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120 E Cotati Affordable Housing Construction
Pre-Qualification Requirement
Recitals
The City of Cotati (“City”) adopts these pre-qualification requirements for contractors who perform, assign, award, or subcontract carpentry and carpentry related construction work at all tiers (“Covered Work”) on the 120 E Cotati Affordable Housing Construction project located on parcels APN nos. 144-274-002, -014 & -015 and any other APN included in this development in the City and County of Sonoma (“Project”) in order to select the lowest responsible bidder for the Project, ensure efficient procurement of construction services, protect the prudent use of taxpayer funds, and promote a skilled, healthy and reliable construction workforce ready and available to build the infrastructure and other public buildings necessary for a modern and prosperous future.
The pre-qualification requirements encourage competition among reputable contractors, promote a level playing field, improve transparency, and spend taxpayer funds efficiently and economically.
The pre-qualification requirements also enhance the good health of construction workers on the Project, therefore ensuring a pool of skilled labor is available to complete the Project.
The pre-qualification requirements ensure that the Project will be awarded to contractors that participate in high quality, industry-proven apprenticeship programs, and that apprentices working under such contracts are competently trained. This satisfies the City’s proprietary interest in safe and efficient construction and mitigates potential liability.
The pre-qualification requirements also develop a pool of reliable and skilled labor in the local area who can work on future public works projects, for which the City contracts on a regular basis.
Pre-Qualification Applicability
These pre-qualification requirements will apply to the Project whether the City retains title to the Project property or not and whether the City procures the construction for the Project or not. Should the City decide to allow a private developer to develop the Project pursuant to a sale, lease, joint venture, or other arrangement, the City will ensure that it explains these pre-qualification requirements to developer candidates in negotiations and will incorporate the requirements into the ultimate development agreement, Disposition and Development Agreement, and construction contracts as material terms of the agreements. 2Cotati
Pre-Qualification Requirements
Prevailing Wage:
All construction workers employed by a contractor performing Covered Work in the execution of the Project shall be paid at least the general prevailing rate of per diem wages for the type of work and geographic area, as determined by the Director of Industrial Relations pursuant to Sections 1773 and 1773.9 of the Labor Code, except that apprentices registered in programs approved by the Chief of the Division of Apprenticeship Standards may be paid at least the applicable apprentice prevailing rate.
Apprenticeship:
For every apprenticeable craft, each construction contractor who will employ carpenters on the Project shall participate in a Joint Apprenticeship Program Approved by the State of California, Division of Apprenticeship Standards OR in an apprenticeship program approved by the State of California Division of Apprenticeship Standards that has graduated an average of more than one resident of Sonoma County per year for the (5) years immediately preceding submission of the pre-qualification documents. A construction contractor without construction craft employees shall show a contractual obligation that all of its subcontractors performing Covered Work so comply. A construction contractor is deemed to comply with this apprenticeship requirement for its employees if it is signatory to a valid collective bargaining agreement that requires utilization of registered apprentices.
Any change in participation must be immediately provided to the City and any successor. Construction contractors shall maintain compliance with this provision until Project completion.
Health Care Expenditures:
Each contractor employing carpenters on the Project shall commit to making health care expenditures for each carpenter employee in an amount per hour worked on the Project equivalent to at least the hourly amount indicated for health and welfare payments in the applicable General Prevailing Wage Determination made by the Director of Industrial Relations. Contractors without construction craft employees shall show a contractual obligation that its subcontractors performing Covered Work so comply. “Health care expenditures” include contributions under Sections 501(c) or (d) or 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Service Code and payments toward “medical care” as defined under Section 213(d)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code. Any change in coverage must be immediately provided to the City and any successor. Construction contractors employing carpenters on the Project shall maintain compliance with this provision until Project completion.
Disputes:
If the City procures the construction of the Project, the City will resolve any claim over whether a contractor meets the prequalification requirements through the following process:
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1) The City will promptly notify a contractor it has deemed not prequalified. The City’s notice will include the reason(s) the contractor has been deemed not prequalified, along with any supporting evidence.
2) Within five (5) business days following the City’s notice, the contractor may elect to have a public hearing to review the City’s decision. Within this same five (5) business day period, the City will accept documentary evidence from the contractor and members of the public concerning whether the contractor meets or does not meet the prequalification requirement(s). 3) The City shall consider all documentary evidence regarding a contractor’s prequalification. The City shall announce its final determination of whether the contractor meets the prequalification requirement(s) and is thereby prequalified within five (5) business days after the hearing if a hearing is elected or of the last day to receive evidence if a hearing is not elected. 4) Documents concerning the City’s rejection of a contractor for failure to meet a prequalification requirement and any subsequent final determinations of a contractor’s prequalification status shall be public records.
Enforcement:
In addition to any other enforcement mechanism available at law or equity to the City or successor, any joint labor-management cooperation committee established pursuant to the Federal Labor Management Cooperation Act of 1978 (29 U.S.C. Sec. 175a) has standing to enforce this section, including monetary contributions for medical coverage, through the provisions of Labor Code Sections 218.7 or 218.8.
Severability:
The provisions of this Ordinance are severable. If any portion, section, subdivision, paragraph, clause, sentence, phrase, word, or application of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid by a decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, that decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City or successor hereby declares that it would have adopted this Ordinance and each and every portion, section, subdivision, paragraph, clause, sentence, phrase, word, and application not declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any other portion of this Ordinance or application thereof would be subsequently declared invalid. In particular, the Apprenticeship and Local Hire provisions are distinct and severable from one another, and the Health Care Expenditures provisions are distinct and severable from the remaining provisions of this paragraph. If the provision concerning Health Care Expenditures is held invalid, the Apprenticeship and Local Hire requirements will stand alone and vice versa.