Seacoast NH Emergency Interconnection Study Update

New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services PO Box 95, Concord, NH 03302-0095 RFQL DES 2024-02 www.des.nh.gov | (603) 271-3503 6 of 10 Seacoast NH Emergency Interconnection Study Update Consultants who are ineligible to bid on submittals, bids or quotes issued by the Department of Administrative Services, Division of Procurement and Support Services pursuant to the provisions of RSA 21-I:11-c shall not be considered eligible for an award under this submittal. B. Qualification Inquiries All inquiries concerning this RFQ, including but not limited to, requests for clarifications, questions, and any changes to the RFQ, shall be submitted via email to Jennifer Mates, P.E., Jennifer.S.Mates@des.nh.gov with a subject line of: INQUIRY OF RFQL DES 2024-02 PWS Seacoast NH Emergency Interconnection Study Update: Inquiries must be received by the Agencys

RFQ Points of Contact no later than the conclusion of the Proposer Inquiry Period (see Schedule of Events section, herein). Inquiries received later than the conclusion of the Proposer Inquiry Period shall not be considered properly submitted and may not be considered. The Agency intends to issue official responses to properly submitted inquiries on or before the date specified in the Schedule section, herein; however, this date is subject to change at the Agencys discretion. The Agency may consolidate and/or paraphrase questions for sufficiency and clarity. The Agency may, at its discretion, amend this RFQ on its own initiative or in response to issues raised by inquiries, as it deems appropriate. Oral statements, representations, clarifications, or modifications concerning the RFQ shall not be binding upon the Agency. Official responses by the Agency will be made only in writing by the process described above. Vendors shall be responsible for reviewing the most updated information related to this RFQ before submitting a Qualification. C. Restriction of Contact with Agency Employees From the date of release of this RFQ until an award is made and announced regarding the selection of a Proposer, all communication with personnel employed by or under contract with the Agency regarding this RFQ is forbidden unless first approved by the RFQ Points of Contact listed in the Qualification Inquiries section, herein. Agency employees have been directed not to hold conferences and/or discussions concerning this RFQ with any potential contractor during the selection process, unless otherwise authorized by the RFQ Points of Contact. Proposers may be disqualified for violating this restriction on communications. D. Validity of Qualification Qualifications must be valid for one hundred and eighty (180) days following the deadline for submission of Qualifications in Schedule of Events, or until the Effective Date of any resulting Contract, whichever is later. SECTION 5 - Content and Requirements for a Qualification Submittals shall follow the below format and provide the required information set forth below. Digital copies are required. Paper submittals are not required but if submitting a hard copy, please do not submit it in a plastic binder or any other unnecessary materials. A. Table of Contents. B. Firm Background: One page maximum related to the services and background of the firm. C. Contact Information: The name, phone number and email address of the contact to which questions about the submittal may be directed and updates about the review process provided. D. Personnel & Qualifications: Include qualifications and involvement of the project manager and key personnel, as well as the current depth of technical expertise in firm. E. Previous Work: References and examples for similar scope of work. F. Subcontractors: Should a Consultant wish to subcontract portions of this work, subcontractor contact information and qualifications shall be included in the submittal. G. Project Approach: Submittals must include a concise problem statement and brief narrative to explain the objective(s) of the project and describe these activities. SECTION 6 Evaluation of Qualifications A. Criteria for Evaluation and Scoring http://www.des.nh.gov/ tel:+603-271-3503 mailto:Jennifer.S.Mates@des.nh.gov New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services PO Box 95, Concord, NH 03302-0095 RFQL DES 2024-02 www.des.nh.gov | (603) 271-3503 7 of 10 Seacoast NH Emergency Interconnection Study Update If the Agency, determines to make an award based on these evaluations, the Agency will notify the selected Consultants(s). Should the Agency be unable to reach agreement with the selected Consultant(s) during Contract discussions, the Agency may then undertake Contract discussions with the next preferred Consultant and so on, or the Agency may reject all submittals, cancel this RFQ, or solicit new Qualification submittals under a new acquisition process. A selection committee consisting of NHDES representatives will be used to evaluate the submitted Qualifications based on the following criteria: CATEGORIES POINTS 1. Capability to perform required services and qualifications of key personnel. 25 2. Extent of experience and past performances on similar projects. 25 3. Project understanding, design approach, and methodology. 40 4. Proposed schedule and approach to perform required services in a timely manner. 