SECTION 44E1/2. Renovation and repair of state house and historic Suffolk County courthouse; solicitation of bids; evaluation of bids; contract award; payment and performance bonds

The commissioner of capital asset management and maintenance may procure construction contracts for the renovation or repair of the state house and the historic Suffolk County courthouse in accordance with the provisions of this section.

The procurement of a contract for the renovation or repair of the state house or the historic Suffolk County courthouse shall be deemed a building project for purposes of section 39A of chapter 7.

When the commissioner procures a contract for the renovation or repair of the state house or the historic Suffolk County courthouse as authorized by this section, the commissioner shall solicit competitive sealed proposals through issuance of a request for proposals. The request shall include:

(1) the time and date by which proposals shall be received, the address of the office to which the proposals shall be delivered and the maximum time for proposal acceptance by the division;

(2) the purchase description and all criteria that shall be utilized in evaluating proposals;

(3) all contractual terms and conditions applicable to the procurement but the contract may incorporate by reference a plan submitted by the selected offeror for renovating or repairing the state house or the historic Suffolk County courthouse;

(4) a notice stating that every proposal shall be accompanied by a copy of an appropriate certificate of eligibility issued by the commissioner pursuant to section 44D, together with an update statement; and

(5) a notice stating that every proposal shall be accompanied by a certification that the offeror is able to furnish labor that can work in concert with all other elements of labor employed or to be employed at the state house or the historic Suffolk County courthouse.

The request for proposals may incorporate documents by reference so long as the request for proposals specifies where prospective offerors may obtain such documents. The request for proposals shall provide for the separate submission of a price proposal and shall indicate when and how an offeror shall submit the price proposal. The division shall make copies of the request for proposals available to all persons on an equal basis.

Public notice of the request for proposals for the renovation or repair of the state house or the historic Suffolk County courthouse shall be published in accordance with the provisions of section 44J.

The division shall not open the proposals publicly, but shall open them in the presence of at least one witness at the time specified in the request for proposals. Notwithstanding section 7 of chapter 4, until the completion of the evaluation or until the time for acceptance specified in the request for proposals, whichever occurs earlier, the contents of the proposals shall remain confidential and shall not be disclosed to competing offerors. At the opening of proposals the division shall prepare a register of proposals. The register of proposals shall be open for public inspection. The division shall open the price proposals at a later time and shall open the price proposals in a manner that ensures that the content of the price proposals is not disclosed to the individuals evaluating the proposals on the basis of criteria other than price.

The division shall designate the individuals responsible for the evaluation of the proposals on the basis of criteria other than price. The designated individuals shall prepare their evaluations based solely on the criteria set forth in the request for proposals. Such criteria shall include all standards by which acceptability shall be determined as to quality, workmanship, results of inspections and tests, and suitability for a particular purpose, and shall also include all other measures that shall be utilized. The evaluations shall specify in writing:

(1) for each evaluation criterion, a rating of each proposal as highly advantageous, advantageous, not advantageous or unacceptable, and the reasons for such rating;

(2) a composite rating for each proposal and the reasons for such rating; and

(3) recommendations for revisions, if any, to each proposed plan for the renovation or repair of the state house or the historic Suffolk County courthouse which shall be obtained by negotiation prior to awarding the contract to the offeror of the proposal.

The division shall unconditionally accept a proposal except as provided by this paragraph. An offeror may correct, modify or withdraw a proposal by written notice received in the office designated in the request for proposals prior to the time and date set for the opening of proposals. After such opening, an offeror may not change the price or any other provisions of the proposal in a manner prejudicial to the interests of the division or fair competition. The division shall waive minor informalities or allow the offeror to correct them. If a mistake and the intended offer are clearly evident on the face of the document, the division shall correct the mistake to reflect the intended correct offer and so notify the offeror in writing, and the offeror may not withdraw the offer. The division may permit an offeror to withdraw an offer if a mistake is clearly evident on the face of the document but the intended correct offer is not similarly evident.

Taking into consideration price and the evaluation criteria set forth in the request for proposals, the commissioner shall determine the most advantageous proposal from a responsible, responsive and eligible offeror. If a responsible, responsive and eligible offeror submits the lowest price and has received a composite rating of highly advantageous on the basis of criteria other than price, then the commissioner shall determine that offeror's proposal to be the most advantageous proposal. If the offeror who submits the lowest price has not received a composite rating of highly advantageous on the basis of criteria other than price, then the commissioner may, but shall not be required to, determine that the lowest price proposal from among those proposals that have received a composite rating of highly advantageous on the basis of criteria other than price, is the most advantageous proposal. The commissioner may condition an award on successful negotiation of any revisions recommended in the evaluation and shall explain in writing the reasons for omitting any such revisions from the contract. The division shall award the contract by written notice to the selected offeror within the time for acceptance specified in the request for proposals. The parties may extend the time for acceptance by mutual agreement.

If the commissioner awards the contract to an offeror who did not submit the lowest price, the commissioner shall explain the reasons for the award in writing, specifying in reasonable detail the basis for determining that the anticipated performance of the selected offeror justifies the additional cost, and the division shall maintain such explanation in its files for at least six years from the date of final payment under the contract.

Prior to execution of a contract pursuant to this section, the selected offeror shall furnish to the division a payment bond and a performance bond of a surety company qualified to issue bonds in the commonwealth and satisfactory to the division each in the sum of the contract price.