The City of Perth Amboy (the "City") has experienced considerable difficulties in securing qualified and reliable contractors and project professionals to complete and oversee significant construction projects in a timely and workmanlike manner, consistent with the terms and specification of the publicly awarded contract, thereby resulting in delays and cost overruns that have been detrimental to the residents of the City.
The City recognizes that there is a need to impose greater controls over significant public construction to ensure that the work is performed by responsible, qualified firms that maintain the capacity, expertise, personnel, and other qualifications and resources necessary to successfully perform and oversee public contracts in a timely, reliable and cost-effective manner.
In order to effectuate the purpose of selecting responsible contractors and project professionals for significant public contracts and to protect the City's investments in such contracts, prospective contractors, subcontractors and project professionals should be required to meet pre-established, clearly defined, minimum standards relating to contractor responsibility, including requirements and criteria concerning technical qualifications, competency, subject matter expertise, adequacy of resources, including equipment, financial and personnel, and satisfactory records regarding past project performance of similar magnitude, as well as safety, law compliance and business integrity.
Due to the impact that skilled construction craft labor can have on public works projects, it is advisable to require contractors and subcontractors to participate in established, formal apprenticeship training programs as a condition of bidding, for the purpose of both promoting successful project delivery and encouraging fair business, employment and training practices that can have a positive impact on local communities affected by such contracts.
Due to the impact that Construction and Project Managers, Architects and Engineers ("Project Professionals") can have on the timely, economical and proper completion of significant construction and maintenance contracts, it is advisable to require that such individuals and entities demonstrate the necessary qualifications, experience and financial capacity to competently perform the required contract services.
The following shall be required of all contractors bidding and submitting proposals on significant public building construction contracts within the City of Perth Amboy and all project professionals seeking contracts to assist or oversee significant public building contracts:
A. 
The City shall require compliance with the provisions of this Article by business entities seeking to provide services to the City as specified herein. The requirements of this Article are intended to supplement, not replace, existing contractor qualifications and performance standards or criteria currently required by law, public policy or contracting documents. In the event of any conflict between this Article, any other laws, public policy or contracting documents, the stricter provisions thereof shall apply, to the extent permitted by law.
B. 
All construction contractors and subcontractors ("firm(s)") that perform work on any significant public work project, including building construction, alteration, or renovation, work, shall meet the requirements of this Article. For the purposes of this Article, "significant public work" shall be that which has a contract value of three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000) or more.
C. 
Any architect, engineer, construction manager or project manager ("project professional") that performs work in connection with any significant public work project, including building construction, alteration or renovation work, shall satisfy the requirements of this Article that relate to project professionals.
D. 
All firms and project professionals engaged in contracts covered by this Article shall be qualified, responsible contractors, subcontractors and project professionals that have sufficient capabilities in all respects to successfully perform the contracts on which they are engaged, including the necessary experience, equipment, technical skills and qualifications, as well as financial, personnel and insurance resources. Firms bidding on public contracts, and project professionals seeking such contracts, shall also be required to have a satisfactory past performance record on projects of similar magnitude and a satisfactory record of legal compliance, integrity and business ethics.
E. 
As a condition of performing work on a significant public works contract subject to this Article, a general contractor, construction manager or other lead or prime contractor seeking award of a contract shall submit a contractor responsibility certification at the time it submits its bid for a contract. Any project professional seeking a contract in connection with a significant public works project shall submit a project professionals certification with its proposal.
F. 
The contractor and project professional responsibility certification shall be completed on a form provided by the City and shall reference the project for which a bid is being submitted by name and contract of project number.
G. 
In the contractor responsibility certification, the construction manager, general contractor, or other lead or prime contractor shall confirm the following facts regarding its past performance and work history and its current qualifications and performance capabilities. If the certifying entity or individual cannot confirm the accuracy of each of the following criteria, it may submit a statement of explanation on the City form and the governing body may evaluate those circumstances and, in its sole discretion, waive a particular criterion for good cause shown. The governing body's decision to exercise or not exercise its discretion to waive a criterion of this paragraph shall not be a basis to challenge the decision to award or not award a contract.
