[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council
of the Borough of Morrisville as indicated in article histories. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 2-10-1981 by Ord. No. 761]
No person, firm, or corporation shall engage
in the business of constructing, erecting, altering, repairing, restoring,
moving or demolishing the whole or any part of any building or structure,
or contracting to perform any of the foregoing, without first applying
for and obtaining a license from the Building Inspector or Code Enforcement
Officer, on forms to be supplied by him.
All applicants for said license shall furnish
proof, to the satisfaction of the Building Inspector, of at least
four years' training or experience in building construction, and each
such application shall be endorsed by at least two responsible personal
references stating that applicant is, in their opinion, sufficiently
qualified to receive a license. Only one license need be secured by
a corporation or partnership.
Borough Council may, upon the recommendation
of the Building Inspector or Code Enforcement Officer, after notice
and a hearing, suspend or revoke any license for violation of law,
or the Building Code or any related ordinances of the Borough of Morrisville,
or for other good cause, which is shown to be prejudicial to the public
health, safety and welfare.
No license shall be required of any owner of
real property in Morrisville Borough who shall personally perform
activities otherwise requiring a license on a dwelling place or appurtenant
structure intended for occupancy or use by the property owner or his
immediate family, except that all such work must otherwise comply
with other provisions of the Building Code and related Borough ordinances
and regulations.[1]
[Amended 10-15-2018 by Ord. No. 1023]
Every license shall be issued and renewed on
an annual basis, effective January 1 of each year, upon payment of
an annual fee in accordance with a fee schedule adopted by resolution
of Borough Council.
Every builder and contractor applying for a
license to work in the Borough of Morrisville shall procure public
liability and workmen's compensation insurance and file with the Borough
at time of license application a valid and current Certificate of
Insurance,
[Amended 5-14-1985 by Ord. No. 800]
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate
any provision of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be sentenced
to pay a fine of not more than $300, together with costs of prosecution,
or to imprisonment for a term not to exceed 30 days.
[Adopted 5-17-2010 by Ord. No. 982]
A.
Morrisville Borough (hereinafter "Borough") recognizes that there
is a need to ensure that all work on public construction and maintenance
contracts is performed by responsible, qualified firms that maintain
the capacity, expertise, personnel and other qualifications and resources
necessary to successfully perform public contracts in a timely, reliable
and cost-effective manner.
B.
To effectuate the purpose of selecting responsible contractors for
public contracts and to protect Borough 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, experience, adequacy of resources, including
equipment, financial and personnel, and satisfactory records regarding
past project performance, safety, law compliance and business integrity.[1]
[1]
Former Subsection C, regarding requirements for formal training
programs and employer business practices, which immediately followed
this subsection, was repealed 10-15-2018 by Ord. No. 1023. This ordinance
also redesignated former Subsection D as Subsection C.
C.
Therefore, the Borough shall require compliance with the provisions
of this article by business entities seeking to provide services to
the Borough as specified herein. The requirements of this article
are intended to supplement, not replace, existing contractor qualification
and performance standards or criteria currently required by law, public
policy or contracting documents.
The following words and phrases as used in this article, shall
have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, unless the context
clearly indicates a different meaning. The masculine shall mean the
feminine, the singular includes the plural, and the plural includes
the singular.
An agreement, whether oral or written and whether contained
in one or more documents between a contractor and the Borough or another
contractor for the performance of work, including all labor services
and materials to be furnished and performed thereunder.
Any individual or person who undertakes or offers to perform
construction, repair, maintenance, demolition, remodeling, rehabilitation,
paving and any other improvement or construction or demolition work
in and for the Borough, whether as a general contractor, subcontractor,
specialty contractor or otherwise.
Any individual, partnership, limited partnership, association,
corporation, trust or any other legally recognized entity.
Any individual or person who undertakes a specific part of
the work to be performed by the principal contractor or subcontractor
for the construction, repair, maintenance, demolition, remodeling,
rehabilitation, paving and any other improvement of construction or
demolition work in Morrisville Borough.
A.
All contractors and subcontractors of any tier that perform work
valued at over $200,000 on any public facility or public works project,
including construction, alteration, renovation, repair, service (excluding
trash hauling) or maintenance work, shall meet the requirements of
this article.
[Amended 10-15-2018 by Ord. No. 1023]
B.
All persons engaged in contracts covered by this article 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. Firms bidding on public contracts shall also
be required to have a satisfactory past performance record and a satisfactory
record of law compliance, integrity and business ethics.
A.
As a condition of performing work on a 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.
B.
