CITY OF FONTANA
C A L I F O R N I A
REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
For
COMMUNITY CHOICE AGGREGATION (CCA) Formation
and Operation
CM-24-167-SP
SUBMISSION DEADLINE
March 28, 2024
BY 2:00PM
SUBMIT PROPOSAL TO:
BID MUST BE SUBMITTED ELECTRONICALLY Hard Copies will
NOT be accepted as a viable bid. www.fontanapurchasing.org
Table of Contents
CM-24-167-SP
1. NOTICE INVITING REQUESTS FOR PROPOSALS ........................................................................................... 2
2. PROGRAM OVERVIEW: ........................................................................................................................... 3
3. PROCUREMENT PROCESS PLAN OVERVIEW ............................................................................................ 5
4. SCOPE OF WORK ...................................................................................................................................... 6
5. TURNKEY CCA PROGRAM SOLICITATION PROPOSAL CONTENT ............................................................. 8
6. INSTRUCTIONS TO PROPOSERS ................................................................................................................. 10
6.1 PROPOSAL TIMELIME .......................................................................................................................... 10
6.2 PROPOSER’S EXAMINATION ................................................................................................................ 10
6.3 INTERPRETATION OF PROPOSALS AND DOCUMENTS .......................................................................... 10
6.4 NOTICE TO PROPONENTS .................................................................................................................... 10
6.5 LEGAL RESPONSIBILITIES ...................................................................................................................... 10
6.6 DELIVERY AND OPENING OF PROPOSALS ............................................................................................. 11
6.7 WITHDRAWAL OF PROPOSAL ............................................................................................................. 11
6.8 IRREGULAR PROPOSALS ...................................................................................................................... 11
6.9 PROPRIETARY ....................................................................................................................................... 11
6.10 COMPETENCY OF PROPONENT .......................................................................................................... 11
6.11 QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS ............................................................................................................. 12
6.12 CORRESPONDENCE ............................................................................................................................. 12
6.13 AWARD OF CONTRACT ........................................................................................................................ 12
6.14 TERM OF CONTRACT ........................................................................................................................... 12
6.15 INSURANCE ......................................................................................................................................... 12
7. PROPOSAL DOCUMENTS .......................................................................................................................... 14
7.1 PROPOSAL SUBMITTAL INFORMATION ................................................................................................. 14
7.2 EVALUATION AND SELECTION PROCESS ............................................................................................... 14
8. PROPOSAL EVALUATION FORM ................................................................................................................. 15
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CITY OF FONTANA
1. NOTICE INVITING REQUESTS FOR PROPOSALS
COMMUNITY CHOICE AGGREGATION (CCA) Formation and Operation CM-24-167-SP
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that sealed proposals will be received only by submitting electronically at www.fontanapurchasing.org, for COMMUNITY CHOICE AGGREGATION (CCA) Formation and Operation , no later than March 28, 2024, 2:00 PM (PST), at which time or thereafter said proposals will be electronically opened. Proposals received after this time will not be able to submit electronically. Hard copies of bids will not be accepted as a viable bid.
The City of Fontana is accepting proposals from qualified firms to provide COMMUNITY CHOICE AGGREGATION (CCA) Formation and Operation.
Detailed information and the scope of COMMUNITY CHOICE AGGREGATION (CCA) Formation and Operation may be obtained from www.fontanapurchasing.org. The scope of the COMMUNITY CHOICE AGGREGATION (CCA) Formation and Operation , proposals forms and contract documents are hereby referred to and incorporated herein and made a part hereof by reference and all qualifica tions must strictly comply therewith. Late submitted qualifications shall not be considered for review.
The City of Fontana reserves t he right to reject any and all proposals and to waive minor irregularities, to accept any qualifications or portion thereo f, and to take all proposals under advisement for a period of ninety (90) days.
Any contract entered into pursuant to this notice will incorporate the provisions of the State Labor Code. Labor Code Section 1735 requires that no discrimination be made in the employment of persons because of the race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical handicap, medical condition, marital status, or sex of such persons, except as provided in Government Code Section 12940. Compliance with the prevailing rates of wages and apprenticeship employment standards established by the State Director of Industrial Relations will be required.
City of Fontana hereby notifies all proposers that it will affirmatively ensure that in any contract entered into pursuant to this advertisement, minority business enterprises will be afforded full opportunity to submit qualifications in response to this invitation and will not be discriminated against on the grounds of race, color, sex, or national origin in consideration for the award.
