(a)
Allowable
Project Costs. The following costs associated with diagnostic
feasibility studies and eutrophication abatement programs are eligible for
funding assistance:
(1) costs of salaries,
benefits and expendable materials the applicant incurs for the project, except
as provided for in subdivision (b) (6) of this section;
(2) diagnostic feasibility study report costs
directly related to the development of a eutrophication abatement
program;
(3) professional,
consultant, and contractor services;
(4) preparation of construction drawings,
specifications, estimates, and construction contract documents;
(5) costs under approved construction
contracts;
(6) costs of complying
with sections
22a-1 to
22a-1h,
inclusive of the General Statutes;
(7) equipment, instruments, supplies, and
chemicals to operate and maintain lake management systems and to conduct post
implementation water quality monitoring;
(8) start-up services of new lake management
systems including training of the applicant's employees;
(9) costs of complying with the procurement
requirements of these regulations;
(10) costs of operation, maintenance, and
monitoring of lake sediment removal projects;
(11) costs for controlling agricultural
sources of nutrients and sediments if reviewed and recommended by the County
Soil and Water Conservation District;
(12) weed harvesting equipment and weed
harvesting disposal plans.
(b)
Unallowable Project Costs.
Costs not directly related to the development of a diagnostic feasibility study
or eutrophication abatement program are unallowable. Such costs include, but
are not limited to:
(1) costs outside the
scope of the approved project;
(2)
costs of preparation of applications, including a baseline study, preliminary
plan of study, and permits required by federal, state, or local laws and
regulations;
(3) administrative,
professional, and legal activities associated with the establishment of special
departments, agencies, commissions, regions, districts, or other units of
government;
(4) personal injury
compensation or damage arising out of the project whether determined by
arbitration, negotiation, or otherwise;
(5) fines and penalties due to violations of,
or failure to comply with, federal, state or local laws or
regulations;
(6) ordinary operating
expenses of the applicant, such as salaries and expenses of officers, not
related to the project;
(7) costs
of water quality monitoring not conducted in accordance with a quality
assurance project plan;
(8)
approval, preparation, issuance and sale of bonds or other forms of
indebtedness required to finance the project and the interest on
them;
(9) costs of operation,
maintenance, and monitoring of lake management systems and watershed management
systems after the first year of operation, except as provided in subdivisions
(a) (10) and (c) (5) of this section;
(10) the cost of land acquired in fee simple
or by lease or easement to provide public access to a lake;
(11) lake management based principally on the
application of aquatic pesticide chemicals;
(12) diagnostic feasibility studies of
municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plant discharges to Class B
impoundments;
(13) the costs of
municipal and industrial wastewater treatment to remove nutrients from
discharges to Class B impoundments.
(c)
Allowable Project Costs, If
Approved. The following project costs may be allowed by the
Commissioner:
(1) the cost of land acquired
in fee simple or by lease or easement that will be an integral part of a
eutrophication abatement program;
(2) the temporary application of aquatic
pesticide chemicals if used in conjunction with the start-up of another lake
management system;
(3) costs of
mitigating adverse environmental effects of winter drawdown for macrophyte
control;
(4) costs of managing
populations of waterbirds;
(5)
costs of operation, maintenance, and monitoring of lake management systems if
the state has a continuing interest in the project.
(d)
Required Provisions of Professional
Services Contracts. Municipalities and lake associations shall include
subagreement clauses that meet the following requirements:
(1) each subagreement must include provisions
defining a sound and complete agreement, including the:
(A) nature, scope, and extent of work to be
performed;
(B) time frame for
performance;
(C) total costs of
subagreement;
(D) payment
provisions;
(2) all
subagreements awarded in excess of $10,000 shall contain provisions requiring
compliance with State and Federal equal employment opportunity laws and
regulations.
(e)
Required Provisions of Construction Contracts.
(1) All construction contract specifications
shall include the following provisions:
(A)
bid bond in an amount of 5 percent of bid price:
(B) a statement which indicates a time period
for project completion;
(C) a
dollar amount, per day, for liquidated damages;
(D) extra work and change order profit
amounts;
(E) contractor's
insurance, minimum amounts as follows:
(i)
contractor's comprehensive and general liability and property damage,
$1,000,000 liability - $500,000 property;
(ii) owner's protective liability and
property damage, $1,000,000 liability - $500,000 property;
(iii) contractor's comprehensive motor
vehicle liability and property damage, $1,000,000 liability - $500,000
property.
