontracts the obligation to comply with section 20.055(5), Florida Statutes.
E-VERIFY:The Vendor/Contractor shall utilize the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's E-Verify system to verify the employment eligibility of all new employees hired by the Vendor/Contractor during the term of the contract and shall expressly require any subcontractors performing work or providing services pursuant to the state contract to likewise utilize the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's E-Verify system to verify the employment eligibility of all new employees hired by the subcontractor during the contract term.
SCRUTINIZED COMPANIES:Section 287.135, Florida Statutes, prohibits agencies from contracting with companies for goods or services of any amount if, at the time of contracting, the company is on the Scrutinized Companies that Boycott Israel List, created pursuant to Section 215.4725, Florida Statutes, or is engaged in a boycott of Israel. Section 287.135, Florida Statutes, also prohibits a company from bidding on, submitting a proposal for, or entering into a contract for goods or services of $1 million or more if the company is on either the Scrutinized Companies with Activities in Sudan List, or the Scrutinized Companies with Activities in the Iran Petroleum Energy Sector Lists which were created pursuant to section 215.473, Florida Statutes.

PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY INSURANCE:The Professional Liability Insurance minimum amount will be specified in the project advertisem*nt. For purposes of contracting, only Professional Liability Insurance from a company or companies authorized to do business in the State of Florida is acceptable. The selected prime consultant shall submit proof of Professional Liability Insurance coverage in the minimum threshold amount designated above, prior to contracting. The policy/ies and coverage described herein may be subject to a deductible. Pay all deductibles as required by the policy. The Department shall be notified in writing within ten days of any cancellation, notice of cancellation, lapse, renewal, or proposed change to any policy or coverage described herein. The Department’s approval or failure to disapprove any policy/ies, coverage, or ACORD Certificates shall not relieve or excuse any obligation to procure and maintain the insurance required herein, nor serve as a waiver of any rights or defenses the Department may have. No policy/ies or coverage described herein may contain or be subject to a Retention or a Self-Insured Retention. A commitment letter from a financial institution is also not acceptable for purposes of contracting.
SELECTION METHOD:The listed projects are procured in accordance with the processes detailed in the Rule Chapter 14-75, Florida Administrative Code, and the Professional Services Procurement Manual, Topic Number 375-030-003. Some or all of the responding firms may be requested to provide Written Technical Proposals, Oral Presentations, Interviews, or Expanded Letters of Response, for the ranking process. Unless otherwise noted in the specific advertisem*nt, factors considered by the Project Manager, Department designee, or Technical Review Committee in developing the longlist and shortlist recommendation (where applicable) include:
(A) Past performance evaluations received by the Consultant on current and previous Department projects, or other performance data included by the Consultant in the LOR or Letter of Qualification, and work experience including specialized experience.
(B) Staff capabilities.
(C) Local presence- The location of the Consultant in relation to the work to be performed, for projects where Consultant proximity to project location is pertinent and adds value to the quality and efficiency of the project (e.g., CEI project). If a Consultant from outside of the local area indicates that it will satisfy the criteria in some manner, such as establishing a local office, that commitment shall be considered to have satisfied the local presence criteria. However, local preferences, i.e., State or local requirements that limit competition, are not allowed.
(D) Any restrictions placed on the Consultant by the prequalification evaluator.
(E) Availability of proposed consultant personnel.
(F) Technical approach, innovation, and any other information contained in the LOR or Letter of Qualification

