[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township
of West Goshen 3-15-2022 by Ord. No. 2-2022. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
A.
The Township of West Goshen (hereinafter the "Township") recognizes
that there is a need to ensure that all construction work on public
buildings is performed by responsible, qualified firms that maintain
the capacity, expertise, personnel and other qualifications and resources
necessary to successfully perform the contracts in a timely, reliable
and cost-effective manner.
B.
To effectuate the purpose of selecting responsible contractors for
contracts for construction work on public buildings and to protect
the Township's investments in such contracts, prospective contractors
and subcontractors should be required to meet preestablished, clearly
defined, minimum standards relating to contractor responsibility,
including requirements and criteria concerning technical qualifications,
competency, expertise, adequacy of resources, including equipment,
financial and personnel, and satisfactory records regarding past project
performance, safety, law compliance and business integrity.
C.
Further, due to the critical impact that skilled construction craft
labor has on contracts for construction work on public buildings,
and due to the limited availability of skilled construction craft
labor and imminent craft labor skill shortages, it is necessary 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
ensuring future workforce development and availability. It is important
that skilled workers performing construction projects for the Township
have proper safety training. The Township also recognizes that it
is beneficial to the local community to ensure that firms receiving
contracts for construction work on public buildings provide adequate
wages and benefits to their employees and utilize fair business, employment
and training practices that have a positive impact on local communities
affected by such contracts.
D.
Therefore, the Township shall require compliance with the provisions
of this chapter by contractors seeking to enter contracts for construction
work on public buildings as specified herein. The requirements of
this chapter are intended to supplement, not replace, existing contractor
qualifications and performance standards or criteria currently required
by law, public policy or contracting documents.
All contractors and subcontractors that perform construction,
plumbing, heating, ventilating and electrical work for the erection
or alteration of any public building when the entire cost of the work
exceeds the advertisement requirement price established by Section
3102 of the Code shall meet the requirements of this chapter. The
requirements of this chapter shall not apply to any contracts which
do not require public bidding based on the exemptions in Section 3102
of the Code.
A.
All individuals and entities engaged in contracts covered by this
chapter shall be qualified, responsible contractors or subcontractors
that have sufficient capabilities in all respects to successfully
perform contracts on which they are engaged, including the necessary
experience, equipment, technical skills and qualifications and organizational,
financial and personnel resources. Individuals and entities bidding
on contracts specified in this chapter shall also be required to have
a satisfactory past performance record, including a positive safety
record and a satisfactory record of law compliance, integrity and
business ethics.
B.
If after two attempts by the Township to award a contract to a responsible
bidder, as defined in this chapter, no bidder is determined to meet
the requirements of this chapter, the Township may waive the provisions
of this chapter when attempting to bid the project.
A.
As a condition of performing construction, plumbing, heating, ventilating
and electrical work for the erection or alteration of any public building
subject to this chapter, 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.
B.
The contractor responsibility certification shall be completed on
a form provided by the Township and shall reference the project for
which a bid is being submitted by name and contract or project number.
C.
In the contractor responsibility certification, the construction
manager, general contractor or other lead or prime contractor (hereinafter
the "firm") shall confirm the following facts regarding its past performance,
safety performance and work history and its current qualifications
and performance capabilities:
(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 a)
do business in the designated local; and b) perform the contract work
it seeks 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)
The firm meets the bonding requirements for the contract, as required
by applicable law or contract specifications and any insurance requirements,
as required by applicable law or contract specifications, including
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 three years.
(4)
The firm has not defaulted on any project in the past three 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
three years.
(6)
The firm has not been cited for a violation of federal, state or
local safety laws in the past three 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 10 years.
(8)
The firm has not within the past three 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 $1,000 or more.
(9)
The firm will pay all craft employees that it employs on the project
the current wage rates and benefits as required under applicable federal,
state, or local wage laws.
(10)
The firm will ensure that all craft labor it employs will have completed,
minimally, the OSHA ten-hour safety training course established by
the U.S. Department of Labor. If the firm is a prime contractor, it
shall ensure that at least one person on the project has completed
the OSHA thirty-hour construction safety training course established
by the U.S. Department of Labor.
(11)
The firm participates in an 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.
(a)
For purposes of this section, an apprenticeship program must
be currently registered with and approved by the U.S. Department of
Labor or a state apprenticeship agency and have graduated apprentices
to journeyperson status for a least three of the past five years,
or every year since the firm's establishment.
(b)
If a firm is identified as the lowest responsible bidder or
otherwise selected as the prospective awardee or as a subcontractor
of an awardee, it shall provide appropriate documentation, as determined
by the Township, to verify it meets the requirements of this section
for each trade or classification of craft workers it will employee
on the project. This verification shall be provided prior to performance
of work by the firm.
(12)
The firm has all other technical qualifications and resources, including
equipment, personnel, and financial resources, to perform the referenced
contract, or will obtain same through the use of qualified, responsible
subcontractors.
(13)
The firm will maintain all qualifications, resources and capabilities
referenced in this certification throughout the duration of the construction
project.
(14)
The firm shall notify the Township within seven calendar days of
any material changes to all matters attested to in this contractor
responsibility certification.
(15)
The firm must ensure that the contractor responsibility certification
required by this section shall be executed by a person who has sufficient
knowledge to address all matters in the certification and shall include
an attestation stating, under the penalty of perjury, that the information
submitted is true, complete and accurate.
D.
Execution by the firm of the contractor responsibility certification
required by this section shall not establish a presumption of contractor
responsibility, and the Township may require any additional information
it deems necessary to evaluate a firm's status as a responsible
contractor, including technical qualifications, financial capacity
or other resources and performance capabilities. The Township may
require that such information be included in a separate statement
of qualifications and experience or as an attachment to the contractor
responsibility certification.
