City of San José - Consulting
BID DOCUMENT
BOS Refresh Business Resource Website
Bid Number: BOS REFRESH 03262024
Closing Date: 05/07/2024 17:00:00 PT
200 E. Santa Clara Street
San José, California, 95113
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
0 COVER
1 INTRODUCTION
2 BACKGROUND
3 DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS (if applicable)
4 SCOPE OF WORK
5 TERM OF AGREEMENT AND FUNDING
6 HOW TO OBTAIN THIS RFP
7 PROCEDURE FOR SUBMITTING QUESTIONS AND INQUIRIES
8 OBJECTIONS
9 PROPOSAL SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS
10 SELECTION PROCESS AND EVALUATION CRITERIA
10.1 SELECTION PROCESS
10.2 EVALUATION CRITERIA AND WEIGHTING
11 BEST AND FINAL OFFER (BAFO)
12 GROUNDS FOR DISQUALIFICATION
13 CONFLICT OF INTEREST
14 GENERAL INFORMATION
15 LOCAL AND SMALL BUSINESS ENTERPRISE PREFERENCE (LBE/SBE) (if applicable)
16 PUBLIC NATURE OF PROPOSAL MATERIAL
17 PROTESTS
18 CITY BUSINESS TAX
19 CALIFORNIA SECRETARY OF STATE REGISTRATION
20 ENVIRONMENTALLY PREFERABLE PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
21 Intentionally Omitted
22 OTHER PUBLIC AGENCY PURCHASES
23 RFP DOCUMENTS & SUBMITTAL CHECKLIST
A Scope of Services and Requirements
B City’s Standard Terms and Conditions
C Insurance Requirements
1 Request for Local and Small Business Enterprise Preference, if applicable
X Response Certification Form
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0 COVER
CONSULTING SERVICES
REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP)
BOS REFRESH 03262024
BOS Refresh Business Resource Website
Release Date: 03/26/2024 PT
Procurement Contact:
Address:
E-mail Address:
Jessica Munoz
200 East Santa Clara Street, 16th Floor
San José, CA 95113-1905
Deadline for Questions and Objections:
Written Questions/Clarifications
●
Objections to Specifications/Requirements
●
04/30/2024 17:00:00 PT
Objections to specifications and/or questions must
be submitted in writing using the Biddingo Question
and Answer utility at
http://www.biddingo.com/sanjose.
Proposal Due Date and Time:
Location:
05/07/2024 17:00:00 PT
Proposal responses must be submitted online
through Biddingo prior to the proposal due date
and time.
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1 INTRODUCTION
2 BACKGROUND
Business Owners Space (BOS) is a collaborative partnership comprising over 20 organizations
established back in 2007 to serve San Jose’s business community. The core purpose is to support
business owners by providing access to free technical assistance. BOS has evolved over this period
to encompass a variety of activity including a website with materials, partner meetings and annual
small business summit/events. The city of San Jose provides staff support to BOS on an ongoing
basis.
Why upgrade BOS Now?
The impact of Covid on San Jose’s economy has triggered a new impetus to strengthen the city’s
small business ecosystem and support business owners to recover and become more resilient. A key
observation during the Covid pandemic was that business owners who accessed technical assistance
reduced the risk of business failure, making more informed decisions particularly on the critical
importance of securing working capital with successful grant and loan applications. Over the period
March 2020 through September 2021 the collective efforts of all organizations across the public and
private sector enabled San Jose businesses to secure over $2.7bn of pandemic federal and state
loan and grant programs.
What is the focus of the BOS Refresh project?
The headline questions and the focus for this project is how to we broaden access to and increase
the take up of technical assistance, strengthen collaboration and sustain the partnership?
The city of San Jose wants to ensure that any business located anywhere in the city can easily
access the right technical assistance. In summary, the city wants to see more businesses benefitting
from the services that BOS partners offer and making access more transparent and straightforward.
The BOS Refresh is an important city-wide project with three main components:
Review the Brand with a fundamental redesign of the website with new materials, service
offers as part of an enhanced customer led approach to extend reach and impact.