Factors to be considered by the Selection Committee when making the shortlist decision include but are not limited to the following:
(A) Past performance evaluations received by the Consultant on current and previous Departmental projects, or other performance data included by the Consultant in the LOR/Letter of Qualification/Expanded Letter of Response as applicable, and work experience including specialized experience.
(B) The workload of each Consultant, as evidenced by the number of similar projects the Consultant is shortlisted on that have not had a final selection, as well as the residual fees remaining to be paid to the Consultants on active agreements.
(C) Availability of proposed Consultant personnel.
(D) Balancing the needs of the project to the abilities of the Consultants.
(E) The Consultant's working relationship/experience with the Department on previous projects.
(F) The general and specific information used to longlist the Consultants (i.e., prequalification restrictions, etc.).
(G) Proposed subconsultant teaming (also applicable for projects advertised with DBE and Small Business under-utilized goals).
(H) Detailed Consultant Analysis Report, where available.
After ranking of the consultants the contract fee will be negotiated in accordance with Section 287.055 Florida Statutes. Funding on all projects is subject to legislative approval. Registration in MyFloridaMarketPlace is required prior to contracting. Note: The shortlist and final selection meeting dates and times are provided within the advertisem*nt. All public meetings will be held in the District headquarters or Central Office headquarters unless otherwise noted. People who require special accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act should contact the advertisem*nt contact at least 48 hours prior to the meeting.Changes to meeting dates and times will be updated under theAll Advertisem*ntslink. The agenda for each public meeting is as follows: a) Opening Remarks (approx. 3 minutes); b) Public Input (minimum 15 minutes will be allotted); c) Department business; d) Closing. For more information, contact the designated responsible office. In order to ensure a fair, competitive and open process, once a project is advertised under Current Advertisem*nts, all communications between interested firms and the Department must be directed to the appropriate Professional Services Office. The advertisem*nt contact is referenced in the Respond To: section of each advertisem*nt. Respondents to this solicitation or persons acting on their behalf may not contact, between the release of the solicitation and the end of the 72-hour period following the agency posting the notice of intended award, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and state holidays, any employee or officer of the executive or legislative branch concerning any aspect of this solicitation, except in writing to the procurement officer or as provided in the solicitation documents. Violation of this provision may be grounds for rejecting a response.
NEGOTIATION:All FDOT Professional Services contract negotiations are subject to the guidance provided in the FDOT Negotiation Handbook.
CONTRACT:If awarded, the consultant will be expected to adhere to contract requirements referenced in the standard professional services agreement terms available at the followinglink.
RESPONSE PROCEDURE:Qualified consultants are encouraged to submit a Letter of Response, for each project in which they are interested, to the indicated requesting unit by 5:00 PM Eastern time on the date indicated as the Response Deadline.Letters of Response will be submitted as an attachment to an E-mail, submitted electronically to the indicated response address. The Standard FDOT Professional ServicesLetter of Response form, Form No.375-030-22must be completed and submitted to the indicated response e-mail address. Consultants, be advised that you are responsible for downloading the latest version of the Letter of Response Form when responding to the advertisem*nt. The 4/18 version must be used when responding to the advertisem*nt. The form will be a single file not to exceed 1MB in size in Adobe PDF format (unzipped), and the form completed in its entirety will not exceed the six 8½ x 11 pages provided in the form unless otherwise indicated in the advertisem*nt. The content of the Letter cannot go beyond Page 3 of the form. Pages 4, 5, and 6 of the form are reserved for the tables listing prime and subconsultants by work type. Consultants must not add additional pages to the form. Formatting requirements consist of a font size of 11, with ½ inch margins. Please be aware that all font (including graphics, tables, and captions on photos) must be standard arial narrow, 11 point font, single line spacing with no modification of font or spacing allowed. Please retain the source document as it may be requested at a later date within the procurement process, for audit purposes. The Department reserves the right to periodically sample letters of response to ensure compliance with format submittal requirements. All other advertisem*nt submittal requirements will be verified with each Letter submittal. Failure to comply with the submittal requirements may cause the Letter of Response to be considered non-responsive. Consultants should receive an e-mailed Return Receipt acknowledgement within 2 hours of submittal to the indicated response address. If a Return Receipt acknowledgement is not received by the Consultant, please call the appropriate Professional Services Office (within normal business hours) to verify the Department's receipt of your e-mailed Letter of Response. The advertisem*nt contact is referenced in the Respond To: section of each advertisem*nt. Letters of Response shall not contain links to other web pages since doing so would introduce additional information beyond the page limit of the Letter of Response submittals. Inclusion of links to other web pages may cause your submittal to be found non-responsive. The Letter of Response should, at a minimum, include the following information:

The Standard FDOTLetter of Qualification form, Form No.375-030-24is required to be submitted to the indicated response e-mail. Consultants, be advised that you are responsible for downloading the latest version of theLetter of Qualification form, Form No.375-030-24when responding to the advertisem*nt. The 4/18 version must be used when responding to this ad.

