Section 105 IAC 12-3-5 - Competitive sealed proposal or request for proposalAuthority: IC 8-23-2-6
Affected: IC 5-3-1
Sec. 5.
(a) When a purchasing agent makes a written determination that the use of competitive sealed bidding is either not practicable or not advantageous to the governmental body, the purchasing agent may award a contract using the procedure provided by this section instead of competitive sealed bidding.(b) The purchasing agent shall solicit proposals through a request for proposals, which must include the following:(1) A statement concerning the relative importance of price and the other evaluation factors.(2) A statement concerning whether the proposal must be accompanied by a certified check or other evidence of financial responsibility.(c) Public notice shall be given in the manner required by IC 5-3-1.(d) Proposals shall be opened at the date and time specified in the request for proposals.(e) The department may conduct discussions with persons submitting proposals for the purpose of clarification to assure full understanding of, and responsiveness to, the solicitation requirements. Persons submitting proposals must be accorded fair and equal treatment with respect to the opportunity for discussion and revision of proposals. In conducting discussions, the department shall not disclose information derived from proposals submitted by competing persons.(f) After identification of the responsible offer or whose proposal appears to be the most advantageous to the department, the department will enter into contract preparation activities with the bidder. If at any time the contract preparation activities are judged to be ineffective, the department may cease all activities with that bidder and begin contract preparation activities with the next highest ranked bidder, and the process may continue until a contract is executed. The department reserves the right to cease all contract preparation activities at any time and to reject all proposals, if such action is determined to be in the best interest of the department.Indiana Department of Transportation; 105 IAC 12-3-5; filed Jan 15, 1993, 1:00 p.m.: 16 IR 1508; filed Oct 3, 2001, 9:35 a.m.: 25 IR 370; readopted filed Nov 7, 2001, 3:20 p.m.: 25 IR 899; readopted filed Jun 14, 2007, 2:45 p.m.: 20070627-IR-105070237RFA; readopted filed Oct 2, 2013, 11:39 a.m.: 20131030-IR-105130295RFAReadopted filed 10/4/2019, 9:49 a.m.: 20191030-IR-105190422RFA