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2. PROGRAM OVERVIEW:
Background and Purpose
The City of Fontana (“City”) is interested in evaluating the feasibility of implementing a Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) energy delivery program as established under Assembly Bill 117 and Senate Bill 790.
The City is interested in first determining the feasibility of such a program which will provide competitively priced energy solutions and local elected decision -making over program design and operation.
This RFP includes other cities investigating CCA and are listed in Section 3. Procurement Process Plan Overview. The cities listed may form a single CCA; cities may form individual, independent CCAs; or they may form multiple, city -group CCAs.
The City’s CCA Program goals may include, but may not be limited to:
• Achieve rate parity or better with the incumbent Investor Owned Utility (IOU) and a lower rate escalation than the IOU over time. • Create regional economic benefits including job creation, increased local energy investment, and reduced energy imports.
• Generate net operating revenues that may be used on City CCA and other energy-related projects and programs.
• Meet or exceed the California Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS). • Provide a project developmen t and ownership strategy that increases the development of renewable energy projects statewide and locally to achieve reductions in greenhouse gases (GHG) from electrical energy generation.
• Expand opportunities for local ownership and investment in energy assets.
Consultant Team Approach
The City wishes to hire one Firm to evaluate the feasibility of operating a CCA program and, if feasible and as directed by the City, provide all services necessary to develop the CCA governance structure, conduct the CCA start-up and implementation, and conduct all phases of CCA operations. The Firm may include other service provider partners; however, the City wishes to contract with a single Firm , bu t reserves to issue other contracts in the best interest of the City . This process will be called the City’s Turnkey CCA Program solicitat ion. The Firm shall describe their Team if other consultants are to be utilized in provision of services.
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The Turnkey CCA Program solicitation services are described in Section 4. Scope of Work. The Firm should describe their ability to provide these s ervices, who will perform the services, and their experience in providing these services.
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3. PROCUREMENT PROCESS PLAN OVERVIEW
The City, as noted earlier, intends to conduct a single -phase procurement process as described below:
3.1 Cities participating in the RFP
The following cities are participating in this RFP solicitation:
A. Grand Terrace
B. Rancho Cucamonga
3.2 Cities’ energy consumption data from Investor owned utility One year of energy consumption data from each participating city will be acquired and will be provided to the Firm.
The Firm must execute a Non -Disclosure Agreement governing use of the data before it can be transmitted.
3.3 Phase 2: Evaluation
The selection panel will evaluate all submittals and rank them in order, based on the evaluation described later in this solicitation.
3.4 Phase 3: Interviews
The Firms will be asked to attend an interview to provide a presentation to City staff to allow the Firms to further elaborate on their submittal, discuss their experience specific to this solicitation, and provide additional information that the Firms believe will help the City in making a final evaluation. The City will solely determined on how many Firms will participate in the interviews.
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4. SCOPE OF WORK
In the event the City awards a contract under this solicitation, the selected Firm(s), must be able to complete the following tasks. Please describe your approach to providing these services.
Turnkey CCA Program Evaluation and Operations Services
Initial Feasibility Study/Financial Analysis
The City CCA must offer customer energy rates that are equal to or less than the incumbent IOU’s energy rates. So the feasibility study must determine if this is possible by conducting a thorough financial anal ysis of CCA costs, necessary revenues, and assumptions made in determining these.
If the feasibility study concludes that the CCA is not financially viable, the study should state why it is not viable and what circumstances or assumptions must change to m ake it viable.
The City fully expects that CCA viability or non -viability will be fully explained before any CCA program next steps are authorized.
In addition to the feasibility study, prepare a Business/Implementation Plan which describes the consultant team members, their role and responsibilities, and their experience. Include the following CCA functions (below) in the Business Plan.
Wholesale Power Procurement Management
The Firm must have a long -standing reputation and expertise in wholesale pow er procurement. This function is key to the feasibility of a CCA as 90% of the CCA’s budget is power supply -related. This function entails load forecasting, issuing solicitations for wholesale power, evaluating solicitation responses, ensuring California P ublic Utilities Commission (CPUC) compliance and negotiating power purchase agreements (PPA).
Schedule/Dispatch Coordinator
The Firm must include a schedule/dispatch coordinator who performs the day -ahead load forecasting and scheduling, looks after real time load/resource balance fluctuations, and monitors billings from the various power supply providers and the CAISO.
