Caltrans Releases New Outreach Requirements in Contracts
Published on 12/22/2006
The California Department of Transportation has established new measures for outreach to Disadvantaged Veteran Business Enterprises and Small Business Enterprises (DVBE/SBE). New requirements have been appearing in the Notice to Contractors and Special Provisions documents for projects bidding in California.
Telephone Logs Now Required by Caltrans
Some of the additions include a submission of a form entitled TELEPHONE LOG AND LIST OF REJECTED DVBES which appears in the Caltrans Proposal and Contract booklet. This form is to be filled out if bidders are unable to meet the DVBE goal on their project. Bidders must demonstrate that a good faith effort was made and is needed to protect the bidder’s eligibility for award of the contract if the project has a DVBE outreach goal. Previously, telephone solicitation was not a DVBE requirement, but it was required by Caltrans under the DBE program.
If bidders can meet the DVBE goal, they must fill out the CALTRANS BIDDER – DVBE – INFORMATION form which includes the names of the DVBE firms, the description of the work or supplies to be provided and the dollar value for each. It is important that bidders must always fill out the Telephone Log form regardless of whether or not they are able to meet the goal in case the Department reviews the bid and decides that the goal was not met.
Telephone and Fax Solicitation Assistance
DBE Goodfaith offers telephone solicitation assistance (under our Gold Package Service) to help bidders meet this requirement. Our call center calls all firms chosen by the bidder to let them know about the project bid, logs the date and time of the call, notes the name of the person spoken to, and makes notes on each call indicating whether or not the firm is interested in participating. Two sets of phone calls are made to fulfill the Caltrans requirement for following up on initial solicitations. We place one call on the day the ad is placed on our website and another on a day chosen by the bidder just prior to the project bid. Once the bidder downloads their good faith documentation from our website, they are easily able to follow up with the few firms that indicated interest in the project. The Department of General Services also requires that all DVBE firms must be contacted in writing. DBE Goodfaith offers a fax solicitation service (under our Gold and Silver Service) which also fulfills this requirement.
Small Business Bid Preferences Provides Advantages to Win Project Bids
Under the Caltrans provisions, bidding firms will receive a bid preference if they are a registered SBE firm in the state of California, or if they are a non-SBE that subcontracts 25 percent of the project with SBEs. The preference will provide the bidder with a reduction in their project bid, for bid comparison purposes, of 5 percent of the amount bid by the apparent low bidder (up to $50,000). Bidders wishing to obtain the bid preference must fill out the REQUEST FOR SMALL BUSINESS OR NON-SMALL BUSINESS SUBCONTRACTOR PREFERNCE form included with the Caltrans Proposal and Contract documentation.
In California, there are over 8,000 registered SBEs firms providing a wide range of companies that can be subcontractors and suppliers for your project bid. DBE Goodfaith maintains up to date databases of SBEs to choose from to provide your company with the competitive advantage to win your project bid and obtain the bid preference without having to spend the time and effort needed to perform all the steps of the solicitation. By subcontracting your solicitation to DBE Goodfaith, your firm is better able to meet outreach requirements and fulfill incentives to obtain bid preferences to win your project bid. Call our support line at 877-802-3394 for more information on how to meet Caltrans bid preferences for your next project.