10 TOTAL POTENTIAL MAXIMUM POINTS AWARDED 100 The Agency will select a Consultant based upon the criteria and standards contained in this RFQ and from applying the weighting in this section. Interviews and reference checks, to the extent they are utilized by the Agency, will be used to refine and finalize scores. B. Planned Evaluations The Agency plans to use the following process: Initial screening to ensure that the Qualifications are in compliance with submission requirements. Preliminary evaluation of the Qualifications. Interviews (if necessary). Final Evaluation of Technical Qualifications and scoring. Select the highest scoring Consultant(s) and begin contract negotiation. C. Initial Screening The Agency will conduct an initial screening step to verify Proposer compliance with the technical submission requirements set forth in the RFQ and the minimum content set forth in Section 5 of this RFQ. The Agency may waive or offer a limited opportunity to cure immaterial deviations from the RFQ requirements if it is determined to be in the best interest of the State. D. Preliminary Technical Scoring of Qualifications The Agency will establish an evaluation team to initially score the Technical Qualifications. This evaluation team will review the technical Qualifications and give a preliminary score to the technical Qualifications under the guidelines set forth in Section 6. E. Interviews If the Agency determines that it is appropriate, Consultants may be invited to an interview. The Agency retains the sole discretion to determine whether to conduct interviews, with which Consultants, and the number of interviews. Consultants are advised that the Agency may decide to conduct interviews with less than all responsive Consultants. The purpose of interviews and product demonstrations is to clarify and expound upon information provided in the written Qualifications. Consultants are prohibited from altering the basic substance of their Qualifications during the interviews. The Agency may ask the Consultant to provide written clarifications of elements in their Technical Qualification regardless of whether it intends to conduct Oral Interviews. Information gained from interviews and product demonstrations will be used to refine technical review scores assigned from the initial review of the Qualifications. F. Final Technical Scoring of Qualifications Following Interviews, Reference Checks (if appropriate) and/or review of written clarifications of Qualifications requested by the Agency, the evaluation team will determine a final score for each Technical Qualification. G. Final Selection http://www.des.nh.gov/ tel:+603-271-3503 New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services PO Box 95, Concord, NH 03302-0095 RFQL DES 2024-02 www.des.nh.gov | (603) 271-3503 8 of 10 Seacoast NH Emergency Interconnection Study Update The Agency will conduct a final selection based on the final evaluation of the initial Qualifications and begin contract negotiations with the selected Proposer(s). H. Rights of the Agency in Accepting and Evaluating Qualifications The Agency reserves the right to: Make independent investigations in evaluating Qualifications. Request additional information to clarify elements of a Statement of Qualification. Waive minor or immaterial deviations from the RFQ requirements, if determined to be in the best interest of the State. Omit any planned evaluation step if, in the Agencys view, the step is not needed. At its sole discretion, reject any and all Qualifications at any time. Open contract discussions with the second highest scoring Proposer and so on if the Agency is unable to reach an agreement on Contract terms with the higher scoring Proposer(s). SECTION 7 Terms and Conditions Related to The RFQ Process A. RFQ Addendum The Agency reserves the right to amend this RFQ at its discretion, prior to the Qualification submission deadline. In the event of an addendum to this RFQ, the Agency, at its sole discretion, may extend the Qualification submission deadline, as it deems appropriate. B. Non-Collusion The Proposers signature on a Qualification submitted in response to this RFQ guarantees that the prices, terms and conditions, and Work quoted have been established without collusion with other Proposers and without effort to preclude the Agency from obtaining the best possible competitive Qualification. C. Property of the Agency All material received in response to this RFQ shall become the property of the State and will not be returned to the proposer. Upon Contract award, the State reserves the right to use any information presented in any Qualification. D. Confidentiality of a Qualification Unless necessary for the approval of a contract, the substance of a Qualification must remain confidential until the Effective Date of any Contract resulting from this RFQ. A Proposers disclosure or distribution of Qualifications other than to the Agency will be grounds for disqualification. E. Public Disclosure Pursuant to RSA 21-G:37, all responses to this RFQ shall be considered confidential until the award of a contract. At the time of receipt of Qualifications, the Agency will post the number of responses received with no further information. No later than five (5) business days prior to submission of a contract to the Department of Administrative Services pursuant to this RFQ, the Agency will post the name, rank or score of each proposer. In the event that the contract does not require Governor & Executive Council approval, the Agency shall disclose the rank or score of the Qualifications at least 5 business days before final approval of the contract. The content of each Proposers Qualification shall become public information upon the award of any resulting Contract. Any information submitted as part of a response to this request for Qualification (RFQ) may be subject to public disclosure under RSA 91-A. In addition, in accordance with RSA 9-F:1, any contract entered into as a result of this RFQ will be made accessible to the public online via the website Transparent NH (http://www.nh.gov/transparentnh/). However, business financial information and proprietary information such as trade secrets, business and financials models and forecasts, and proprietary formulas may be exempt from public disclosure under RSA 91-A:5, IV. If you believe any information being submitted in response to this request for Qualification, bid or information should be kept http://www.des.nh.gov/ tel:+603-271-3503 http://www.nh.gov/transparentnh/ New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services PO Box 95, Concord, NH 03302-0095 RFQL DES 2024-02 www.des.nh.gov | (603) 271-3503 9 of 10 Seacoast NH Emergency Interconnection Study Update confidential as financial or proprietary information; you must specifically identify that information in a letter to the agency, and must mark/stamp each page of the materials that you claim must be exempt from