The contractor responsibility certification shall be completed on
a form provided by the Borough 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 (hereafter
the "firm") shall confirm the following facts regarding its past 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 do
business in the designated locale and 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 willful violation of federal or
state 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.[1]
[1]
Former Subsection C(10), regarding participation in apprenticeship programs, and Subsection C(11), regarding a firm’s technical qualifications and resources, which immediately followed this subsection, were repealed 10-15-2018 by Ord. No. 1023. This ordinance also renumbered former Subsection C(12) through (14) as Subsection C(10) through (12).
(10)
The firm will maintain all qualifications, resources and capabilities
referenced in this certification throughout the duration of the project.
(11)
The firm shall notify the Borough within seven days of any material
changes to all matters attested to in this certification.
(12)
The firm understands 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 of the contractor responsibility certification required
by this section shall not establish a presumption of contractor responsibility,
and the Borough 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 Borough 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 § 164-13 of this section.
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 parent 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 Borough because of its
refusal to accept a bid for failing to provide information required
by this section.
H.
The Borough may charge contractors who submit bids or proposals a
reasonable fee to defray costs of processing and evaluating contractor
responsibility certifications and related documents and information.
I.
The Borough may require that all contractor responsibility certifications
and other information required by this article be submitted electronically.
A.
After it has received bids for a project, the Borough shall issue
a notice of intent to award contract to the firm offering the lowest
responsive responsible bid.
B.
Such notice shall be issued immediately or as soon as practicable after bids are submitted and shall stipulate that the contract award will be conditioned on the issuance of a written contractor responsibility determination, as required by § 164-14 of this article, and any other conditions determined appropriate by the Borough.
A.
Within seven days from the date of a notice of intent to award contract,
a prospective awardee shall submit to the Borough 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 subcontractor responsibility certifications for
all listed subcontractors to the Borough. Subcontractor responsibility
certifications shall be executed by the respective subcontractors
on forms prepared by the Borough and shall contain the same information
and representations required in contractor responsibility certifications.
[Amended 10-15-2018 by Ord. No. 1023]
A.
After a notice of intent to award contract has been issued, the Borough
shall undertake a review process for a period of at least 30 days
to determine whether the prospective awardee is a qualified, responsible
contractor 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.
B.
As part of this review process, the Borough shall ensure that the
contractor responsibility certification, the subcontractor list and
the subcontractor responsibility certifications, as required by this
article, have been submitted and properly executed.
C.
The Borough 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 Borough 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 Borough 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 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 Borough shall advise the firm of its finding,
in writing, and proceed to conduct a responsibility review of the
next lowest, responsive bidder or, if necessary, rebid the project.
E.
The contractor responsibility determination shall be issued at least
30 days after the date of the notice of intent to award contract.
This responsibility determination may be revoked or revised in any
manner at any time if the Borough obtains relevant information warranting
any such revocation or revisions.
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 Borough unless it has identified the subcontractor on its subcontractor list and provided a subcontractor responsibility certification in accordance with the requirements of § 164-13 of this article.
B.
A subcontractor listed on a firm's subcontractor list shall
not be substituted unless written authorization is obtained from the
Borough and a subcontractor responsibility certification is provided
for the substitute subcontractor.
C.
In the event that the Borough determines that a prospective subcontractor
listed by the apparent low bidder does not meet the responsibility
standards of this article, 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 requirements of this article;
(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 article,
the general contractor, construction manager or other lead or prime
contractor shall not be permitted to make any type of contractual
claim against the Borough on the basis of a subcontractor disqualification.
A.
The contractor responsibility certification for a firm identified
in a notice of intent to award contract, subcontractor lists and subcontractor
responsibility certifications shall be made immediately available
to the public for inspection through a publicly accessible website
or other comparable means.
B.
During the public review period, any person or organization may protest
a contractor or subcontractor for failing to meet applicable requirements
of this article or on any other relevant grounds by submitting a letter
with supporting evidence to Morrisville.
C.
If the Borough 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 for
the truth, the firm for which the certification was submitted shall
be prohibited from performing work for the Borough for a period of
three years and shall be subject to any other penalties and sanctions,
including contract termination, available to the Borough under law.
A contract terminated under these circumstances shall further entitle
the Borough to withhold payment of any monies due to the firm as damages.
D.
A procurement contract subject to this article shall not be executed
until all requirements of this article have been fulfilled and until
contractor and subcontractor responsibility certifications and subcontractor
lists have been made available for public inspection for at least
21 days.
A.
If any provision of this article shall be held to be invalid or unenforceable
by a court of competent jurisdiction, any such holding shall not invalidate
any other provisions of this article and all remaining provisions
shall remain in full force and effect.
B.
The requirements of this article shall not apply to contracts executed
prior to the effective date of this article, except that the exercise
of an option on a contract covered by this article shall be deemed
to create a new contract for purposes of this article.
C.
All ordinances or parts of ordinances inconsistent with the provisions
of this article are hereby repealed to the extent of such inconsistency.
