OAR 137-048-0270: Price Agreements

(1) A Contracting Agency may establish Price Agreements for Architectural, Engineering, Photogrammetric Mapping, Transportation Planning or Land Surveying Services or Related Services, when the Contracting Agency cannot determine the precise quantities of those Services which the Contracting Agency will require over a specified time period. (2) When establishing Price Agreements under this rule, a Contracting Agency shall select no fewer than three Consultants, when feasible. The selection procedures for establishing Price Agreements shall be in accordance with OAR 137-048-0130(1) or 137-048-0130(2), as applicable. Contracting Agencies may select a single Consultant, when a Price Agreement is awarded to obtain services for a specific Project or a closely-related group of Projects. (3) In addition to any other applicable solicitation requirements set forth in these division 48 rules, solicitation materials and the terms and conditions for a Price Agreement for Architectural, Engineering, Photogrammetric Mapping, Transportation Planning or Land Surveying Services or Related Services must: (a) Include a scope of services, menu of services, a specification for services or a similar description of the nature, general scope, complexity and purpose of the procurement that will reasonably enable a prospective bidder or Proposer to decide whether to submit a bid or proposal; (b) Specify whether the Contracting Agency intends to award a Price Agreement to one Consultant or to multiple Consultants. If the Contracting Agency will award a Price Agreement to more than one Consultant, the solicitation document and Price Agreement shall describe the criteria and procedures the Contracting Agency will use to select a Consultant for each individual work order or task order. Subject to the requirements of ORS 279C.110, the criteria and procedures to assign work orders or task orders that only involve or predominantly involve Architectural, Engineering, Photogrammetric Mapping, Transportation Planning or Land Surveying services are at the Contracting Agency's sole discretion; provided, however, in circumstances where a direct contract is not permitted under OAR 137-048-0200 and a State Contracting Agency is conducting the solicitation, the selection criteria cannot be based on pricing policies, pricing proposals or other pricing information, including the number of hours proposed for the Services required, expenses, hourly rates and overhead. In accordance with OAR 137-048-0130(2) applicable to Related Services procurements, the selection criteria and procedures may be based solely on the qualifications of the Consultants, solely on pricing information, or a combination of both qualifications and pricing information. Pricing information for a Local Contracting Agency’s solicitation of Architectural, Engineering, Photogrammetric Mapping, Transportation Planning or Land Surveying services, or any Contracting Agency’s solicitation of Related Services, may include the number of hours proposed for the services required, expenses, hourly rates, the number of hours, overhead and other price factors. Work order or task order assignment procedures under Price Agreements may include direct appointments, subject to the requirements of OAR 137-048-0200; and (c) Specify the maximum term for assigning Architectural, Engineering, Photogrammetric Mapping, Transportation Planning or Land Surveying Services or Related Services under the Price Agreement. (4) When the solicitation materials and terms and conditions for a Price Agreement involve a two-tiered selection process pursuant to ORS 279C.125 and OAR 137-048-0260(1), the solicitation materials and terms and conditions for a Price Agreement must meet the requirements of subsection (3) of this rule, except as provided in this subsection (4). In the event of a planned multiple award of Price Agreements under a Procurement, the solicitation materials and terms and conditions for the Price Agreements must include assignment procedures for project-specific work orders or task orders that will allow the Local Contracting Agency to select an Architect, Engineer, Photogrammetrist, Transportation Planner or Land Surveyor for a work order or task order from the Consultants who have executed Price Agreements with the State Contracting Agency. If the Local Contracting Agency decides to use an alternative process adopted by the Local Contracting Agency for its tier-two selection process, however, the Local Contracting Agency's alternative process must be described in the solicitation materials and terms and conditions supporting the initial award of Price Agreements, in the executed Price Agreements, or in the project-specific assignment procedures for a work order or task order that are provided to the firms who have executed Price Agreements, at the time of selection for the project-specific work order or task order. The Local Contracting Agency’s alternative process may be structured to take into account the unique circumstances of the particular Local Contracting Agency and may include provisions to allow the Local Contracting Agency to perform its tier two responsibilities efficiently and economically, alone or in cooperation with other Local Contracting Agencies, including, but not limited to, the methods specified in OAR 137-048-0260(3)(b). (5) All Architectural, Engineering, Photogrammetric Mapping, Transportation Planning or Land Surveying Services or Related Services assigned under a Price Agreement require a written work order or task order issued by the Contracting Agency. Any work orders or task orders assigned under a Price Agreement must include, at a minimum, the following: (a) The specific scope of Architectural, Engineering, Photogrammetric Mapping, Transportation Planning or Land Surveying Services or Related Services to be provided by the Consultant; (b) The Consultant's performance obligations and performance schedule; (c) The payment methodology, Consultant’s rates and number of hours, and a maximum amount payable to the Consultant for the Architectural, Engineering, Photogrammetric Mapping, Transportation Planning or Land Surveying Services or Related Services required under the work order or task order that is fair and reasonable to the Contracting Agency, as determined solely by the Contracting Agency, taking into account the value, scope, complexity and nature of the Architectural, Engineering, Photogrammetric Mapping, Transportation Planning or Land Surveying Services or Related Services; (d) Language that incorporates all applicable terms and conditions of the Price Agreement into the work order or task order; and (e) Any other conditions or provisions the Contracting Agency believes to be in the Contracting Agency's best interest.