Introduce new features into the website which improves access and take up of technical
assistance and where possible/practical strengthen voluntary collaboration between partners
and other business facing organizations such as chambers of commerce, industry
associations and local neighborhood groups.
Shift the focus of the city away from maintenance to facilitation of new opportunities,
resources and support to partners for sustaining both existing and design in new service
offers.
Summary
The BOS Refresh project is an opportunity to improve both the customer experience and the service
impact of the provider organization. From an ecosystem perspective the BOS refresh ideas are closer
to establishing a virtual “one stop shop” that reflects an adaptation of existing tech models of
incubation centering on the combined effect of customer networking, access to finance, and ease of
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access to professional services. The key challenge is to showcase all the technical assistance on
offer in the city that drives more business owners to regularly take up technical assistance.
3 DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS (if applicable)
Desirable consultant qualifications include:
Web Design and Development Skills: Create a modern, visually appealing website that
reflects our objective and effectively provides resources and guidance to our target
audience.
Content Strategy Expertise: Ability to develop a strategy that aligns with the target audience’s
needs and includes collaboration with partners.
CMS Implementation Knowledge: (Optional) Experience with CMS platforms for easy content
management.
Functional Integration: Skill in adding search features, user systems (optional), interactive
tools, and social media integration.
Web Security Practices: Knowledge in implementing security measures and compliance with
data protection laws.
SEO and Performance Optimization: Expertise in SEO and web performance techniques for
improved visibility and fast loading times.
Project Management Skills: Ability to manage budgets, timelines, and provide detailed project
plans.
Training and Support Capabilities: Offering comprehensive training for the team and ongoing
technical support.
Analytical Skills: Proficiency in analytics tools to track website performance.
Collaboration and Communication: Strong teamwork and communication abilities.
Adaptability and Innovation: Keeping up with web technology trends for continuous
improvement.
4 SCOPE OF WORK
The Business Outreach Services (BOS) website Refresh project is designed to revitalize the platform,
enhancing its value for business owners and BOS partners. The customer audience are the 60,000
businesses with a physical location in the city of San Jose. This project is the primary source of
information to support existing business owners access free low/cost and market driven services.
Driven by direct feedback, this initiative targets issues like the site's low usage, outdated information,
and insufficient engagement tracking. Through improvements in design, functionality, and
content—with a focus on provider services, access to funding, government assistance, and event
promotion—the project aims to simplify service access, enhance user experience, and cultivate a
more collaborative business support environment. This scope of work delineates the necessary tasks
and deliverables for transforming the BOS website into a robust, culturally sensitive, user-friendly
resource center.
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Task 1: Website Redesign and Development
Objective: To create a modern, user-friendly website that effectively showcases provider services,
access to capital, government services, events, and news.
Activities:
Provide a new web address/domain and logo
Develop a visually appealing, easy-to-navigate interface.
Implement a direct appointment-setting system, if feasible.
Ensure the site is updated and available in multiple languages.
Integrate a content management system for easy updates.
Feedback Loop
Integrate an email collection option to create a free membership user database
Optional: AI integration
Task 2: Showcasing Provider Services
Objective: To prominently feature each BOS partner, detailing who they are, what they offer, and how
to access their services.
Activities:
Create detailed partner profiles with contact information.
Provide a clear and accessible service menu for site visitors.
Enable the customer to choose a provider.
Design solution on how to filter providers based on user needs.
Task 3: Enhancing Access to Capital
Objective: To provide businesses with clear information on available financial resources, including
government-backed lending programs.
Activities:
Develop a section dedicated to financial education and resources.
Link directly to responsible lenders and detail new loan programs segmenting the market by
financial institution and loan value.
Provide access to SBA and State loan programs.
Task 4: Consolidating Government Services (Federal, State, Local)
Objective: To make government services more accessible and efficient for business owners.
Activities:
Create a one-stop shop for key services with named contacts.
Update businesses on new rules, regulations, and service offers.
