Arkansas Administrative Code › Agency 016 - DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES › Division 14 - Department of Finance (Administrative Services) › Rule 016.14.07-006 - DHS Contract Manual - For Professional and Consultant Services Contracts and Intra-Agency Agreements

Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 6, June, 2024
CHAPTER
			 ONE
INTRODUCTION
To carry out some aspects of its mission, the Arkansas
				Department of Human Services (DHS) uses a statewide network of contracted
				service providers.
The purpose of this Contract Manual (hereinafter referred to as
				"Manual") is to provide a common frame of reference for the development of
				Professional and Consultant Services (PCS) contracts and intra-agency
				agreements (i.e., agreements between two or more divisions within DHS). This
				Manual is based on federal and state directives and agency policy, as well as
				"best practices" which have been standardized for use by DHS program
				divisions/offices (hereinafter referred to as "divisions").
The essential elements of each agreement are based on
				mutually binding obligations between the two parties: the service provider and
				the applicable DHS division, using funds appropriated to carry out the program
				responsibilities of that division.
The Office of Chief Counsel (OCC) provides legal advisory
				concerning procurement methods, service performance provisions, and any unique
				terms and conditions or other proposed deviations from standard practices
				described in this Manual.
The Office of Finance and Administration (OFA) provides
				administrative direction to facilitate the successful completion of agreements
				so that they meet requirements for coordination through the Office of State
				Procurement (OSP), Department of Finance and Administration (DFA) and review by
				the Arkansas state legislature, if necessary. OFA also provides financial
				advisory and technical assistance through a network of divisional Chief Fiscal
				Officers to assure compliance with the Financial Management Guide and the
				Accounting and Budgetary Procedures Law.
The Contract Support Section (CSS) of OFA provides this Manual
				as an element of technical assistance. Please direct all suggestions for
				corrections, additions and/or updates to:
Contract Support Section/Slot W345
P.O. Box 1437
Little Rock, AR 72203
Telephone: (501) 682-6293
* DHS requires fair and equal opportunity in employment and
				service delivery regardless of race, color, religion, sex, age, national
				origin, political beliefs, or disability that impair one or more major life
				activities as defined in the Americans with Disabilities Act.
* DHS requires non-discrimination and equal opportunity in
				compliance with all applicable federal laws, regulations, executive orders and
				civil rights rules and regulations.
* Contractors are required to comply with the promulgated DHHS
				Methods of Administration (MOA) for recipients of federal financial assistance
				as directed by the United States Department of Health and Human
				Services.
CHAPTER TWO
CONTRACTING FORMATS
I.
Definition
(from Rules and
			 Regulations Implementing Governor's Executive Order [EO] 98-04 and Act 34 of
			 1999)
"Contract shall mean any agreement entered into by and between
				a state agency and an individual or entity pursuant to which the agency agrees
				to purchase or lease tangible personal property, real property, or services, or
				any agreement for the disposal of commodities and services. Contract includes,
				but is not limited to, awards and notices of award; contracts of a fixed price,
				cost, or incentive type; contracts providing for the issuance of job or task
				orders, leases, lease purchase agreements, letter contracts, purchase orders,
				and professional or consultant services contracts. Contract also includes
				supplemental agreements with respect to any of these categories."
II.
Contracting Formats for
			 Services
A purchase of services contract is a legally binding agreement,
				enforceable by law, between DHS and a provider of services. A provider of
				services may be a private entity (i.e., an individual, partnership, or
				corporation) or a public entity (i.e., a governmental agency or entity). The
				agreement contains mutually binding obligations and a description of the
				services to be provided with payment contingent on delivery of services. The
				common contracting formats include:
A.
PCS Contracts
1. PCS contracts
			 are governed by Arkansas Procurement Law and applicable statutes (as found in
			 the Arkansas Code Annotated [A.C.A.]) and regulations, including but not
			 limited to the following:
a.
A.C.A. §
																	19-11-101
et seq.
General Provisions
b.
A.C.A. §
																	19-11-201
et seq.
Procurement Law
c.
A.C.A. §
																	19-11-701
et seq.
Ethics in Public Contracting
d.
A.C.A. §
																	19-11-801
et seq.
Procurement of Professional Services
e.
A.C.A. §
																	19-11-1001
et seq.
Professional and Consultant Services
f.
A.C.A. §
																	15-4-301
et seq.
Minority Procurement
2.
Professional Services
contracts are for the purchase of services
			 which are professional in nature and generally require that the provider have
			 some type of specialized training or license/certification (e.g., medical
			 services, social work, therapy, counseling, etc.).
A.C.A. §
												19-11-203(14)
, as amended in 2003, exempts certain professional services from
			 compliance with the procurement law.
3.
Consultant Services
contracts
			 are utilized when the service to be rendered is primarily the giving of advice
			 by the contractor on a particular problem facing the agency.
4.
PCS Contract Formats
a. PCS contracts for which the total
			 compensation exceeds $25,000.00 per vendor, per fiscal year, per cost center
			 shall be executed on the
Professional/Consultant Services Contract
form
(Form OSP-1)
and are commonly referred to as
"standard PCS contracts."
b. PCS contracts for which the total
			 compensation does NOT exceed $25,000.00 may be executed on the purchase order
			 (PO) format, in which case they are referred to as
"stand-alone PO's."
