Rule 515-7-13-.06 - Information to Be Included in the Request for Proposal(1) The Request for Proposal shall contain a timetable for the process, including deadlines for submission of pre-qualification information, Bid Packages, any proposed oral presentation dates, and the targeted Administrative Session date(s) for the Commission's consideration of selecting a Regulated Provider.(2) The Request for Proposal for the Regulated Provider shall contain, at a minimum, the following provisions: (a) The time period for which the Bidder will remain bound by the Terms and Conditions of its Bid Package;(b) A statement that the Regulated Provider designation shall be made to the responsible Bidder whose proposal is determined to be the most advantageous for the ratepayers of Georgia, taking into account all of the evaluation factors set forth in the RFP;(c) The minimum bidding requirements, which shall include, but not be limited to, the following: 1. Bids must disclose the amount of the proposed deposit requirements, price structure, proposed customer charge, and cost recovery;2. Bids must disclose the terms and conditions proposed for service to Group 1 and Group 2 customers;3. Bids must disclose the terms and conditions proposed for transfers of customers from Group 1 to Group 2 and from Group 2 to Group 1;4. Bids must include the terms and conditions proposed for termination of service for Group 1 customers and Group 2 customers;5. The Bidders must commit to work with Department of Human Resources in qualifying customers that may be eligible for service from the Regulated Provider;6. The Bidders must agree to abide by the rules and regulations governing marketers;7. The Bidders must demonstrate the ability to transition the customers from the current Regulated Provider with the least amount of customer confusion, and must provide a general description of the envisioned transition process;8. The Bidders must work with the Commission Staff and the EDC to resolve any technical, financial, customer service, and gas supply issues;9. The Bidders must comply with all Commission rules and regulations regarding the Regulated Provider, service quality standards, and any other applicable rule(s) approved by the Commission. Bidders must state any and all rules applicable to marketers for which they are seeking an exemption in their capacity as Regulated Provider;10. Two years of pro forma financial statements to include income statement, balance sheet, statement of cash flows, and customer projections broken down between Group 1 and Group 2. All support for these quantifications should be provided, including but not limited to assumptions, data, computations and electronic spreadsheets with formulas intact; and11. Bid Packages shall provide the Bidder's proposal regarding the purchase of the Accounts Receivable of the incumbent Regulated Provider, as discussed in Commission Rule 515-7-13-.07.(d) Stated evaluation factors, the assigned point values for each evaluation factor, and any additional points or consideration for Optional Enhancements that a Bidder may offer;(e) A statement that no other factors or criteria other than those specified in the RFP shall be used in the evaluation;(f) A statement that the Commission reserves the right to reject any and all proposals submitted in response to this request;(g) The name and contact information for the Commission appointed Issuing Officer that the Bidder may contact regarding the RFP, Bidding process, or the Bidder's submission of a Bid package, as well as the following statement,"From the issue date of this RFP, until a Regulated Provider is selected and the selection is announced, Bidders are not allowed to communicate for any reason with any Commission Staff member concerning this RFP except through the Issuing Officer named herein. For violation of this process, the Commission shall reserve the right to reject the proposal of the offending Bidder.";(h) A statement that the Commission reserves the right to amend the RFP prior to the date of proposal submission and that the amendments will be sent to all potential Bidders who originally received a copy of the RFP, withdraw the RFP at any time, regardless of whether it has received any acceptable bids, and that any amendments will be sent to all Bidders who originally received a copy of the RFP;(i) A statement that prior to the decision date, a submitted proposal may be withdrawn by the Bidder by submitting a request to the Issuing Officer named herein, and that any such request must be signed by a person authorized to sign for the Bidder;(j) A statement that the cost of developing the proposal is the sole responsibility of the Bidder, and that the State will not provide reimbursement for such costs;(k) The number of complete Bid Package copies that should be submitted to the Commission. A statement that failure to provide the correct number of copies could result in rejection of the Bid Package;(l) A statement that all material (Bid Packages, handouts, etc.) submitted in response to the RFP will become the property of the Commission and may be returned