Task 5: Promoting Events, News, and Updates
Objective: To keep businesses informed about relevant events, news, and updates in a timely and
accessible manner.
Activities:
Integrate a comprehensive webinar program.
Enable BOS partners to use the website ot promote events.
Develop a mechanism for business owners to sign up for events
Task 6: Staff Training and Maintenance
Objective: Continue on-going maintenance support after the launch of the website and provide
training and support to our team members to effectively manage and maintain the website after
launch.
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Activities:
Train city staff on using website, making edits, and updates if needed.
Provide on-going maintenance edits that may be needed for 5 years.
5 TERM OF AGREEMENT AND FUNDING
It is anticipated that the initial term of the agreement resulting from this solicitation will be one (1) year with an option
extension for an additional (60) months for maintenance.
6 HOW TO OBTAIN THIS RFP
This solicitation may be downloaded from the Biddingo solicitation posting system at
http://www.biddingo.com/sanjose. You may also access this solicitation, along with other City of San José
solicitations, at https://www.sanjoseca.gov/your-government/departments/finance/purchasing/bid-
opportunities.
Vendors wishing to respond to this solicitation must register with Biddingo at
http://www.biddingo.com/sanjose. If you have a problem registering, contact Biddingo directly at (800)
208-1290 or by email to [email protected].
All addenda and notices related to this procurement will be posted by the City on Biddingo. In the event
that this solicitation is obtained through any means other than Biddingo, the City will not be responsible for
the completeness, accuracy, or timeliness of the final solicitation document.
Prospective subcontractors should note that once registered with Biddingo, they may view all
organizations (with name and contact information) who download the solicitation document.
There is no cost to the vendor to register, receive notifications, or submit responses for City of San José
solicitations using Biddingo.
7 PROCEDURE FOR SUBMITTING QUESTIONS AND INQUIRIES
All questions and inquiries regarding this solicitation (including, but not limited to, questions about the
products or services to be procured, any discrepancies or omissions, or requests for clarifications) must be
made through the Question and Answer portal on Biddingo. The City will provide a written response to all
questions in the form of an Addendum. Questions answered on the Biddingo Question and Answer portal
shall be considered addenda to this solicitation.
The City shall not be responsible for nor be bound by any oral instructions, interpretations, or explanations
issued by the City or its representatives. Should discrepancies or omissions be found in this solicitation or
should there be a need to clarify this solicitation, requests for clarification should be submitted online
through Biddingo.
8 OBJECTIONS
Any objections as to the structure, content, or distribution of this RFP must be submitted through the
Question and Answer portal on Biddingo. Objections must be as specific as possible and must identify the
RFP section number and title, as well as a description and rationale for the objection.
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B. All objections, questions, and inquiries pertaining to this RFP must be received by the Deadline for
Questions and Objections specified on the cover sheet.
9 PROPOSAL SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS
To expedite the evaluation process, each proposal response should be organized in
accordance with the information included in this bid document. Proposals that do not follow
the specified format or fail to provide the required documentation will receive lower scores or,
if found to be non-responsive, may be disqualified. In the event of a conflict between any of
the proposal documents, resolution thereof shall be in the City’s sole discretion. Proposers
who propose serving more than one geographical area must submit a separate and complete
package for each geographical service area proposed.
Vendors shall use the forms provided by the City to provide RFP responses in the areas
indicated. Do not attempt to override or bypass spreadsheet functionality or modify City-
provided forms in providing responses. If you are proposing to work in more than one
geography, you must submit a separate and complete package for each geographical
service area proposed. Each one will be evaluated and scored separately. Please
clearly describe the geographical area you are proposing in your response.
Delivery/Electronic Submission:
All responses to this solicitation must be submitted electronically through Biddingo. Bid
responses are secure and are not accessible by anyone but the bidder until after the bid
end date and time indicated in this solicitation.
Proposers must submit all required documentation. Upload required forms and
documentation through Biddingo and submit with your solicitation response.
All documents attached to your bid submittal will be scanned for viruses upon upload.