(1) 
The firm has all valid, effective licenses, registrations or certificates required by federal, state, county or local law, including but not limited to licenses, registrations or certificates required to do (i) do business in the state; (ii) to do business in the City; and (iii) perform the contract work it seems to perform. These shall include, but not be limited to licenses, registrations or certificates for any type of trade work or specialty work which the firm proposes to self-perform.
(2) 
For construction contractors, the firm meets the bonding requirements for the contract, as required by applicable law or contract specifications and for construction contractors and professionals, the firm meets any insurance requirements, as required by applicable law, services contract or contract specifications as applicable, including, without limitation, general liability insurance, workers' compensation insurance and unemployment insurance requirements.
(3) 
The firm has not been debarred by any federal, state or local government agency or authority in the past seven (7) years.
(4) 
The firm has not defaulted on any project in the past seven (7) years.
(5) 
The firm has not had any type of business, contracting or trade license, registration, or other certification suspended or revoked in the past seven (7) years.
(6) 
The firm has not been cited for a willful violation of federal or state safety laws for the past seven (7) years.
(7) 
The firm and its owners have not been convicted of any crime relating to the contracting business by a final decision of a court or government agency in the past ten (10) years.
(8) 
The firm has not within the past seven (7) years been found in violation of any law applicable to its contracting business, including but not limited to licensing laws, tax laws, prompt payment laws, wage and hour laws, prevailing wage laws, environmental laws or others, where the result of such violation was the payment of a fine, back pay damages or any other type of penalty in the amount of one thousand dollars ($1,000) or more.
(9) 
The firm will pay all craft employees that it employs on a project the current wage rates and benefits as required under applicable federal, state or local prevailing wage law under the Act.
(10) 
For a public works project with a contract value of two million dollars ($2,000,000) or more, the firm participates in a Class A Apprenticeship Program for each separate trade or classification in which it employs craft employees and shall continue to participate in such program or programs for the duration of the project. For purposes of this section, Class A Apprenticeship Program is an apprentice-ship program that is currently registered with and approved by the U.S. Department of Labor or the New Jersey Department of Labor and has graduated at least one (1) enrollee in each of the past three (3) years (if the program has been in existence for three (3) years; this requirement shall not apply until the program has been in existence for three (3) years, at which time compliance shall be required.)
(11) 
For a public works project with a contract value of two million dollars ($2,000,000) or more, the firm will have on site at all times an employee with a minimum of ten (10) hours of OSHA training.
H. 
In the project professional responsibility certification, the construction manager, architect and engineer shall confirm its past performance and work history and its current qualifications and performance capabilities in accordance with the requirements of subsection G(1)-(8) of this section and that it has not been adjudged liable for professional malpractice in the prior seven (7) years. If the certifying entity or individual cannot confirm the accuracy of each of the following criteria, it may submit a statement of explanation on the City form and the governing body may evaluate those circumstances and, in its sole discretion, waive a particular criterion for good cause shown. The governing body's decision to exercise or not exercise its discretion to waive a criterion of this subsection shall not be a basis to challenge the decision to award or not award a contract.
I. 
The City may undertake a review process to determine whether the prospective awardee is a qualified, responsible contractor or project professional in accordance with the requirements of this Article, and other applicable laws and regulations and has the resources and capabilities to successfully perform the contract, including bank references of financial stability.
J. 
The City may conduct any additional inquiries to verify that the prospective awardee and its subcontractors have the technical qualifications and performance capabilities necessary to successfully perform the contract and that the firms have a sufficient record of law compliance and business integrity to justify the award of a public contract. In conducting such inquiries, the City may seek relevant information from the firm, its prior clients or customers, its subcontractors or any other relevant source.