to the Bidder at the option of the Commission, however, one copy shall be retained by the Commission for official files;(m) Statements conveying that the pre-qualified Bidders may be invited to participate in oral presentations at a scheduled time to discuss their proposals. However, participation in oral presentations does not necessarily mean that the Bidder has met all of the RFP requirements. Oral presentations shall not be a substitute or a supplement for the Bid Package. New information presented at oral presentations shall not be utilized as part of the Evaluation Process;(n) The Review and Evaluation Process as further detailed in 515-7-13-06(2);(o) The Selection Process as further detailed in 515-7-13-.06(3);(p) A timeline for the review of an Acceptable Bid;(q) Specific point values or ranking methodology that will be utilized in the review and evaluation process; (r) Optional Enhancements submitted as part of the Bid Package shall provide the Bidder the opportunity to enhance its score or ranking during the review and evaluation process. The Commission issued RFP shall prescribe the scope of the Optional Enhancements and any associated scoring or ranking values. The RFP shall clearly detail which enhancements, if any, the Commission will consider during the review and evaluation process; and(s) A statement that "There is no assurance, expressed or implied, that an award will necessarily be made pursuant to this RFP. This RFP shall not give any rights to any respondent for any indemnification claims."(3) The Request for Proposal shall provide for the Review and Evaluation Process that will be utilized in evaluating the Bid packages. (a) The Review and Evaluation Process shall require the Commission Staff to review and evaluate each proposal submitted by utilizing criteria set forth in the RFP;(b) Each proposal shall be given a total score and the Staff shall prepare a recommendation for selection to the Commission based on this scoring; 1. The Staff shall prepare and provide to the Commissioners a Bid Evaluation Sheet that will contain a final ranked number for each of the Bid Packages, where number 1 is the first choice, number 2 is second choice, etc.; and2. Upon request, the Commissioners shall have access to individual scores and rankings by Staff members;(c) The Commission Staff shall, at a minimum, review and evaluate the following: 1. Whether the rates offered to serve Group 1 customers are just and reasonable and offer a benefit to customers who are eligible for Group 1 service;2. Whether the rates offered to serve Group 2 customers provide a realistic option for customers who are eligible for Group 2 service;3. The amount of the proposed deposit requirements;4. The proposed price structure;5. The proposed customer service charge;6. The proposed cost recovery methodology;7. Whether the proposal has complied with the terms of the Commission-issued RFP; and8. The proposed costs of transition to a new Regulated Provider.(4) The Request for Proposal shall provide for the Selection Process that will be utilized in evaluating the Bid packages . (a) The Commission shall utilize the following Selection Process for the Regulated Provider: 1. The Commission shall select the winning Bidder by such date as to allow adequate time for the Commission Staff and the winning Bidder to develop a Consent Order to be considered by the Commission;2. Upon the selection of a winning Bidder, the Commission Staff and the winning Bidder shall develop a Consent Order for the Commission's consideration. The Consent Order shall contain, at a minimum, a) the rates, terms and conditions for Group 1 and Group 2, b) the terms and conditions for a transfer from Group 1 to Group 2, c) the terms and conditions for a transfer from Group 2 to Group 1, d) the number of days between bill date and due date, and e) the amount of money to be collected from the USF per Group 1 customer;3. If the Commission Staff and the winning Bidder cannot agree on the terms for the Consent Order, the Commission shall resolve the outstanding issue(s); and4. The Commission shall consider the adoption of the Consent Order by such a date to allow for an adequate transition to a new Regulated Provider.(b) The Commission shall consider each proposal in a manner that does not disclose the contents of the proposal to competing Bidders. The Commission reserves the right to reject any and all proposals made pursuant to this RFP, to request the submission of a best and final offer, and to amend or supplement this RFP at any time.(c) The Commission reserves the right to determine that any and all proposals are not acceptable or that it is otherwise in the public interest not to accept any of the bids submitted in response to the RFP.(5) The Request for Proposal shall provide for the transition process that will be utilized, as further detailed in 515-7-13-.07.Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 515-7-13-.06
Authority O.C.G.A. Sec. 46-4-166.
Original Rule entitled "Information to Be Included in the Request for Proposal" adopted. F. Aug. 27, 2008; eff. Sept. 16, 2008.