The time required to scan uploaded documents may vary depending on document type,
size, etc. and can take up to a few minutes for very large files. It is the sole
responsibility of the vendor to ensure that their entire solicitation response is uploaded
and submitted prior to the specified solicitation closing date and time so please allow
sufficient time to complete this process and/or seek assistance from Biddingo if
necessary.
Any questions regarding how to upload attachments or submit a response through
Biddingo should be directed to Biddingo at (800) 208-1290 or by email to
Please note: Attaching documentation to the bid will not automatically submit
your bid. You must click the SUBMIT button before your bid response will be
submitted.
Proposers may modify their electronic responses prior to bid close; however, please
note that if you modify a submitted response, be sure that you resubmit it prior to the
bid closing date and time. It is the sole responsibility of the vendor to ensure that their
entire solicitation response is submitted prior to the solicitation closing date and time.
The City is not responsible for any late or incomplete submissions, including those due
to technical issues with Biddingo. It is recommended that bidders allow sufficient time
to seek assistance from Biddingo in the event there are unforeseen issues that affect
the bidder’s ability to upload and submit their solicitation response.
The City must receive your response to this RFP electronically through Biddingo by the
specified proposal due date and time for your proposal to be considered.
Until you receive an electronic receipt for your bid submission, you have not
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submitted your bid.
Formatting: Proposals must be in Times New Roman, Arial, or some similar, easily
readable font. The size of the font cannot be smaller than 11 point, and margins should be 1
inch or more. If applicable, include a table of contents that identifies the page numbers for
each section of the proposal. All pages should be consecutively numbered and correspond
to the table of contents.
RFP & Submittal Checklist: See the RFP & Submittal Checklist Section for additional
details and response requirements.
10 SELECTION PROCESS AND EVALUATION CRITERIA
10.1 SELECTION PROCESS
Proposal responses will be evaluated as outlined in this Section.
Proposal Responsiveness: Proposals will be examined to ensure that the proposer submitted all
required elements and is responsive to any technical specifications and minimum qualifications (if
applicable).
City staff will evaluate and score proposal submissions. Subject matter experts from outside the City
may also be on the evaluation team or participate during oral interviews (if applicable).
The City reserves the right to rely on information from sources other than the information provided by the
respondents.
The City reserves the right to interview (oral interviews) the top proposers based on the interim proposal
scores (Total Score Without Oral Interview). If the City elects to conduct oral interviews, the final scoring
and ranking will be based on the Total Score With Oral Interview. If the City elects not to conduct oral
interviews, the final scoring and rankings will be based on the Total Score Without Oral Interview.
Award will be made to the highest scoring/ranking responsive and responsible proposer(s) in accordance
with this Section. The City will select as many top-scoring proposals as funding allows; however, to avoid
redundancy, the highest-scoring proposal among similar service geographies will be awarded.
Final award shall be contingent upon the selected vendor(s) accepting the City’s Standard Terms and
Conditions and Insurance Requirements in substantial conformance to Attachments B and C of this
RFP.
The selected vendor(s) shall provide proof of insurance (certificate of insurance) meeting the specified
Insurance Requirements prior to contract execution.
Should the selected vendor(s) fail to execute the agreement or provide proof of insurance as required
herein, the City shall have the right to seek legal remedies against the vendor, including forfeiture of any
proposal bond, for damages. The City shall also have the right to terminate negotiations with the
selected vendor(s) and commence negotiations with the next highest ranked responsive and responsible
proposer(s).
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10.2 EVALUATION CRITERIA AND WEIGHTING
11 BEST AND FINAL OFFER (BAFO)
A Best and Final Offer (BAFO) may be held with one or more finalist(s) if additional information or
clarification is necessary to make a final decision. The BAFO may allow finalist(s) to revise some or all of
their original submittals based on additional information provided by the City.
The City will send out the request for a BAFO with instructions addressing the areas to be covered and the
date and time by which the BAFO is to be submitted. After receipt of BAFO responses, scores may be
adjusted based on the new information received.
The City will request only one BAFO unless the City’s Purchasing Officer determines that another BAFO is
warranted.
