18A:18A-4.5 Competitive contracting proposal solicitation.

49. Competitive contracting proposals shall be solicited in the following manner:

a. A notice of the availability of request for proposal documentation shall be published in an official newspaper of the board of education at least 20 days prior to the date established for the submission of proposals. The board of education shall promptly reply to any request by an interested vendor by providing a copy of the request for proposals. The board of education may charge a fee for the proposal documentation that shall not exceed $50.00 or the cost of reproducing the documentation, whichever is greater.

b. Each interested vendor shall submit a proposal which shall include all the information required by the request for proposals. Failure to meet the requirements of the request for proposals may result in the board of education disqualifying the vendor from further consideration. Under no circumstances shall the provisions of a proposal be subject to negotiation by the board of education.

c. If the board of education, at the time of solicitation, utilizes its own employees to provide the goods or perform the services, or both considered for competitive contracting, the board of education shall, at any time prior to, but no later than the time of solicitation for competitive contracting proposals, notify affected employees of the board of educations's intention to solicit competitive contracting proposals. Employees or their representatives shall be permitted to submit recommendations and proposals affecting wages, hours, and terms and conditions of employment in such a manner as to meet the goals of the competitive contract. If employees are represented by an organization that has negotiated a contract with the board of education, only the bargaining unit shall be authorized to submit such recommendations or proposals. When requested by such employees, the board of education shall provide such information regarding budgets and the costs of performing the services by such employees as may be available. Nothing shall prevent such employees from making recommendations that may include modifications to existing labor agreements in order to reduce such costs in lieu of award of a competitive contract, and agreements implementing such recommendations may be considered as cause for rejecting all other proposals.

d. The purchasing agent or counsel or school business administrator shall evaluate all proposals only in accordance with the methodology described in the request for proposals. After proposals have been evaluated, the purchasing agent or counsel or school business administrator shall prepare a report evaluating and recommending the award of a contract or contracts. The report shall list the names of all potential vendors who submitted a proposal and shall summarize the proposals of each vendor. The report shall rank vendors in order of evaluation, shall recommend the selection of a vendor or vendors, as appropriate, for a contract, shall be clear in the reasons why the vendor or vendors have been selected among others considered, and shall detail the terms, conditions, scope of services, fees, and other matters to be incorporated into a contract. The report shall be made available to the public at least 48 hours prior to the awarding of the contract, or when made available to the board of education, whichever is sooner. The board of education shall have the right to reject all proposals for any of the reasons set forth in N.J.S.18A:18A-22.

e. Award of a contract shall be made by resolution of the board of education within 60 days of the receipt of the proposals, except that the proposals of any vendors who consent thereto, may, at the request of the board of education, be held for consideration for such longer period as may be agreed.

f. The report prepared pursuant to subsection d. of this section shall become part of the public record and shall reflect the final action of the board of education. Contracts shall be executed pursuant to N.J.S.18A:18A-40.

g. The secretary of the board of education shall publish a notice in the official newspaper of the board of education summarizing the award of a contract, which shall include but not be limited to, the nature, duration, and amount of the contract, the name of the vendor and a statement that the resolution and contract are on file and available for public inspection in the office of the secretary of the board of education.

h. The Director of the Division of Local Government Services in the Department of Community Affairs, after consultation with the Commissioner of Education, may adopt additional rules and regulations, in accordance with the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), as may be necessary to effectuate the provisions of sections 45 through 49 of P.L.1999, c.440 (C.18A:18A-4.1 through C.18A:18A-4.5).

L.1999,c.440,s.49.