(2)
Where required by statute, executive order, or regulation, all construction
contract specification shall include the following additional provisions:
(A) payment and performance bonds each for
100% of bid price (section
49-41
of the General Statutes);
(B)
maximum retainage on payments to contractors must not exceed 5 percent (section
49-41b
of the General Statutes);
(C)
enforcement of payment by general contractor to subcontractor (section
49-41a
of the General Statutes);
(D)
substitution of securities for retainage (section
3-112a
of the General Statutes);
(E)
nondiscrimination clause (section 4-114a of the General Statutes);
(F) a copy of Executive Order No.
Three;
(G) prevailing State Wage
Rates (section
31-53
of the General Statutes);
(H) a
copy of Executive Order No. Seventeen;
(I) contractor's exempt purchase certificate
(section
12-426-18
of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies);
(J) contractor's worker's compensation
insurance (chapter 568 of the General Statutes).
(f)
Types of
Contracts. Each contract shall be a fixed price (lump sum or unit price
or a combination of the two) contract, unless the Commissioner gives prior
written approval for the applicant to use some other acceptable type of
contract. The cost-plus-percentage-of-cost type of contract shall not be used
in any event.
(g)
Construction Contract Procurement Requirements. The applicant
shall conduct all procurement transactions in a manner that will provide
maximum, open, and free competition. Procurement practices shall not unduly
restrict or eliminate competition. Examples of practices considered to be
unduly restrictive include:
(1)
noncompetitive practices between contractors and firms;
(2) bid collusion;
(3) organizational conflicts of
interest;
(4) unnecessary
experience and bonding requirements;
(5) local laws, ordinances, regulations, or
procedures which give local bidders or proposers preference over other bidders
or proposers in evaluating bids or proposals;
(6) placing unreasonable requirements on
firms in order for them to qualify to do the project work.
(h)
Advertising. If the value of
the contract is less than $25,000 then a minimum of 3 bids shall be solicited.
Each construction contract equal to or in excess of $25,000 shall be awarded
after advertising, and advertising shall be in accordance with the following:
(1) the applicant shall cause notice to be
given of the solicitation by publication in journals or newspapers of general
circulation beyond the applicant's locality, inviting bids on the project work
and stating the method by which bidding documents may be obtained or
examined;
(2) adequate time, not
less than 10 days, shall be allowed between the date when public notice is last
published and the date by which bids must be submitted. Bidding documents
(including specifications and drawings) shall be available to prospective
bidders from the date when such notice is first published;
(3) the applicant shall prepare a reasonable
number of bidding documents (invitations for bids) and shall furnish them upon
request on a first-come, first-served basis. The applicant shall maintain a
complete set of bidding documents and shall make them available for inspection
and copying by any party. The bidding documents shall include:
(A) a complete statement of the work to be
performed, including necessary drawings and specifications, and the required
completion schedule;
(B) the terms
and conditions of the contract to be awarded;
(C) a clear explanation of the method of
bidding and the method of evaluating the bid prices, and the basis and method
for award of the contract;
(D)
responsibility requirements or criteria which will be employed in evaluating
bidders;
(E) the following
statement:
"Any contract or contracts awarded under this invitation for
bids are expected to be funded in part by a grant from the State of Connecticut
(Department of Environmental Protection). Neither the State of Connecticut nor
any of its departments, agencies or employees is or will be a party to this
invitation for bids or any resulting contract."
(F) the prevailing State Wage Rates in
accordance with section
31-53
of the General Statutes;
(4) the applicant shall provide for bidding
by a sealed bid and for the safeguarding of bids received until public
opening;
(5) if an applicant
desires to amend any part of the bidding documents (including drawings and
specifications) during the period when bids are being prepared, the addenda
shall be communicated in writing to all firms which have obtained bidding
documents at least five working days prior to the bid opening. Any applicant
which fails to comply with this deadline and then proceeds to open bids, may
not receive funding assistance for any costs associated with such
addenda;
(6) a firm which has
submitted a bid shall be allowed to modify or withdraw its bid before the time
of bid opening;
(7) the applicant
shall provide for a public opening of bids at the place, date, and time
announced in the bidding documents;
(8) award shall be made to the lowest,
responsible, qualified bidder as follows:
(A)
after bids are opened, the applicant shall evaluate them for conformance with
the methods and criteria set forth in the bidding documents;
(B) the applicant may reserve the right to
reject all bids. Unless all bids are rejected for good cause, award shall be
made to the lowest, responsible qualified bidder;
(C) if the applicant intends to make the
award to a firm which did not submit the lowest bid, it shall prepare a written
statement before any award, explaining why each lower bidder was deemed
nonresponsible or unqualified. The applicant shall retain such statement in its
files and forward a copy to the Commissioner for review.