Proposers are cautioned that the issuance of a BAFO is optional and at the sole discretion of the City.
Therefore, Proposers should not assume that there will be an additional opportunity to amend their
Proposals after the original submission. Proposers may not request an opportunity to submit a BAFO.
12 GROUNDS FOR DISQUALIFICATION
All solicitation respondents are expected to have read and understand the "Procurement and Contract
Process Integrity and Conflict of Interest," Section 7 of the Consolidated Open Government and Ethics
Provisions adopted on August 26, 2014. A complete copy of the Resolution 77135 can be found at
https://www.sanjoseca.gov/home/showdocument?id=19565.
Any vendor who violates this policy will be subject to disqualification. Generally, the grounds for
disqualification include:
Contact regarding this procurement with any City official or employee or evaluation team member
Score without Oral
Interview
Score with Oral
Interview
Proposal Responsiveness
Pass/Fail
Experience and Qualifications
25%
15%
Project Approach
20%
15%
Technical Capabilities
30%
30%
Cost Proposal
15%
15%
Oral Interview
15%
Local Business Enterprise
5%
5%
Small Business Enterprise
5%
5%
TOTAL SCORE
100%
100%
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other than the Procurement Contact or Purchasing Officer from the time of issuance of this
solicitation until the end of the protest period.
Evidence of collusion, directly or indirectly, among vendor respondents in regard to the amount,
terms, or conditions of this solicitation or their respective responses.
Influencing any City staff member or evaluation team member throughout the solicitation process,
including the development of specifications.
Evidence of submitting incorrect information in response to a solicitation or misrepresenting or failing
to disclose material facts during the evaluation process.
In addition to violations of the Process Integrity Guidelines, the following conduct may also result in
disqualification:
Offering gifts or souvenirs, even of minimal value, to City officers or employees.
Existence of any lawsuit, unresolved contractual claim, or dispute between Proposer and the City.
Evidence of respondent’s inability to successfully complete the responsibilities and obligations of the
proposal.
Respondent’s default under any City contract resulting in termination.
Evidence of any wage theft judgements as described in the Certification Form.
13 CONFLICT OF INTEREST
In order to avoid a conflict of interest or the perception of a conflict of interest, proposer(s) selected to provide goods
and services under this RFP will be subject to the following requirements:
The proposer(s) selected under this RFP will be precluded from submitting proposals or bids as a prime
contractor or subcontractor for any future procurement with the City if the specifications for such
procurements were developed or influenced by the work performed under the agreement(s) resulting from
this RFP.
Proposer(s) may not have any interest in any potential proposers for future City procurements that may
result from the work performed under the agreement resulting from this RFP.
14 GENERAL INFORMATION
The City reserves the right to waive any informality or irregularity in any response.
Additionally, the City may, for any reason and at its sole discretion, decide not to award a
contract as a result of this solicitation or to cancel the solicitation altogether. The City shall
not be obligated to respond to any proposal submitted nor be legally bound in any manner by
submission of the proposal.
The City is not required to accept the lowest submitted priced. Responses will be evaluated
to determine the most advantageous (best value) proposal on a variety of factors including,
but not limited to, price, design, quality, features, and performance.
The City reserves the right to accept or reject any item(s) or groups of items in a response
and may elect to award by line item(s) if it is found to be in the City’s best interest to do so.
The City also reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to make multiple awards. In the event
the City elects to make multiple awards, awards will be made in rank order starting with the
highest ranked vendor based on the selection criteria established for this solicitation.
In the event any respondent to this solicitation cannot meet a specified budget requirement,
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the City reserves the right to award to the next highest ranked vendor in accordance with the
selection criteria set forth for this solicitation.
Freight and/or shipping charges shall be provided at no additional cost to the City, i.e., “FOB
Destination Prepaid,” unless specified as a separate line item in this solicitation.
Vendors should not include sales tax in their submitted pricing. The City will work with the
selected vendor to add sales tax as appropriate and will incorporate it into the final contract.