The Standard FDOTLetter of Qualification form, Form No.375-030-24completed in its entirety must not exceed the six 8½ x 11 pages provided in the form. The content of the Letter cannot go beyond Page 3 of the form. Pages 4, 5, and 6 of the form are reserved for the tables listing prime and subconsultants prequalification by work type. Additional pages must not be added to the form. The Letter of Qualification shall be submitted as a single electronic file not to exceed 1MB in size in Adobe PDF format (unzipped). Format requirement is a font size of 11, with ½ inch margins. Failure to comply with the submittal requirements shall cause the Letter of Qualification to be considered non-responsive.

If the project advertisem*nt states that selection is fromExpanded Letters of Response, please submit the Expanded Letter of Response form, Form No.375-030-23in lieu of the Letter of Qualification Form. If there are questions regarding submittal, please contact the advertisem*nt contact.

2.Reserved. (Standard note not used).

3.Reserved. (Standard note not used).

4.Selection will be made from the Standard FDOTExpanded Letters of Response form, Form No.375-030-23. Consultants, be advised that you are responsible for downloading the latest version of the Expanded Letter of Response Form when responding to the advertisem*nt. The 4/18 version must be used when responding to this ad. The Standard FDOT Expanded Letters of Response form completed in its entirety must not exceed the nine 8½ x 11 pages provided in the form. The content of the Letter cannot go beyond Page 6 of the form. Pages 7, 8, and 9 of the form are reserved for the tables listing prime and subconsultants by work type. Consultants must not add additional pages to the form. Consultant shall also submit resumes which are restricted to 2 pages each and an organization chart or staffing chart (can be either 8-1/2x11 or 11x17, at the discretion of the Consultant). Construction Training and Qualification Program (CTQP) printouts may also be submitted, if applicable. Staff hours on summary sheet (one sheet showing the hours of prime and all subs) will be submitted where applicable.
Examples of acceptable and unacceptable content for organization charts, staffing charts, staff hour estimate charts, and a link to the Construction Training and Qualification Program (CTQP) system can be found at thissubmittal examples link. Organization, staffing, or staff hour estimate charts containing extra narrative content (not in conformance with examples) will be deemed unacceptable, at the sole discretion of the Procurement Office, and will not be passed on to the Technical Review Committee for review and evaluation with the other submittals. Prime Consultant should submit:

- Professional Services Commitment Form (375-030-83)
- Truth In Negotiation Certification (375-030-30)
- Certification Regarding Debarment, Suspension, Ineligibility and Voluntary Exclusion for Federal Aid Contracts (375-030-32)
- Certification for Disclosure of Lobbying (375-030-33)
- Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (375-030-34)
- Vendor Certification Regarding Scrutinized Companies Lists (375-030-60)
- E-Verify (375-031-06)

All submittals except organization chart, staffing chart, other required forms, and certifications shall adhere to a font size of 11 with 1/2 inch margins.The Expanded Letter of Response file size is not restricted to 1MB, however Consultants are advised that the Expanded Letter of Response Form electronic submittal should not exceed FDOT’s internal server file size restriction of 15 MB. Zipped email attachments are NOT acceptable, and will be disabled by FDOT’s email server due to security reasons. Failure to comply with the submittal requirements may cause the Expanded Letter of Response to be considered non-responsive.

After submittal of Letters and up through contract execution, proposed subconsultants/ subcontractors/ sub-vendors, teaming arrangements, or key staff of the Consultant cannot be changed or substituted except in instances of force majeure or in the event of circ*mstances that cannot reasonably be anticipated and/or are beyond the control of the prime consultant. In such cases, changes or substitutions are subject to the discretion of the Department, and cannot be made without written approval of the Department. All such requests made during the contract procurement must be routed through PSU. After contract execution, subconconsultant/ subcontractor/sub-vendor, teaming arrangement, or key staff changes/substitutions require pre-approval of the Department’s Project Manager before implementing. All qualification/certification requirements of the original advertisem*nt shall govern, where applicable.

5.Reserved. (Standard note not used).

6.Reserved. (Standard note not used).