E.
The submitting firm shall stipulate in the contractor responsibility certification that, if it receives a notice of intent to award contract, it will provide a subcontractor list and required subcontractor information as specified in § 65-5 of this chapter.
F.
If the submitting firm has ever operated under another name, or controls,
or is controlled by, another company or business entity or in the
past five years controlled or was controlled by another company or
business entity, whether as a party company, subsidiary or in any
other business relation, it shall attach a separate statement to its
contractor responsibility certification that explains in detail the
nature of any such relationship. Additional information may be required
from such an entity if the relationship in question could potentially
impact contract performance.
G.
If a firm fails to provide a contractor responsibility certification
required by this section, it shall be disqualified from bidding. No
action of any nature shall lie against the Township because of its
refusal to accept a bid for failing to provide information required
by this section.
A.
After it has received bids for a construction project on a public
building which is covered by the terms of this chapter, the Township
shall issue a notice of intent to award contract to the firm offering
the lowest responsible bid.
A.
Within seven calendar days from the date of the notice of intent
to award contract, a prospective awardee shall submit to the Township
a subcontractor list containing the names of subcontractors that will
be used for the referenced project, their addresses, and a description
of the work each listed subcontractor will perform on the project.
B.
At the time a prospective awardee submits the subcontractor list it shall also submit to the Township subcontractor responsibility certifications for all listed subcontractors. Subcontractor responsibility certifications shall be executed by the respective subcontractors on forms prepared by the Township and shall contain the same information as representations required in contractor responsibility certifications, including verification of apprenticeship qualifications as required by § 65-3C(11), for each trade or classification of craft workers it will employ on the project.
C.
Subcontractor responsibility certifications shall be executed by
persons having sufficient knowledge to address all matters in the
certification and shall include an attestation stating, under the
penalty of perjury, that all information submitted is true, complete
and accurate.
A.
After a notice of intent to award contract has been issued, the Township
shall undertake a timely review process to determine whether the prospective
awardee is a qualified, responsible contractor in accordance with
the requirements of this chapter and other applicable laws and regulations
and has the resources and capabilities to successfully perform the
contract.
B.
As part of this review process, the Township shall ensure that the
contractor responsibility certification, the subcontractor list and
the subcontractor responsibility certification(s) as required by this
chapter, have been submitted and properly executed.
C.
The Township may conduct any additional inquires 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 Township may seek relevant information
from the firm, its prior clients or customers, its subcontractors
or any other relevant source.
D.
If, at the conclusion of its internal review, the Township determines
that all responsibility certifications have been properly completed
and executed and if it concludes that the qualifications, background
and responsibility of the prospective awardee and the firms on its
subcontractor list are satisfactory, it shall issue, as part of the
notice of award, a written contractor responsibility determination
verifying that the prospective awardee is a qualified, responsible
contractor. In the event a firm is determined to be nonresponsible,
the Township shall advise the firm of its finding, in writing, and
proceed to conduct a responsibility review of the next lowest, responsible
bidder or, if necessary, rebid the project. Prior to the awarding
of a contract, the Township must follow the procedures as set by applicable
state and federal laws.
E.
A written contractor responsibility determination may be revoked
or revised in any manner at any time if the Township obtains relevant
information warranting such action. The Township shall send written
notice to the contractor if it revokes or revised the contractor responsibility
determination.
F.
The contractor responsibility certification for a firm identified
in a notice of intent to award contract, subcontractor lists, and
subcontractor responsibility certifications, similar to other bid
documents, shall be made available to the public consistent with the
Pennsylvania Right to Know Law.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 65 P.S. § 67.101 et seq.
G.
If the Township determines that a contractor or subcontractor responsibility
certification contains false or misleading material information that
was provided knowingly or with reckless disregard for the truth or
omits material information knowingly or with reckless disregard of
the truth, the firm for which the certification was submitted shall
be prohibited from performing work for the Township for a period of
three years and shall be subject to any other penalties and sanctions,
including contract termination, available to the Township under law.
A contract terminated under these circumstances shall further entitle
the Township to withhold payment of any monies due to the firm as
damages.
H.
A procurement contract subject to this chapter shall not be executed
until all requirements of this chapter have been fulfilled.
A.
A construction manager, general contractor, or other lead or prime contractor shall not be permitted to use a subcontractor on any work performed for the Township unless it has identified the subcontractor on its subcontractor list and provided a subcontractor responsibility certification in accordance with the requirements of this § 65-6.
B.
A subcontractor listed on a firm's subcontractor list shall
not be substituted unless written authorization is obtained from the
Township and a subcontractor responsibility certification is provided
for the substitute subcontractor.
C.
In the event that the Township determines that a prospective subcontractor
listed by the apparent low bidder does not meet the responsibility
standards of this section, it may, after informing the prospective
awardee, exercise one of the following options:
(1)
Permit the awardee to substitute a qualified, responsible subcontractor
in accordance with the requirement of this section;
(2)
Require the awardee to self-perform the work in question if the firm
has the required experience, licenses and other qualifications to
perform the work in question; or
(3)
Disqualify the prospective awardee.
D.
In the event that a subcontractor is disqualified under this section,
the general contractor, construction manager or other lead or prime
contractor shall not be permitted to make any type of contractual
claim against the Township on the basis of a subcontractor disqualification.
Should the West Goshen Board of Supervisors determine that emergency
circumstances exist that render the requirements and procedures set
forth in this chapter unduly burdensome, then in that event the Township
may award a procurement contract without application of the terms
of this chapter.