The City of San José is exempt from federal excise tax, including federal transportation tax.
The City will provide an exemption certificate as appropriate.
Statistical information contained in this solicitation is for informational purposes only. The
City shall not be responsible for the complete accuracy of said data.
Any estimated quantities provided are for quoting purposes only and are not to be
interpreted as a guarantee to purchase any amount. Any variations from the estimated
quantities do not entitle the vendor to an adjustment in unit pricing or rates.
The City reserves the right to verify any information provided during the solicitation process
and may contact any provided references or any other persons or entities known to have
contracted with the responding vendor.
The City may require audited financial statements as certified by an independent Certified
Public Accountant. Do not submit these documents unless they are requested.
The laws of the State of California shall govern this solicitation process and any resulting
agreements, including any required vendor agreements for subscriptions, licensing,
maintenance, support, hosting, etc.
All goods and services provided to the City by the successful vendor shall comply with all
City policies, rules, and regulations which may be in effect during the term of the agreement,
as well as all applicable federal, state, and local statutes, ordinances, and regulations. The
successful vendor is also required to comply with all applicable equal opportunity laws and
regulations.
The City shall not be liable for any pre-contractual expenses incurred by prospective
vendors or selected contractors, including, but not limited to, costs incurred in the
preparation or submission of solicitation responses. The City shall be held harmless and
free from any liability, claims, or expenses whatsoever incurred by, or on behalf of, any
person or organization responding to this solicitation.
All products (if applicable) must be of new, unused condition, unless otherwise requested in
this solicitation.
Failure to carefully read and understand this solicitation in its entirety, including all
accompanying documentation, may cause response submittals to be out of compliance or
rejected by the City or may legally obligate the respondent to more than it intends or
realizes.
Information obtained by any vendor respondent from any officer, agent, or employee of the
City shall not affect the risks or obligations assumed by the vendor or relieve the vendor
from fulfilling any of these solicitation conditions or any subsequent contract conditions.
Only the response format specified in this solicitation will be accepted as compliant for
submitted responses. Failure to fully complete and submit all required forms and
documentation may result in disqualification.
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15 LOCAL AND SMALL BUSINESS ENTERPRISE PREFERENCE (LBE/SBE) (if
applicable)
Chapter 4.12 of the San José Municipal Code provides a preference for Local and Small Businesses in the
procurement of goods and services that are not specifically precluded from these preferences.
If the basis of an award is price determinative (awarded to the low bidder), the amount for the preference
shall be 2.5% of cost for local and an additional 2.5% of cost for small.
If the basis of an award is evaluative (awarded to the best value respondent), the amount of preference
shall be 5% of total points for local and an additional 5% of total points for small.
To be considered for Local and Small Business Enterprise Preference, you must complete the Request for
Local and Small Business Enterprise Preference Form and submit it with your solicitation response.
Vendors who fail to complete and submit the Request for Local and Small Business Enterprise Preference
Form with their solicitation response will not be considered for the preference. This information cannot be
submitted after the specified solicitation response submittal deadline.
To receive the LBE preference, you must have both of the following:
A valid San José Business Tax Certificate Number: The business tax certificate number below
should match to the address and business name for which the preference is being claimed and must
be current as of the proposal due date. Vendors should verify their information through the City’s
Business Tax Lookup at https://www.sanjoseca.gov/your-government/departments/finance/business-
tax-registration/business-tax-lookup prior to submittal.
A legitimate business presence in Santa Clara County with at least one full time employee:
The City has interpreted a legitimate business presence to require:
the local address for which the preference is being requested is of a commercial nature and the
primary purpose of the location is to serve as a principal, regional, branch, or satellite business
office; or
in the case of a business located in a residential dwelling, the business must either be a valid
home occupation as an incidental use of the business owner’s primary dwelling, or the
residential dwelling is exclusively used for a commercial nature and the primary purpose of the
location is to serve as a principal, regional, branch or satellite business office.
You must first qualify as an LBE to qualify for the SBE Preference. If you receive the LBE preference
and the total number of employees for your firm (regardless of where they are located) is 35 or fewer, you
also qualify to receive the SBE preference.
