Notice of Consulting Services
Notice is hereby given by the West Virginia Department of Transportation, Division of Highways, that engineering consulting services will be utilized for the following project:
STATE PROJECT T699-DARTR 24 00
FEDERAL PROJECT (OT) STBG-2024(087)D
CANDY DARTER PROGRAMMATIC AGREEMENT W/USFWS. This project shall consist of writing a Programmatic Agreement (PA) by utilizing data gathering and coordination to establish a streamlined process for handling routine environmental requirements regarding the Candy Darter for commonly encountered project types in West Virginia. The PA will be produced in accordance with Section 7 Endangered Species Act and will focus on repetitive actions at the state level. To develop the PA, the Consultant shall:
- Identify the general locations of future projects and the schedules for completion of the projects
- Identify areas where the Candy Darter and Candy Darter critical habitat are likely to be impacted by these future projects
- Identify recovery plans, biological studies, and biological opinions conducted within the geographic area of these projects in addition to data that the USFWS/WVDNR/WVDEP already have
- Identify relevant regional guidance that has undergone Section 7 consultation
- In coordination with state and federal agencies including the USFWS, jointly develop general strategies for addressing species conservation needs
- Develop avoidance and minimization procedures, such as seasonal restrictions or erosion-control measures, to remove or reduce the risk of direct impacts to listed and proposed listed species and their critical habitat
- Group future projects and associated actions according to the appropriate effects categories (e.g. “no effect", “not likely to adversely affect", etc.)
- Develop methods to offset impacts to listed species and their critical habitat
The PA will then be submitted to the Technical Support Division for review and distribution to other interested agencies. The purpose of this PA is to satisfy programmatic consultation requirements under Section 7 of the ESA and will be developed in conjunction with and in accordance with the formal Section 7 Consultation Processes.
Method of payment shall be Cost Plus Fixed Fee.
A single assignment will be made for this project.
Firms interested in being considered for this project must submit a “Letter of Qualification" (LOQ) and one unpriced prospectus to Ms. Erika J. Carroll, Assistant Director, Consultant Services Section, Engineering Division, Division of Highways, 1900 Kanawha Blvd. East, Building 5 – Room 920, Charleston, West Virginia 25305 or preferably by email to DOH.consultantservices@wv.gov prior to 4:00 p.m. on February 24, 2025.
Firms submitting LOQ's shall submit a detailed current list of all work assigned by any DOH division or district. The list shall include division or district of assignment, project name, state project number, percentage of work completed based on maximum amount payable and maximum amount payable.
Firms submitting LOQ's shall also provide proof of the following for themselves and any potential subconsultants. Replacement or addition of any subconsultant after the receipt of initial LOI prospectus, requires proof of “availability" for the director's approval. Firms failing to provide proper documentation as listed below or failure to meet timelines will be deemed nonresponsive and will result in disqualification. In the case of a response to advertisement for services, the firm's LOQ will not be forwarded to the shortlist committee. In the case of prequalification or statewide selection, another firm will be offered the tasks.
- Proof of registration with the WV Secretary of State's office (Certificate of Authorization AND a print off of the Business Organization Detail sheet from the Business and Licensing Section of the WV Secretary of State's office Online Data Services)
- Certificate of Authorization from applicable State Professional Board(s) (Engineering and/or Surveying)
- Indirect Cost Desk Review Memo issued from WVDOT Transportation Auditing Division showing the most current approved overhead rate (valid as of LOQ submission date).
As a minimum, the prospectus shall include the following evaluation information factors:
- Professional qualifications necessary for consideration and satisfactory performance of the required work and as a minimum shall have a professional engineer licensed by the State of West Virginia. That person shall be located within the office, with the location of the office identified, where the work is to be performed, and shall demonstrate sufficient past experience performed for the DOH related to design and plan development to be provided. This individual shall be the person-in-charge overseeing the work and must be readily accessible to the Department, preferably located in-state.
- Consideration shall be given to specialized experience and technical competence. Specialized experience shall focus on the qualifications of the staff working on the project with emphasis placed on individual specialized expertise required for the project. As a minimum, the firm shall provide a Résumé of those individuals who will be committed to the needs of the project. Strong considerations will be based on the professional and non-professional staff specialized experience and technical competence stationed within the office where the work is to be performed.
- Capacity consideration shall be made on the firm's ability to accomplish the work within the Department's required schedule time frame; personnel dedicated to perform such work.
- Past performance on contracts with Government agencies and private industry in terms of cost control, quality of work, and compliance with performance schedules. In addition, the information provided for past work performed should include:
- Information sufficient to show the minimum qualifications stated in items above.
- A list of all project experience in the past five (5) years.
- The name of the owner for whom the work was performed.
- The names and phone numbers of the owner's representatives who can verify and discuss the Consultant's participation in these projects.
- A brief description of each project size and type, including any unusual features.
In addition to the above evaluation factors, the prospectus shall include, as a minimum, the following items:
- A completed copy of the Department's Consultant Confidential Qualification Questionnaire dated January 1, 2024 or later (a Standard Form 330 will suffice as well), if not already on file. It must specifically indicate the staff levels by classification located in-state vs. out-of-state.
- Location of office or office(s) in which the work, or part of the work, will be performed.
- Identification of subconsultants by name as to the type of work anticipated to be subcontracted or performed, if proposed as part of the design team.
- Identification of software (including design software) that may potentially be utilized for this project.
- Indication of whether a cost accounting system has been maintained and is in effect such that it is capable of segregating and identifying accumulating costs for each job that is performed under cost type projects.
- Completed copies of the Division's “Consultant Short List Selection Criteria Technical Evaluation" form. Cross referencing on this form to other parts of the prospectus is not acceptable.
- A copy of a valid “Certificate of Authorization" to offer Engineering, Surveying, or other related services within the state, issued by the appropriate West Virginia Board.
A single “Letter of Qualification" and one unpriced prospectus are required and must contain all of the above information required to be considered. Failure to provide the required information and/or insufficient information will cause disqualification and the prospectus will be returned. All evaluation factors as noted herein before will be given equal consideration in the selection process, unless a project specific weighting of the evaluation factors is shown in the Notice for Consulting Services.
Prior to entering into any contract negotiations, the selected firm and any subconsultants shall submit a current audited overhead rate computation performed by a State or Federal government agency or independent CPA firm. The submitted overhead audit shall contain a detailed exhibit of the computations with all applicable eliminations and references. The audit shall be done in accordance with Government Auditing Standards issued by the Comptroller General of the United States and all eliminations required by the Federal Acquisition Regulations will be made. The submitted certified audited overhead (Indirect Cost Rate) report shall include the certification, certifying that the allowability of costs used to establish the final indirect cost rate are in accordance with the FAR cost principles, or a verification indicating this certification was previously submitted and accepted by the cognizant agency. This requirement will be waived for the selected firm or any subconsultant when its portion of the fee for the project is less than Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($500,000.00). In such instances, a company computed overhead rate may be utilized.
It is the policy of the West Virginia Department of Transportation, Division of Highways, that Disadvantaged and Women-owned Business Enterprises shall have the maximum opportunity to participate in the performance of contracts financed in whole or in part with Federal funds.