7.This project has been reserved for competition among only small businesses in accordance with theDepartment's Business Development Initiative (BDI) Program. Letter submittals for this project will only be accepted from firms that meet the definition of a small business set forth by section 337.027, Florida Statutes. The prime consultant submitting a Letter must be a qualified professional services firm and meet the small business definition of section 337.027, Florida Statutes at the time of submittal of the Letter and must maintain this status as a small business through contract execution. All subconsultants utilized for the project, including lower-tier and non-professional services firms, must also be a small business pursuant to section 337.027, Florida Statutes at the time of submittal of the Letter and must also maintain this status as a small business through contract execution. Contract execution is contingent upon firms maintaining small business status through contract execution. To ensure regulatory compliance and accountability for the BDI Program, firms agree to furnish any pertinent information requested by the Department to verify the statements in the Small Business Affidavit. The small business status of the prime and subs may be subject to audit of financial documents to confirm small business status prior to BDI contract execution. Small business certification may be rescinded immediately upon the determination that a firm is no longer eligible per the small business definition. Note: Any professional services consultant firm prequalified underRule 14-75, F.A.C., that is shown as a Small Business on theProfessional Services Prequalified Small Business Report(please check Small Business column) is not required to supply theSmall Business AffidavitForm with the Letter. Any non-professional services subconsultant firm that is shown as a Small Business on theSmall Business listingfor Construction, Maintenance and Other Contractual Services Firmsis not required to supply theSmall Business AffidavitForm with the Letter.

SMALL BUSINESS ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA:

8.Under-Utilization Goal for DBEs and Small Businesses - The goal of the Department’s Under-Utilization strategy is to encourage and promote use of Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBE) and Small Businesses in areas of work where they have been under-used.Under-Utilizationis defined by FDOT as 25% or less utilization level in a Work Group, which may vary by district. The specific Under-Utilized Work Groups are identified in the advertisem*nt. Consultants are strongly encouraged to propose a DBE or Small Business to perform services for each Under-Utilized Work Group identified in the advertisem*nt. DBEs or Small Businesses can be proposed at either the Prime or Sub-level for the Under-Utilized Work Group(s). Use of Under-Utilized DBEs or Small Businesses for Consultant teaming is a shortlist consideration factor for projects referencing this Standard Note. Consultants are requested to indicate your firm's proposed use of DBEs and/or Small Business primes or subconsultants to meet Under-Utilization goals on the table within the Professional Services Letter of Response form (as designated in the advertisem*nt) by checking the box under the Under-Utilization (UU) column. Failure to list DBEs and/or Small Business prime or subconsultants on the response form shall indicate no proposed utilization. Please refer to the advertisem*nt for other submittal directions. Reports are available at the following locations to validate status of firms as Small Businesses and DBEs:

DBE listing for Professional Services

Small Business listing for Professional Services

Additionally, firms will submit theProfessional Services Commitment formas required by the advertisem*nt when selecting from Expanded Letters of Response, otherwise it will be required with the Request for Proposal.

9. It is the policy of FDOT to encourage the participation of small businesses and disadvantaged business enterprises ("DBE") in all facets of the business activities of FDOT, consistent with applicable laws and regulations. FDOT has established an aspiration goal of 10.67% DBE usage and an additional 3% non-DBE Small Business usage for the subject Project. Firms proposing for this Project shall aspire to have 10.67% or more of the total contract costs performed by DBEs, and an additional three percent (3%) or more of the total contract costs performed by non-DBE small businesses. Although not a contract requirement, FDOT believes that the aforementioned aspiration goal can realistically be achieved based on current availability of DBEs and small businesses. FDOT further believes that the 13.67% overall goal can be achieved through race neutral means, using standard competitive procurement processes. Pursuant to the provisions of Section 339.0805, Florida Statutes, and Rule 14.78.005, Florida Administrative Code, FDOT has adopted rules to provide certified DBEs opportunities to participate in the business activities of FDOT as vendors, contractors, subcontractors, and consultants. FDOT has adopted the DBE definition set forth in Code 49 of Federal Regulations Section 26.5.

The Department's DBE directory may be found at the following website:Equal Opportunity Office Business Directory.

Firms agree to apply their best efforts to utilize qualified non-DBE small businesses as vendors, contractors, subcontractors, and consultants for the Project. Qualifications for small businesses may be found at the following website:Equal Opportunity Office Size Standards

Firms will submit theProfessional Services Commitment formas required by the advertisem*nt when selecting from Expanded Letters of Response, otherwise it will be required with the Request for Proposal.

DBE listing for Professional Services (Check DBE & Small Business column for status):Professional Services Report

Non-DBE Small Business listing for Professional Services (Check DBE & Small Business column for status):Professional Services Reports

10.This contract will require field office personnel; therefore, all firms performing inspection services must utilize CEI field office rates.

11.When assigned to facilities testing for 6 months or more, the field office rate will be used.