(i)
Reporting
Requirements. The applicant shall secure, in writing, the Commissioner's
authorization to award each construction contract which has an aggregate value
over $10,000. The request for such authorization shall include:
(1) name, address, telephone number, and
employee identification number of the construction contractor;
(2) amount of the award;
(3) estimated starting and completion
dates;
(4) project number, name,
and site location of the project; and
(5) a copy of the tabulations of bids or
offers and the name of each bidder or offeror.
(j)
Professional Services Procurement
Requirements.
(1)
Cost-plus-percentage-of-cost and percentage-of-construction-cost contracts are
prohibited. Cost reimbursement, fixed price, or per diem contracts or
combinations of these may be negotiated for professional services. A fixed
price contract is generally used only when the scope and extent of work to be
performed is clearly defined. In most other cases, a cost reimbursement type of
contract is more appropriate. A per diem contract may be used if no other type
of contract is appropriate. An incentive fee may be used if the applicant
submits an adequate independent cost estimate and price comparison.
(2) Adequate public notice shall be given for
the procurement of professional services for all subagreements. Applicants
shall publish a notice of request for qualifications in newspapers or
publications of general circulation over a reasonable area and, in addition, if
desired, through posted public notices or written notification directed to
interested persons, firms, or professional organizations inviting the
submission of statements of qualifications. The announcement shall clearly
state the deadline and place for submission of qualification statements. Public
notice is not required under the following circumstances:
(A) for the design or construction phases of
a eutrophication abatement project if the applicant is satisfied with the
qualifications and performance of any engineer who performed all or any part of
the design work and the engineer has the capacity to perform the subsequent
steps;
(B) the applicant desires
the same consultant to provide professional services for the subsequent steps
or for subsequent segments of design work under one grant if a eutrophication
abatement project is segmented into two or more construction projects. If the
design work is accordingly segmented so that the initial contract for
preparation of construction drawings and specifications does not cover the
entire eutrophication abatement project to be built under one grant, the
applicant may use the same engineering firm that was selected for the initial
segment of design work for subsequent segments.
(3) Requests for professional services
proposals shall be sent to no fewer than three candidates who either responded
to the public announcement or were selected from the prequalified list, unless,
after good faith effort to solicit qualifications, fewer than three qualified
candidates respond, in which case all qualified candidates must be provided
requests for proposals. Requests for professional services proposals shall be
in writing and shall contain the information necessary to enable a prospective
offeror to prepare a proposal properly. The request for proposals shall include
a solicitation statement, inform offerors of the evaluation criteria and
clearly state the deadline and place for submission.
(4) All proposals submitted in response to
the request for professional services proposals shall be uniformly evaluated.
The applicant shall also evaluate the candidate's proposed method of
accomplishing the work required.
(5)
(A)
Applicants are responsible for negotiation of their contracts for professional
services. Contract procurement including negotiation may be performed by the
applicant directly or by another person or firm retained for the purpose and
may include the services of technical, legal, audit, or other specialists to
the extent appropriate.
(B) The
applicant shall submit to the Commissioner documentation of the public notice
of need for professional services and selection procedures, and a copy of the
proposed subagreement.
(C) The
Commissioner shall review the complete subagreement procurement procedure and
approve the applicant's compliance with appropriate procedures before the
applicant awards the subagreement.
(k)
Deviations.
The Commissioner may approve deviations from the requirements
of subsections (d) to (j), inclusive, of this section when he or she determines
that such deviations are essential to effect necessary grant actions or when
special circumstances make such deviations in the best interest of the
State.
(l)
Federally
funded projects.
If the applicant is receiving funding under the Federal Act,
procurement procedures must comply with 40 CFR Part 33.