disclosure as CONFIDENTIAL. A designation by the Proposer of information it believes exempt does not have the effect of making such information exempt. The Agency will determine the information it believes is properly exempted from disclosure. Marking of the entire Qualification or entire sections of the Qualification (e.g. pricing) as confidential will neither be accepted nor honored. Notwithstanding any provision of this RFQ to the contrary, Proposer pricing will be subject to disclosure upon approval of the contract. The Agency will endeavor to maintain the confidentiality of portions of the Qualification that are clearly and properly marked confidential. If a request is made to the Agency to view portions of a Qualification that the Proposer has properly and clearly marked confidential, the Agency will notify the Proposer of the request and of the date the Agency plans to release the records. By submitting a Qualification, Proposers agree that unless the Proposer obtains a court order, at its sole expense, enjoining the release of the requested information, the Agency may release the requested information on the date specified in the Agencys notice without any liability to the Proposers. F. Non-Commitment Notwithstanding any other provision of this RFQ, this RFQ does not commit the Agency to award a Contract. The Agency reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to reject any and all Qualifications, or any portions thereof, at any time; to cancel this RFQ; and to solicit new Qualifications under a new acquisition process. G. Qualification Preparation Cost By submitting a Qualification, a Proposer agrees that in no event shall the Agency be either responsible for or held liable for any costs incurred by a Proposer in the preparation of or in connection with the Qualification, or for Work performed prior to the Effective Date of a resulting Contract. H. Ethical Requirements From the time this RFQ is published until a contract is awarded, no bidder shall offer or give, directly or indirectly, any gift, expense reimbursement, or honorarium, as defined by RSA 15-B, to any elected official, public official, public employee, constitutional official, or family member of any such official or employee who will or has selected, evaluated, or awarded an RFQ, or similar submission. Any bidder that violates RSA 21-G:38 shall be subject to prosecution for an offense under RSA 640:2. Any bidder who has been convicted of an offense based on conduct in violation of this section, which has not been annulled, or who is subject to a pending criminal charge for such an offense, shall be disqualified from bidding on the RFQ, or similar request for submission and every such bidder shall be disqualified from bidding on any RFQ or similar request for submission issued by any state agency. A bidder that was disqualified under this section because of a pending criminal charge which is subsequently dismissed, results in an acquittal, or is annulled, may notify the department of administrative services, which shall note that information on the list maintained on the states internal intranet system, except in the case of annulment, the information, shall be deleted from the list. I. Challenges on Form or Process of the RFQ Any challenges regarding the validity or legality of the form and procedures of this RFQ, including but not limited to the evaluation and scoring of Qualifications, shall be brought to the attention of the Agency at least ten (10) business days prior to the Qualification Submission Deadline. By submitting a Qualification, the Proposer is deemed to have waived any challenges to the agencys authority to conduct this procurement and the form and procedures of this RFQ. Section 8 Contract Terms and Award A. Non-Exclusive Contract Any resulting Contract from this RFQ will be a non-exclusive Contract. The State reserves the right, at its discretion, to retain other Contractors to provide any of the Services or Deliverables identified under this procurement or make an award by item, part or portion of an item, group of items, or total Qualification. B. Award http://www.des.nh.gov/ tel:+603-271-3503 New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services PO Box 95, Concord, NH 03302-0095 RFQL DES 2024-02 www.des.nh.gov | (603) 271-3503 10 of 10 Seacoast NH Emergency Interconnection Study Update If the State decides to award a contract as a result of this RFQ process, any award is contingent upon approval of the Contract by Governor and Executive Council of the State of New Hampshire and upon continued appropriation of funding for the contract. C. Standard Contract Terms The Agency will require the successful bidder to execute a Not to Exceed Contract using the Standard Terms and Conditions of the State of New Hampshire which is attached as Appendix A. The Term of the Contract will be for two (2) years from the date of approval. The contract term may be extended by an additional term of 1 or 2 years at the sole option of the State, subject to the parties prior written agreement on terms and applicable fees for each extended term. contingent upon satisfactory vendor performance, continued funding and Governor and Executive Council approval. To the extent that a Proposer believes that exceptions to the standard form contract will be necessary for the Proposer to enter into the Agreement, the Proposer should note those issues during the Proposer Inquiry Period. The Agency will review requested exceptions and accept, reject or note that it is open to negotiation of the proposed exception at its sole discretion. If the Agency accepts a Proposers exception the Agency will, at the conclusion of the inquiry period, provide notice to all potential proposers of the exceptions which have been accepted and indicate that exception is available to all potential proposers. Any exceptions to the standard form contract that are not raised during the proposer inquiry period are waived. In no event is a Proposer to submit its own standard contract terms and conditions as a replacement for the States terms in response to this solicitation. http://www.des.nh.gov/ tel:+603-271-3503