Jerome Joint School District No. 261

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT 7408

Entering into Professional Service Contracts with Design Professionals, Construction Managers, and Professional

Land Surveyors—The Request for Qualifications Policy

Selection of Public Works Professionals to be Based on Qualifications

Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, it shall be the policy of this state that all public

agencies and political subdivisions of the State of Idaho and their agents shall make selections for professional

engineering, architectural, landscape architecture, construction management, and professional land surveying

services, by persons and firms licensed pursuant to Idaho law to perform such professional services, on the basis of qualifications and demonstrated competence and shall negotiate contracts or agreements with the licensed

professional(s) selected to provide the requested professional service(s).

No proposal, bid or qualifications shall be accepted or denied based on environmental, social, and governance

(ESG) standards, including screening or scoring bids, in while or in part, on subjective ethical or sustainability

criteria unrelated to the specifications in a solicitation or qualifications of a bidder.

Procedures to Select Public Works Professionals for Contracts Greater than $50,000

In carrying out this policy the Board shall use the following guidelines when securing contracts for engineering,

architectural, landscape architecture, construction management, and land surveying services on projects for which

the professional service fee is anticipated to exceed the total sum of $50,000 excluding, however, those

professional services contracts previously awarded by the District for an associated or phased project, and for

which the expenditure is otherwise exempt from the bidding process otherwise required by law. To implement this

policy:

1. The Board or its designee will provide a general description of the services being solicited and encourage

persons or firms engaged in the services being solicited to submit statements of qualifications and past

performance data.

2. The Board or its designee will establish and make available to the public a request for qualifications that

includes the criteria and the procedures to be used for measurable scoring, ranking, and selection of

qualified persons or firms to perform such services.

3. After receiving responses to a request for qualifications, the Board or its designee shall score and rank the

responding persons and firms based on their qualifications and demonstrated competence pursuant to

the Board’s or its designee’s established criteria and procedures. The list of ranked respondents, including

the scoring used to develop the ranking, shall be made available to the public. Some examples of selection

criteria for consideration may include but are not limited to:

A. A description of the firm, including its location and longevity;

B. Its past performance;

C. Its project manager and key staff experience, education, and training;

D. Its experience with similar projects;

E. Its specific approach to projects or assignments;

F. Its proposed schedule, if applicable; and

G. Its quality control procedures.

4. The Board or its designee shall select for negotiation the persons or firms whom the public agency or

political subdivision determines to be the highest-ranked and best qualified.

5. The Board or its designee shall next negotiate with the highest-ranked person or firm for a contract or an

agreement to perform such services at a price determined by the District to be reasonable and fair to the

public after considering the estimated value, the scope, the complexity, schedule, and the nature of the

services required.

6. In the event the Board or its designee is unable to negotiate a satisfactory contract or agreement with the

highest-ranked person or firm, it shall formally terminate negotiations and undertake negotiations with

the next highest-ranked person or firm, following the procedure prescribed above.

7. In the event the Board or its designee is unable to negotiate a satisfactory contract or agreement with any

of the selected persons or firms, it may recommence negotiations as described in the two items

immediately above, until a contract or agreement is reached, or may, in its discretion, cancel the

procurement.

8. Published Request for Qualifications. When the Board solicits proposals for qualifications for engineering,

architectural, landscape architecture, construction management, or land surveying services, for which the

professional service fee is anticipated to exceed the total sum of $50,000, it shall publish public notice in

the same manner as required for procurement of public works construction projects set forth at

Procedure 7405P, which sets forth the procedures required by Section 67-2805(2) of Idaho Code.

9. A List of Qualified Professionals. In fulfilling the requirements of the items above, the Board may

establish and select from a list of two or more persons or firms selected and preapproved for

consideration by the public agency or political subdivision. When creating a preapproved list of qualified

professionals, the Board or its designee shall first publish notice as set forth in the item immediately

above. When selecting from such list, no notice shall be required; and

10. Any list established under this item will be valid for up to five years, unless canceled by the Board prior to

the list's expiration where the Board has first determined in open session that cancellation of the would

be in the public's best interest.

Procedures to Select Public Works Professionals for Contracts Less than $50,000

When securing contracts for engineering, architectural, landscape architecture, construction management, or land

surveying services on projects for which the professional service fee is anticipated to be less than the total sum of

$50,000, the Board may use the guidelines set forth in the above paragraphs, or may establish its own guidelines

for selection based on demonstrated competence and qualifications to perform the type of services required,

which shall then be followed by negotiation of the fee at a price determined by the Board to be fair and reasonable

after considering the estimated value, scope, complexity, schedule, and nature of services required.

Approvals for Phased Projects

When the Board has previously awarded a professional services contract to a person or firm for an associated or

phased project, the public agency or political subdivision may, at its discretion and in accordance with all

provisions of Section 59-1026 of Idaho Code, negotiate an extended or new professional services contract with

that person or firm.

Cross References: 7405P Procuring Public Works, Services, and Personal Property

Legal References: I.C. § 67-2320 Professional Service Contracts with Design Professionals,

Construction Managers and Professional Land Surveyors

I.C. § 67-2347 Prohibition of Environmental, Social, and Governance Standards in Public Contracts

I.C. § 67-2805 Procurement of Public Works Construction

I.C. § 59-1026 Willful and Knowing Avoidance of Competitive Bidding and

Procurement Statutes

Other Reference: Policies and Procedures Used Template, Idaho State Department of Education,

http://www.sde.idaho.gov/sped/funding/

Policy History:

Adopted on: 08/25/2020

Revised on: 01/25/2022

Revised on: 12/19/2023