A division may, however, execute a PCS contract that does not exceed
			 $25,000.00 in compensation as a
"standard PCS contract"
on the
Form OSP-1
, if preferred.
5. PCS contracts are addressed in
Chapter Ten
of this Manual.
B.
Intra-agency Agreements
1. Intra-agency agreements are used when one
			 DHS division purchases services from another DHS division.
2. Intra-agency Agreements are addressed in
Chapter Eleven
of this Manual.
C.
Technical Services Contracts
1. Contracts for technical services are
			 governed by the Arkansas Procurement Law and applicable statutes and
			 regulations, including but not limited to the following:
a.
A.C.A. §
																	19-11-101
et seq.
General Provisions
b.
A.C.A. §
																	19-11-201
et seq.
Procurement Law
c.
A.C.A. §
																	19-11-301
et seq.
Bidding - State Industry Priority Goods
d.
A.C.A. §
																	19-11-601
et seq.
Federal Government Surplus Property
e.
A.C.A. §
																	19-11-701
et seq.
Ethics in Public Contracting
f.
A.C.A. §
																	15-4-301
et seq.
Minority Procurement
g.
A.C.A. §
																	19-11-901
et seq.
Purchases of Workshop Made Products and Services
h.
A.C.A. §
																	15-4-301
et seq.
Minority Procurement
DHS Administrative Procedures Manual, Chapters 601
				through 609,
also governs contracts for technical
				services.
2. "Technical
			 services" are described by
A.C.A. §
												19-11-203(34)
as:
a. Work accomplished by skilled
			 individuals involving time, labor, and a degree of expertise, in which
			 performance is evaluated based upon the quality of the work and the results
			 produced;
b. Work performed to meet
			 a demand, including, but not limited to, work of a recurring nature that does
			 not necessarily require special skills or extensive training, or;
c. The furnishing of labor, time, or effort
			 by a contractor or vendor, not involving the delivery of any specific end
			 product other than reports that are incidental to the required
			 performance.
3. Examples
			 of services that are typically considered technical in nature include drug
			 screening, criminal background checks, elevator service, janitorial service,
			 pest control service, translator service, nursing, occupational therapy,
			 physical therapy, speech therapy, housekeeping, training, and office machine
			 maintenance.
4. When in doubt if a
			 particular service should be considered technical or professional, divisions
			 should consult with Commodities Purchasing Unit (CPU).
5. Technical services are not within the
			 scope of this Manual. For assistance on the development of technical services
			 contracts, divisions should consult with CPU.
D.
Interlocal Agreements
1. Interlocal Agreements are authorized under
A.C.A. §
												25-20-104
.
2. The purpose of Interlocal Agreements is to
			 facilitate cooperation and sharing of resources at the local level between
			 state agencies.
3. For information
			 regarding Interlocal Agreements, divisions should consult with CSS prior to
			 development
4. Interlocal Agreements
			 are for highly specific situations and the details on their development are not
			 within the scope of this Manual.
III.
Other Agreement Types
A.
Medicaid Provider Agreements
1. Medicaid Provider Agreements establish an
			 individual or entity as a Medicaid provider and are specific to each service
			 being provided. Contractors may have multiple contracts if they provide more
			 than one of the approximately forty available services.
2. Medicaid Provider Agreements are managed
			 by the Division of Medical Services (DMS) and are governed by Medicaid
			 regulations and rates.
3. Medicaid
			 Provider Agreements are not within the scope of this Manual.
B.
Sub-grants
1. Sub-grants are written agreements to
			 provide money or property to eligible recipients under specific federal or
			 state legislation authorizing such assistance.
2. The sub-grant award process shall comply
			 with the Accounting and Budgetary Procedures laws of Arkansas.
3. In accordance with
A.C.A. §
												19-4-2201
and
2202,
the Legislative Review Subcommittee and the Legislative Council must
			 review non-exempt discretionary sub-grants prior to implementation.
4. Some of the factors to consider when
			 determining if a particular situation warrants a sub-grant or a contract
			 include the following:
a. Sub-grants are for
			 ASSISTANCE while contracts are for ACQUIRING (PURCHASING) SOMETHING.
b. Sub-grants are often considered to be an
			 award of resource assistance to fulfill the SUB-GRANTEE'S mission, while
			 contracts are often put in place to fulfill DHS' mission.
c. If performance based standards are needed,
			 with the extra degree of specificity regarding what is to be done and remedies
			 for failure to perform, a contract is probably more appropriate than a
			 sub-grant.
d. Just because the
			 funding comes TO DHS as a grant does NOT necessarily mean DHS should put it out
			 to the vendor as a sub-grant.
5. Sub-grants are not within the scope of
			 this Manual.
CONTRACTING FORMATS CHAPTER TWO
NOTE:
If there is doubt as to whether a sub-grant or a contract is
				the more appropriate agreement format, divisions should consult with
				CSS.
C.
Construction Contracts
1. Construction
			 contracts are developed and approved in accordance with Arkansas Building
			 Authority (ABA) regulations.
2. For
			 details on construction contracts, divisions should consult with Central
			 Support Unit (CSU).
3. Construction
			 contracts are not within the scope of this Manual.