Data Management/Call Center Services
The Firm must include transaction services and data/money transfer issues between the IOU and CCA. A customer call center must also be established so CCA customers can get questions answered about the power supply portion of their bill, ask about CCA -sponsored customer programs, CCA opt -in, out or up; and any other CCA -customer related issues.
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Marketing and Outreach Services
The Firm must include services for community and public relations including CCA website development, customer outreach and ongoing interface with CCA customers. Please describe these services.
Legal/Regulatory Services
The Firm must include legal and regulatory services associated with starting up and operating CCAs including governance documents, implementation plans, external financing due diligence, annual California PUC compliance filings, etc. Provide a description o f all necessary legal and regulatory services for starting -up and operating a CCA.
Financing
Provide various alternatives for financing the start -up of the CCA and providing sources of operating capital. Alternatives could include the City directly pro viding start-up capital or a start-up loan; or the Firm acquiring a start -up loan.
Describe services to be paid for under the start -up financing.
Customer Programs
The Firm must describe services to acquire funding to develop, administer and implement customer energy programs using CPUC -provided funding and other available funding.
These programs are a strong incentive and major enticement to form a CCA.
Value Added Services
The Firm shall evaluate and recommend additional services which may benefit t he City CCA operations including: developing operational cost savings, increasing revenues, enhancing the City CCA public image.
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5. TURNKEY CCA PROGRAM SOLICITATION PROPOSAL CONTENT
5.1 Submittal Cover and Order
Include a cover letter introducing your Firm, and partners, and the contents of the Qualifications and Proposal shall be in the order that follows:
5.2 Qualifications Content
a. Past Clients
In this section, provide a list of at least 5 past governmental clients that have utilized your Firm for similar services with contact information and brief summary of work completed for each client.
b. Past Experience
In this section, you will describe you r Firm’s demonstrated experience and competence in completing a CCA feasibility analysis and conducting all aspects of CCA required work as described in this Turnkey CCA Program solicitation. c. Project Management
In this section, you will describe the methodology used by your Firm to manage and communicate CCA feasibility; CCA planning and start -up, and CCA operations to the City CCA, City CCA Board and other City CCA stakeholders. d. Key Personnel:
• Provide a brief narrative outlining the qualifications of the Project Leader and Team Members that would be assigned to City CCA.
• If your Firm is comprised of more than one location, define the location identified with the support team assigned to City CCA.
• If a Joint Venture or Strategic Alliance with another Firm is required or recommended, include a description of the legal relationship and define the role each party assumes.
e. Financial Capacity
The City may wish to establish a long-term partnership. In this section, you will describe your Firm’s financial capacity to successfully complete long -term projects by providing:
• In less than two pages, a narrative outlining the financial stability of your Firm and/or Team.
• Your most current financial statements. If a public corporation, provide your most recent audited financial statements. If privately held, provide a copy of your balance statement and Profit & Loss statements for the past three years or an equivalent financial record that may be used in lieu of Profit & Loss statements.
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5.3 Additional Proposal Content
a. Narrative
Provide, in narrative format that shall not exceed 20 pages, the steps your Firm intends to follow if awarded a contract under this solicitation to complete the scope of work outlined above.
b. Gantt Chart
Provide a project schedule in Gantt format depicting the major milestones including their relationship to each other and projected timeline for each step through completion.
c. Cost of Services
Propose the cost your Firm will require to complete the scope of work outlined in the Section
4. Provide lump sum costs where appropriate for each section (i .e. Initial Feasibility Study/Financial Analysis , Wholesale Power Procurement Management , Data Management/Call Center Services , e tc.) Provide metric -based costs where appropriate.
Describe potential City CCA revenues may be achieved. Cost evaluation will be based on a baseline of annual operating costs and po tential other benefits or revenues that may be achieved.
5.4 Appendix (Optional)
The Firm may provide an appendix to provide additional information the C ity may find beneficial in making a selection.
5.5 Format
The Firm shall submit an electronic format. In the event the City desires to print the material, the size of pages shall not exceed 11 inches by 17 inches. 10 | P a g e
6. INSTRUCTIONS TO PROPOSERS
CM-24-167-SP
6.1 PROPOSAL TIMELIME
• Closing Date: March 28, 2024 @ 2:00P.M.
