(1) A contracting agency may solicit and award a public contract for goods or services, or may award multiple public contracts for goods or services when specified in the request for proposals, by requesting and evaluating competitive sealed proposals.

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(2) A request for proposals must:

(a) Specify a time and date by which sealed proposals must be received, and a place at which the proposals must be submitted. The contracting agency, in the contracting agency’s sole discretion, may receive proposals by electronic means or may direct or permit proposers to submit proposals by electronic means.

(b) Specify the name and title of the person designated to receive proposals and the person the contracting agency designates as the contact person for the procurement, if different.

(c) Describe the procurement. In the description, the contracting agency shall identify the scope of work included within the procurement, outline the contractor’s anticipated duties and set expectations for the contractor’s performance. Unless the contractor is providing architectural, engineering, photogrammetric mapping, transportation planning or land surveying services or related services, as defined in ORS § 279C.100, or unless the contracting agency for good cause specifies otherwise, the scope of work shall require the contractor to meet the highest standards prevalent in the industry or business most closely involved in providing the appropriate goods or services.

(d) Specify a time, date and place for prequalification applications, if any, to be filed and the classes of work, if any, for which proposers must be prequalified in accordance with ORS § 279B.120.

(e) State that the contracting agency may cancel the procurement or reject any or all proposals in accordance with ORS § 279B.100.

(f) State that ‘Contractors shall use recyclable products to the maximum extent economically feasible in the performance of the contract work set forth in this document.’ if a state contracting agency issues the request for proposals.

(g) Require the contractor or subcontractor to possess an asbestos abatement license, if required under ORS § 468A.710.

(h) Include all contractual terms and conditions applicable to the procurement. The contract terms and conditions shall specify clear consequences for a contractor’s failure to perform the scope of work identified in the request for proposals or the contractor’s failure to meet established performance standards. The consequences may include, but are not limited to:

(A) Reducing or withholding payment;

(B) Requiring the contractor to perform, at the contractor’s expense, additional work necessary to perform the identified scope of work or meet the established performance standards; or

(C) Declaring a default, terminating the public contract and seeking damages and other relief available under the terms of the public contract or other applicable law.

(3) The request for proposals also may:

(a) Identify contractual terms or conditions that the contracting agency reserves, in the request for proposals, for negotiation with proposers;

(b) Request that proposers propose contractual terms and conditions that relate to subject matter reasonably identified in the request for proposals;

(c) Contain or incorporate the form and content of the contract that the contracting agency will accept, or suggest contract terms and conditions that nevertheless may be the subject of negotiations with proposers;

(d) Announce the method the contracting agency will use to select the contractor, which may include, but is not limited to, negotiating with the highest ranked proposer, competitive negotiations, a multiple-tiered competition that is designed to identify a class of proposers that fall within a competitive range or to otherwise eliminate from consideration a class of lower ranked proposers or a combination of methods, as authorized or prescribed by rules adopted under ORS § 279A.065; and

(e) Describe the manner in which the contracting agency will evaluate proposals, identifying the relative importance of price and other factors the contracting agency will use to evaluate and rate the proposals in the first tier of competition. If the contracting agency uses more than one tier of competitive evaluation, the request for proposals must describe the process the contracting agency will use to evaluate proposals in the subsequent tiers.

(4)(a) The contracting agency may require proposal security in any form the contracting agency deems prudent. Proposal security must serve the same function with respect to requests for proposals as bid security serves with respect to invitations to bid under ORS § 279B.055.

(b) The contracting agency shall return the proposal security to all proposers upon the execution of the contract.

(c) The contracting agency shall retain the proposal security if a proposer who is awarded a contract fails to promptly and properly execute the contract. For purposes of this paragraph, prompt and proper execution of the contract includes all action by a proposer that is necessary to form a contract in accordance with the request for proposals, including posting performance security and submitting proof of insurance if the request for proposals requires the submission. If contract negotiations or competitive negotiations are conducted, the failure, prior to award, of a contracting agency and a proposer to reach agreement does not constitute grounds for retaining proposal security.

(5) A contracting agency shall give public notice of the request for proposals in the same manner as provided for public notice of invitations to bid in ORS § 279B.055 (4).

(6)(a) Notwithstanding ORS § 192.311 to 192.478, a contracting agency may open proposals in a manner that avoids disclosing contents to competing proposers during, when applicable, the process of negotiation, but the contracting agency shall record and make available the identity of all proposers as part of the contracting agency’s public records after the proposals are opened. Notwithstanding ORS § 192.311 to 192.478, proposals are not required to be open for public inspection until after the notice of intent to award a contract is issued. The fact that proposals are opened at a meeting, as defined in ORS § 192.610, does not make the contents of the proposals subject to disclosure, regardless of whether the public body opening the proposals fails to give notice of or provide for an executive session for the purpose of opening proposals.

