Management of Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Issues in Construction Contracting (2005)

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96 CALIFORNIA GOOD FAITH EFFORT ANALYSIS (Note: Original was not suitable for reproduction; subject headings are provided below.) A) Advertisement (for each publisher) a) Did the firm advertise? b) Were copies of the ads included? c) Did ads include the bid date, contract number, and work items that were available? d) Was assistance with bonding, equipment, and sup- plies described? e) Contact person listed? (Space provided for descriptions of the Action of the Bid- der, Analysis of the Action, Reviewer’s Findings.) B) Solicitation a) Solicitation copies included? b) Does solicitation include bid date, contract num- ber, and items of work available? c) Was assistance with bonding, equipment, and sup- plies described? d) Contact person listed? (Space provided for descriptions of the Action of the Bid- der, Analysis of the Action, Reviewer’s Findings.) C) Items of Work Made Available a) Was enough made available? b) Items listed in solicitation; advertisement? c) Did low bidder break down items? (Space provided for descriptions of the Action of the Bid- der, Analysis of the Action, Reviewer’s Findings.) D) Rejected DBEs a) Did low bidder list rejected DBEs? b) Did low bidder provide copies of quotes? c) Did low bidder provide copies of accepted quotes? (Space provided for descriptions of the Action of the Bid- der, Analysis of the Action, Reviewer’s Findings.) E) Assistance with Bonding a) Referenced in advertisement, solicitation? b) Was assistance requested? (Space provided for descriptions of the Action of the Bid- der, Analysis of the Action, Reviewer’s Findings.) F) Assistance with Equipment or Supplies a) Referenced in advertisement, solicitation? b) Was assistance requested? (Space provided for descriptions of the Action of the Bid- der, Analysis of the Action, Reviewer’s Findings.) G) Agencies, Organizations, and Groups Contacted a) Did bidder contact any agencies, organizations, or groups? (Space provided for descriptions of the Action of the Bid- der, Analysis of the Action, Reviewer’s Findings.) APPENDIX F Good Faith Effort Systems H) Considered DBEs a) Did low bidder provide copies of quotes? b) Did low bidder provide copies of accepted quotes? (Space provided for descriptions of the Action of the Bid- der, Analysis of the Action, Reviewer’s Findings.) I) Additional Data Supporting GFE IOWA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION’S DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS ENTERPRISE PROGRAM September 2, 1999 (REVISED June 19, 2000) Good Faith Efforts (49 CFR §26.53) The proposal will specify if the proposed contract has an established DBE goal or has no established DBE goal. The established DBE goal will be shown on the proposal as a per- cent of the total amount bid. The proposal may also designate the items that are overutilized by DBE firms and cannot be used for DBE commitments. A. It is the bidder’s responsibility to determine the level of professional competence and financial responsi- bility of any proposed DBE subcontractor. The bidder shall ascertain that the proposed DBE subcontractor has suitable experience and equipment to perform a commercially useful function for work that is common industry practice in the Iowa highway construction industry. Subcontractor expenditures, which may be counted towards the DBE commitment, will include DBE trucking, purchase of materials from a DBE man- ufacturer or supplier, or off-site services provided by a certified DBE firm. B. For contracts with established project goals the bidders will be required to complete the form “STATEMENT OF DBE COMMITMENTS,” number 102115, which is included in the bidding documents and in the com- puter software provided by the Department. The bidder shall list the following information on the Statement of DBE Commitments form that is sub- mitted with their bid: • Certified DBE firms contacted. • Date that each DBE firm was first contacted con- cerning quoting on the proposal to be bid. • Whether each DBE firm submitted a quote on the proposal to be bid. • If the DBE firm is being used as part of the bid- der’s DBE commitment.

97 • If used as part of the bidder’s DBE commitment, the work items that the DBE will be used for on the contract. • If used as part of the bidder’s DBE commitment, the “Quote Amount” that has been committed to each DBE firm, which will be used on the contract. • If the DBE firm is being used as a supplier (in which case, only 60% of the dollars paid to the DBE firm will count toward the DBE commitment). • The “Net Dollar Commitment” of each DBE firm, which will be counted towards the DBE commitment. The percent of DBE participation of each bidder will be calculated by the Office of Contracts by dividing the sum of the commitments to each DBE firm by the total of the contract amount as defined by Article 1102.10. Each bidder’s DBE participation commitment will be calculated to the nearest tenth of a percent. If two or more projects are combined on one proposal, the DBE commitment will be calculated using the sum of DBE commitments and the sum of the project totals. Only DBE firms listed in the directory for the current letting may be used. C. The successful bidder shall be selected on the basis of having submitted the lowest responsive bid. Contrac- tors who have met or exceed the proposed contract goal will be assumed to have made Good Faith Effort to utilize DBE firms. DBE firms who bid as prime con- tractors will be considered to have met the goal. D. If a goal has been established for a contract, the Iowa DOT will award the contract to the lowest bidder mak- ing good faith efforts to meet the contract goal. The following is the Department’s process used to judge the Good Faith Efforts of bidders who have not met the established DBE goal: 1. Eighty Percent of the Goal—Bidders who have achieved 80% of the established goal will be assumed to have made a Good Faith Effort to achieve the goal. 2. Eighty Percent of the Average Commitment—The Department has utilized an objective measurement of good faith effort since October 31, 1988, where Good Faith Effort is determined by calculating 80% of the average of the percentages of the DBE com- mitments submitted by all bidders on the contract. 3. Contractors with History of Utilizing DBEs—Bid- ders who have demonstrated their ability to utilize DBE firms on both federal-aid and non-federal- aid projects let by the Department in the previous fis- cal years will be assumed to have made a Good Faith Effort to achieve the project goal. 4. Administrative Reconsideration of Project-Specific Good Faith Efforts—Contractors who have not met any of the previous three Administrative Recon- sideration criteria for being responsive for demon- strating a Good Faith Effort to utilize DBE firms may request an Administrative Reconsideration of their Good Faith Efforts. The Department’s Admin- istrative Reconsideration Committee, who was not involved in the previous three steps, will perform the Administrative Reconsideration. This com- mittee consists of the Department’s Contract Engi- neer, Assistant Contracts Engineer, and the EEO/ AA Administrator. The determination made by the Administrative Reconsideration Committee shall be considered final. E. Good Faith Efforts when a DBE is replaced on a contract. If a DBE, committed for a goal on a contract, has been terminated or has otherwise failed to complete work on a contract, the contractor must make Good Faith Efforts to replace the DBE, to the extent needed to meet the goal on the contract, with another certified DBE. The prime contractor must immediately notify the project engineer of the DBE’s inability or unwill- ingness to perform, providing reasonable documenta- tion to support the notice. The project engineer will then notify the Civil Rights Administrator in the Iowa DOT’s Office of Contracts and will obtain the admin- istrator’s approval of any substitution that is made. When requesting approval of a substitution, the prime contractor must provide the Civil Rights Admin- istrator with copies of new or amended subcontract requests, along with documentation of Good Faith Efforts to continue meeting the original contract goal. If the contractor fails or refuses to provide the required information, the contractor will be penalized, dollar for dollar, for any work committed to DBEs but performed by non-DBEs. Repeated violations may result in sus- pension of the contractor’s bidding privileges.