Issuing Procurement Unit State of Utah Division of Purchasing Conducting Procurement Unit State of Utah Division of Wildlife Resources REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS Herpetofauna Foster and Husbandry SOLICITATION #AS20-141 This Request for Proposals (“RFP”), having been determined to be the appropriate procurement method to provide the best value to the Conducting Procurement Unit, is designed to provide interested Offerors with sufficient basic information to submit proposals. This Request for Proposals ("RFP”) is issued in accordance with the Utah Procurement Code and applicable administrative rules of the Utah Administrative Code. If any provision of this RFP conflicts with the Utah Procurement Code or Utah Administrative Code, then the Utah Procurement Code or Utah Administrative Code will take precedence. It is not intended to limit a proposal's content or exclude any relevant or essential data. Offerors are at liberty and are encouraged to expand upon the specifications to evidence service capability. Purpose of this Solicitation The purpose of this RFP is to enter into a contract to provide: temporary foster care for Desert Tortoises that will be adopted to private citizens participating in the Utah Division of Wildlife’s (“ the Division’s”) Desert Tortoise Adoption Program. Additionally, this contract will include the care and husbandry of reptiles and amphibians that were previously held in private ownership and have since been abandoned or otherwise seized or confiscated by a bona fide law enforcement agency and transferred to the Division. The Division is looking to contract with a qualified individual or entity to serve two broad needs: 1) to provide temporary foster care for Desert Tortoises that are awaiting adoption and 2) to provide care, husbandry, and occasionally euthanasia to reptiles and amphibians that have come into the possession of Division Law Enforcement. Item 2 requires the knowledge, skills, and ability to house and care for venomous reptiles and large exotic reptile species for long, sometimes for indeterminate lengths of time. The budget for these services is $9,700.00 per year. It is anticipated that this RFP will result in a single contract award to the responsive and responsible offeror with the highest score justified by the procurement code. Closing date and time The closing date and time for this sourcing event are 04/08/2020 02:00 PM Mountain Time. If your time is different from that shown, your profile may be set to a different time zone. Please see the attachment titled "Changing Your Time Zone" in the Buyer Attachments section for directions on how to update your profile. It is your responsibility to make sure you submit your response by the date and time indicated above. Length of the Contract The contract resulting from this RFP will be for FIVE (5) years. Background The Division serves the people of Utah as trustee and guardian of the state's wildlife, including native species that are not pursued via recreational hunting, fishing, or trapping (a.k.a. non-game wildlife). Non-game wildlife can include species federally designated as threatened or endangered. Desert Tortoises are listed as a Threatened Species under the Endangered Species Act. Part of Desert Tortoise recovery and management includes mitigating the threat of diseases to wild populations of Tortoises. Every year, many tortoises are found outside of their native distribution or are quarantined from wild populations because of disease risks. While these diseases pose no risk to humans, they are a significant threat to the recovery of wild tortoises. Because the Division cannot release diseased tortoises back into the wild, the Division has created a public opportunity to care for those Desert Tortoises that cannot be released into the wild. Households can apply for Desert Tortoise adoption eligibility, and after minimum husbandry requirements and standards have been evaluated, these households can be permitted to receive one adult tortoise. Tortoises in the adoption program ultimately remain property of the state of Utah, but live out their lives under the care of private citizens. Division employees have historically provided care and transportation for Desert Tortoises that are awaiting adoption. The Division is seeking to develop a contract with a qualified business or institution to transport tortoises to and care for Desert Tortoises at their facility. In addition to the tortoise adoption program, the Division also regulates the possession of reptiles and amphibians in the state, with certain species being classified as “prohibited.” A species classified as “prohibited” is unlawful to possess without a variance granted from the Wildlife Board, or via another approval process provided in Title 23 Utah Code or Utah Administrative Rule R657-53. In general, reptiles classified as “prohibited” are: (1) venomous and lethal to humans, (2) dangerous to humans, and 3) pose a significant disease risk to wild populations of reptiles and amphibians (list currently includes crocodiles, alligators, caimans, and similar species). Occasionally prohibited reptiles and amphibians are confiscated and seized by Division Law Enforcement. Issuing Procurement Unit, Conducting Procurement Unit, and Solicitation Number The State of Utah Division of Purchasing is the issuing procurement unit and the State of Utah Division of Wildlife Resources is the conducting procurement unit for this RFP (referred to as “the State”). The reference number for this RFP is Solicitation #AS20-141. This solicitation number must be referred to on all proposals, correspondence, and documentation submitted to the State relating to this RFP. Additional Information Offerors are prohibited from communications regarding this RFP with the conducting procurement unit staff, evaluation committee members, or other associated individuals EXCEPT for the State of Utah Division of Purchasing procurement officer overseeing this RFP. Wherever in this RFP, an item is defined by using a tradename, brand name, or a manufacturer and/or model number, it is intended that the words, “or equivalent” apply; and invites the submission of equivalent products by the Offerors. Offerors may be required to submit product samples to assist the chief procurement officer or head of a procurement unit with independent procurement authority in evaluating whether a procurement item meets the specifications and other requirements set forth in the request for proposals. Product samples must be furnished free of charge unless otherwise stated in the invitation for proposals, and if not destroyed by testing, will upon written request within any deadline stated in the invitation for proposals, be returned at the Offeror's expense. Samples must be labeled or otherwise identified as specified in the invitation for proposals by the procurement unit. The State reserves the right to conduct discussions with the Offerors who submit proposals determined to be reasonably susceptible of being selected for an award, followed by an opportunity to make best and final offers pursuant to UCA § 63G-6a-707.5, but proposals may be accepted without discussions. New Technology Pursuant to Utah Administrative Rule R33-12-502 the awarded contract(s) may be modified to incorporate new technology or technological upgrades associated with the procurement item being solicited, including new or upgraded: (i) systems; (ii) apparatuses; (iii) modules; (iv) components; and (v) other supplementary items. Further, a maintenance or service agreement associated with the procurement item under the resulting contract(s) may be modified to include any new technology or technological upgrades. Any contract modification incorporating new technology or technological upgrades will be specific to the procurement item being solicited and substantially within the scope of the original procurement or contract. Evaluation Administrative and Mandatory Minimum Requirement Compliance Each proposal received shall be evaluated as outlined in this RFP and the Utah Procurement Code. To be responsive and responsible Offerors must review and respond to the following sections of this RFP: prerequisites, buyer attachments, questions, and items. The Prerequisites section includes the objective and subjective criteria that will be used to evaluate the proposals, which include the mandatory minimum requirements, technical criteria, and other prerequisites that Offerors must read and agree to in order to respond to this RFP. The Buyer Attachments section includes the standard contractual terms and conditions of this RFP and other documents required for this RFP. The Questions section allows the State to ask Offerors questions regarding this RFP. The Items section includes the description of the procurement items being sought and allows the Offerors to provide their pricing on the procurement items. Note: This section may or may not be used with every solicitation. Offerors must review each section carefully. To determine which proposal provides the best value to the conducting procurement unit, the evaluation committee shall evaluate each responsive and responsible proposal that has not been disqualified from consideration under the provisions of Part 7 of Utah Code 63G-6a, using the criteria described in this RFP. After the evaluation and final scoring of proposals is completed, the State shall award the contract as soon as practicable (subject to the requirements of Utah Code Section 63G-6a-708) to the eligible responsive and responsible Offeror , subject to Utah Code Section 63G-6a-709(2), provided the RFP is not canceled in accordance with Utah Code Section 63G-6a-709(2)(b).

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