The preference shall only be considered for the prime respondent(s). However, in the event that the
responding firm is a Joint Venture (JV) or Partnership as indicated on the Response Certification Form, the
local preference shall apply if any one of the firms in the JV or Partnership meets the definition for a Local
Business Enterprise. In order for a JV or Partnership to be considered for the Small Business Enterprise
Preference, the aggregate of all of the employees that make up the JV or partnership must meet the
definition for a small business.
Refer to the Request for Local and Small Business Enterprise Preference Form for additional details.
The City reserves to right to request additional documentation and supporting information to confirm that the
preference should be applied, including, but not limited to, lease agreements, proof of payments, employee
information, signage, website, and location
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16 PUBLIC NATURE OF PROPOSAL MATERIAL
All materials submitted in response to this solicitation shall become a public record and retained as
property of the City of San José. These materials are subject to disclosure under the State of California
Public Records Act (California Government Code Section 6250 et seq.). There are limited and narrow
exceptions to this disclosure requirement.
Do NOT include confidential or proprietary information in your response material as it may be disclosed if
requested by any member of the public.
If you must include confidential or proprietary information that you believe is exempt from disclosure, you
must (1) clearly mark the specific information as "Confidential," "Trade Secret," or "Proprietary;" (2) state
the specific provision in the Public Records Act that provides the exemption; and (3) provide the factual
basis for claiming the exemption in each specific instance.
In the event you claim such an exemption, you must include a redacted version of your submission and
state in the submission the following: "[insert Respondent Name] shall indemnify the City and the
City's officers, employees, and agents and hold them harmless from any claim or liability and
defend against any action brought against the City for City's refusal to disclose trade secrets or
other proprietary or confidential information contained in [insert Respondent Name]'s solicitation
response to any person making a request. This indemnification obligation shall be through the
term of the City's Records Retention Schedule which is four (4) years after the date of award or
cancellation of this solicitation for non-awarded vendors and four (4) years after contract
termination for awarded vendors."
Failure to meet the requirements set forth in Sections C and D above shall constitute a waiver of your right
to exemption from disclosure.
Any material which contains language purporting to render all or significant portions of the submission
“Confidential,” “Trade Secret” or “Proprietary,” or fails to provide the exemption information required above
will be considered a public record in its entirety.
Although the California Public Records Act recognizes that certain confidential or proprietary information
may be protected from disclosure, the City of San José may not be able to establish that the information is
a trade secret or otherwise proprietary. If a request is made for information marked “Confidential,” “Trade
Secret,” or “Proprietary,” the City will provide the respondent who submitted the information with
reasonable notice to seek protection from disclosure by a court of competent jurisdiction.
The City will not disclose any part of any response before it announces a Recommendation of Award or
Notice of Intended Award on the grounds that there is a substantial public interest in not disclosing
responses during the evaluation process. After the announcement of a Recommendation of Award or
Notice of Intended Award, all responses received to this solicitation will be subject to public disclosure.
17 PROTESTS
If an interested party wants to dispute the award recommendation, they must submit their protest in writing
to the Department Director or Designee no later than ten (10) calendar days after the Recommendation of
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B.
A.
B.
C.
Award is published, detailing the grounds, factual basis, and providing all supporting information. Protests
will not be considered for disputes of requirements or specifications, which must be addressed in
accordance with the Objections Section above. Failure to submit a timely written protest to the contact
listed below will bar consideration of the protest.
Protests must be addressed to the following:
City of San José
Attention: Rachel Quirimit, Administrative Officer, Office of Economic Development
200 East Santa Clara Street, 12th Floor
San José, CA 95113
C. Protests may be submitted by email to [email protected], with a copy to the RFP Procurement
Contact specified for this solicitation.
18 CITY BUSINESS TAX
The awarded vendor(s) must comply with the San José Municipal Code Chapter 4.76 with respect to the payment of
any applicable City Business Tax prior to the commencement of work. Contact Finance/Revenue Management by
phone at (408) 535-7055 or [email protected] to determine applicable tax costs. Additional information
about the business tax and registration process can be found on the City’s website at
http://www.sanjoseca.gov/businesstax.
