Washington Administrative Code › Title 200 - Enterprise Services, Department of › CONTRACTS AND SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT › Public Works › Chapter 200-330 - Small works roster › Section 200-330-050 - Small works direct contracting

Current through Register Vol. 24-14, July 15, 2024
(1) Direct
				  contracting process. In lieu of a formal public works bidding process and the
				  small works competitive contracting process provided in WAC
				  200-330-040, contracting agencies
				  may enter into direct contracts with a contractor by soliciting a quote from a
				  single selected contractor on the statewide roster or independent roster and
				  negotiate a final price. Pursuant to the limits set forth in
				  RCW
				     39.04.151 and
				  39.04.152, the direct contracting
				  process may be used when the contracting agency's estimate for the work is
				  equal to or less than the cost limit specified in
				  RCW
				     39.04.152 (4)(b), excluding
				  sales tax.
(2) Requirements.
				  Contracting agencies must meet the requirements of
				  RCW
				     39.04.151,
				  39.04.152, and this chapter, when
				  implementing a small works direct contracting process, inclusive of, but not
				  limited to, the following:
(a) Administrative
				  efficiency. Direct contracting is intended to be a quick and administratively
				  efficient process with a focus on promoting the use of small and diverse
				  businesses. This is not a competitive solicitation.
(b) Diverse business utilization plan.
				  Contracting agencies must establish a small, minority, women, and veteran-owned
				  business utilization plan prior to using the direct contracting
				  process.
(c) Contractor rotation.
(i) Contracting agencies must rotate direct
				  contracting opportunities among the available contractors on the appropriate
				  roster.
(ii) Contracting agencies
				  must not favor certain contractors by repeatedly awarding contracts to
				  contractors without documented attempts to directly contract with other
				  contractors.
(iii) Contracting
				  agencies must adopt a policy regarding how contract opportunities will be
				  rotated to avoid favoritism in direct contracting. Contracting agencies must
				  make this policy publicly available.
(iv) A contracting agency's rotation policy
				  must, at a minimum, provide the following:
(A)
				  Contractors that have been issued a contract under the direct contracting
				  process must not be offered a future contract until all other contractors on
				  the roster have received a solicitation for a quote through the direct
				  contracting process; and
(B)
				  Contracting agencies must consider nonresponsive solicitations and the
				  inability to negotiate an agreed price in their rotation policy.
(d) Soliciting quotes.
(i) Solicitations for a quote under the
				  direct contracting process must include the following:
(A) A description of the work to be performed
				  sufficient for the contractor to develop a price;
(B) The date the contracting agency must
				  receive the contractor's quote; and
(C) Any timeline requirements for
				  mobilization.
(ii) When
				  six or more contractors certified as public works small business enterprises by
				  OMWBE are listed on the appropriate roster, the contracting agency must solicit
				  a quote from a certified public works small business enterprise contractor on
				  the roster in accordance with the agency's rotation policy.
(iii) When five or fewer contractors
				  certified as public works small business enterprises by OMWBE are listed on the
				  appropriate small works roster for this type of work, the contracting agency
				  may solicit a quote from any contractor on the roster in accordance with the
				  agency's rotation policy.
(e) Negotiated price.
(i) A contract price must be negotiated with
				  a single selected contractor from the statewide or independent roster. The
				  negotiated price should be based on the quote from the contractor and available
				  project funds identified by the contracting agency.
(ii) If the contractor and the contracting
				  agency cannot agree on a price, the agency may elect to end negotiations and
				  move to the next contractor on the rotation in accordance with the agency's
				  rotation policy.
(iii) Once a price
				  is established and all other requirements are met, the contracting agency may
				  proceed with award and execution of the contract.
(iv) Contracting agencies are prohibited from
				  bid shopping using the direct contracting process. If the contracting agency
				  and the next contractor on the rotation cannot agree on a contract price, the
				  contracting agency must competitively bid the work under WAC
				  200-300-040, if the agency
				  intends to proceed with the work.
(f) Notice of award. Contracting agencies
				  must provide notice of a small works contract award to all other contractors on
				  the appropriate roster of award.
(g) LNI portal. Contracting agencies are
				  required to initiate the small works project using labor and industries'
				  awarding agency portal when awarding a contract under the direct contracting
				  process.
(h) Recordkeeping.
				  Contracting agencies must keep documented records of their efforts under the
				  direct contracting process, including records of the following:
(i) The contractors that the contracting
				  agency solicited for the contract;
(ii) Whether the contractor responded to the
				  solicitation;
(iii) Records of
				  price negotiations;
(iv) The
				  contracts that were awarded and to whom; and
(v) Records documenting the reasons a
				  negotiated price could not be reached.