(b) Notwithstanding a requirement to make proposals open to public inspection after the contracting agency issues notice of intent to award a contract, a contracting agency may withhold from disclosure to the public materials included in a proposal that are exempt or conditionally exempt from disclosure under ORS § 192.345 or 192.355.

(c) If a contracting agency cancels a request for proposals under ORS § 279B.100 after receiving or rejecting proposals, the contracting agency may return a proposal to the proposer that made the proposal. The contracting agency shall keep a list of returned proposals in the file for the solicitation.

(7) As provided in the request for proposals or in written addenda issued thereunder, the contracting agency, before or after opening proposals, may conduct site tours, demonstrations, individual or group discussions and other informational activities with proposers for the purpose of clarification to ensure full understanding of, and responsiveness to, the solicitation requirements or to consider and respond to requests for modifications of the proposal requirements. The contracting agency shall use procedures designed to accord proposers fair and equal treatment with respect to any opportunity for discussion and revision of proposals.

(8) For purposes of evaluation, when provided for in the request for proposals, the contracting agency may employ methods of contractor selection that include, but are not limited to:

(a) An award or awards based solely on the ranking of proposals;

(b) Discussions leading to best and final offers, in which the contracting agency may not disclose private discussions leading to best and final offers;

(c) Discussions leading to best and final offers, in which the contracting agency may not disclose information derived from proposals submitted by competing proposers;

(d) Serial negotiations, beginning with the highest ranked proposer;

(e) Competitive simultaneous negotiations;

(f) Multiple-tiered competition designed to identify, at each level, a class of proposers that fall within a competitive range or to otherwise eliminate from consideration a class of lower ranked proposers;

(g) A multistep request for proposals requesting the submission of unpriced technical submittals, and then later issuing a request for proposals limited to the proposers whose technical submittals the contracting agency had determined to be qualified under the criteria set forth in the initial request for proposals; or

(h) A combination of methods described in this subsection, as authorized or prescribed by rules adopted under ORS § 279A.065.

(9) Revisions of proposals may be permitted after the submission of proposals and before award for the purpose of obtaining best offers or best and final offers.

(10) After opening proposals, a contracting agency may issue or electronically post an addendum to the request for proposals that modifies the criteria, rating process and procedure for any tier of competition before the start of the tier to which the addendum applies. The contracting agency shall send an addendum that is issued by a method other than electronic posting to all proposers who are eligible to compete under the addendum. The contracting agency shall issue or post the addendum at least five days before the start of the subject tier of competition or as the contracting agency otherwise determines is adequate to allow eligible proposers to prepare for the competition in accordance with rules adopted under ORS § 279A.065.

(11) The cancellation of requests for proposals and the rejection of proposals must be in accordance with ORS § 279B.100.

(12) In a request for proposals, a contracting agency shall describe the methods by which the contracting agency will make the results of each tier of competitive evaluation available to the proposers who competed in the tier. The contracting agency shall include a description of the manner in which the proposers who are eliminated from further competition may protest or otherwise object to the contracting agency’s decision.

(13) A contracting agency shall issue or electronically post the notice of intent to award described in ORS § 279B.135 to each proposer who was evaluated in the final competitive tier.

(14) If a contracting agency awards a contract, the contracting agency shall award the contract to the responsible proposer whose proposal the contracting agency determines in writing is the most advantageous to the contracting agency based on the evaluation process and evaluation factors described in this section and in the request for proposals, applicable preferences described in ORS § 279A.120 and 279A.125 and, when applicable, the outcome of any negotiations authorized by the request for proposals. Other factors may not be used in the evaluation. If the request for proposals specifies or authorizes awarding multiple public contracts, the contracting agency shall award public contracts to the responsible proposers who qualify for the award of a contract under the terms of the request for proposals.

(15) A contracting agency may issue a request for information, a request for interest, a request for qualifications or other preliminary documents to obtain information useful in preparing a request for proposals.

(16) Before executing a contract solicited under this section, a contracting agency shall obtain the proposer’s agreement to perform the scope of work and meet the performance standards set forth in the final negotiated scope of work. [2003 c.794 § 52; 2009 c.880 § 6; 2011 c.458 § 12; 2018 c.85 3,4]