19 CALIFORNIA SECRETARY OF STATE REGISTRATION
The awarded vendor(s) must have a current and valid registration with the California Secretary of State to conduct
business with the City of San José. You can verify this and find more information through the California Secretary
of State website at https://www.sos.ca.gov/business-programs/business-entities/. This will be verified by the City
prior to contract execution.
20 ENVIRONMENTALLY PREFERABLE PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
The City has adopted an “Environmentally Preferable Procurement” (EPP) policy. The goal is to
encourage the procurement of products and services that help to minimize the environmental impact
resulting from the use and disposal of these products. The EPP policy may be found on the City’s website
at http://www.sanjoseca.gov/home/showdocument?id=1268.
In accordance with the EPP policy, vendors are encouraged to offer Energy Star, Green Seal, EcoLogo, or
EPEAT certified products as applicable. The City also suggests that proposers offer products and services
that are produced or delivered with minimal use of virgin materials, maximum use of recycled materials,
and reduced waste, energy usage, water utilization, and toxicity in the manufacture and use of products.
Vendors are encouraged to offer Energy Star certified products, products that meet FEMP (Federal Energy
Management Program) standards for energy consumption, and products that are produced with recycled
materials, where appropriate, unless otherwise specified in this solicitation.
21 Intentionally Omitted
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22 OTHER PUBLIC AGENCY PURCHASES
It is intended that other public agencies be permitted to purchase under the same terms resulting from this
procurement. Any participating public agency shall accept sole responsibility for placing orders, arranging deliveries
and/or services, and making payments to the vendor. The City of San José will not be liable or responsible for any
obligations, including but not limited to, financial responsibility in connection with participation by other public
agencies.
23 RFP DOCUMENTS & SUBMITTAL CHECKLIST
A Scope of Services and Requirements
Orginal attached file(s)
B City’s Standard Terms and Conditions
Orginal attached file(s)
C Insurance Requirements
The City’s Insurance Requirements for which the successful vendor(s) will be required to provide proof of coverage
prior to contract execution.
Orginal attached file(s)
1 Request for Local and Small Business Enterprise Preference, if applicable
Orginal attached file(s)
Seq. File Description Required
1 BOS Refresh Scope of Work.pdf Optional
Seq. File Description Required
1 City's Standard Terms and
Conditions.doc
Optional
Seq. File Description Required
1 BOS Refresh Ins Reqs 3-19-24.pdf Optional
Seq. File Description Required
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X Response Certification Form
must
Orginal attached file(s)
3 Exemplar Agreement Acknowledgement Form
Complete, sign, and submit with proposal response.
Orginal attached file(s)
4 Insurance Requirements Acknowledgement Form
Complete, sign, and submit with proposal response.
Orginal attached file(s)
5 Customer Reference Form
Complete and submit 3 customer references (using this form) with your proposal response.
Orginal attached file(s)
6 Proposer Questionnaire
Orginal attached file(s)
1 Local and Small Business
Preference (1).pdf
Optional
Seq. File Description Required
1 Form 1 - Response Certification
Form.docx
Optional
Seq. File Description Required
1 Form 3 - Exemplar Agreement
Acknowledgement Form.docx
Optional
Seq. File Description Required
1 Form 4 - Insurance Requirements
Acknowledgement Form (1).docx
Optional
Seq. File Description Required
1 Form 5 - Customer Reference
Form-Capacity Building.docx
Optional
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7 Cost Proposal Form
To compare costs fairly and consistently, Cost Proposals must be submitted on the Cost Proposal Form provided
with this solicitation, pursuant to these submission instructions.
Orginal attached file(s)
Seq. File Description Required
1 Form 6 - Proposer Questionnaire
BOS Refresh.docx
Optional
Seq. File Description Required
1 Cost Proposal Form BOS RFP.xlsx Optional
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