• Proposal Review: April 2024
• Oral Interviews: May 2024
• Selection of Firm: June 2024
Selection of Firm Selection of firm timeline
6.2 PROPOSER’S EXAMINATION
Before submitting a proposal, the proponent shall carefully examine the scope of services and other contract documents and ensure that he/she has a clear understanding of the requirements of the contract work regarding the performance of work.
By submitting a response, the applicant represents that it has thoroughly examined and become familiar with the contents of the solicitation and conditions of the standard City contract documents, and that it is capable of performing quality work to achieve the City of Fontana's objectives.
6.3 INTERPRETATION OF PROPOSALS AND DOCUMENTS
If any person contemplates submission of a proposal for the proposed contract and is in doubt as to the true meaning of any part of the scope of services, or other proposed contract documents, or finds discrepancies in, or omissions from the proposal, shall be immediately brought to the attention of the City by submission using the electronic bid system. Such submission, if any, must be sent using the Q&A t ab of the electronic bid s ystem. Any interpretation or correction of the proposed documents shall be made only by addendum duly issued electronically to each person registered on the prospective bidder’s list. T he Purchasing Office will not be responsible for any other explanation or interpretation of the proposed documents.
6.4 NOTICE TO PROPONENTS
The proponents shall be considered based on the best overall value to the City. The City shall not be limited to awarding to the lowest responsive proponent, but instead shall be entitled to negotiate for the best overall value to the City.
The City may automatically disqualify any proposal that does not meet the terms and conditions set forth in these “Instructions to Proposers.”
6.5 LEGAL RESPONSIBILITIES
All proposals must be submitted, filed, made, and executed in accordance with State and Federal laws relating to proposals for contracts of this nature whether the same are expressly referred to herein or not. Any Proposer submitting a proposal shall by such action thereby agree to each and all of the terms, conditions, provisions, and requirements set forth, 11 | P a g e
contemplated, and referred to in scope of services, contract documents, and to full compliance therewith.
6.6 DELIVERY AND OPENING OF PROPOSALS
Proposals are to be submitted electronically. Electronic Bid System will close exactly at the time set forth in the document. All applicable forms required to be completed per the proposal documents, shall be submitted electronically prior to the proposal date and time.
Hard copies will not be accepted as a viable proposal. It is the Proposer’s sole responsibility to ensure that its proposal is received as specified. Proposals may be submitted earlier than the dates(s) and time(s) indicated.
Proposal will be available at the date and time stated in the Instruction to Proposers and the amount of each proposal will be available online and recorded. The City may in its sole discretion, elect to postpone the opening of the submitted proposals. City reserves the right to reject any or all proposals and to waive any informality or irregularity in any proposal.
6.7 WITHDRAWAL OF PROPOSAL
Prior to proposal opening, a proposal may be withdrawn by the Proposer only by using the City’s electronic bidding system.
6.8 IRREGULAR PROPOSALS
Unauthorized conditions, limitations, or provisions attached to a proposal will render it irregular and may c ause its rejection. The completed proposal forms shall be without interlineations, alterations, or erasures. Alternative proposals will not be considered unless specifically requested. No oral, t elegraphic, or telephonic proposal, modification, or withdrawal will be considered.
6.9 PROPRIETARY
The proponent shall identify t hose portions of their proposal that they deem to be confidential, proprietary i nformation or trade secrets, and provide justification why s uch materials shall not be disclosed by the City. All materials the proponent desires to remain confidential shall be clearly indicated by stamping the pages on which such information appears, at the top and bottom thereof with the word "Confidential". All such materials so indicated shall be reviewed by the City and any decision not to honor a request for confidentiality shall be communicated in writing to the proponent. Prices, makes and model or catalog numbers of the items offered, deliveries, and terms of payment SHALL NOT be classified as confidential.
6.10 COMPETENCY OF PROPONENT
No proposal will be accepted from or contract awarded to a proponent who is not licensed in accordance with the law, who does not hold a license qualifying them to perform work under this contract, to whom a proposal f orm has not been provided and who has not 12 | P a g e
successfully performed on projects of similar character and scope. The proponent may be required, before the award of any contract, to show, to the complete satisfaction of the City, that it has the necessary facilities, ability, experience, and financial resources to provide the services specified herein in a satisfactory manner. The City may make reasonable investigations deemed necessary and proper to determine the ability of a contractor to perform the work, and the contractor shall furnish the City all information requested for this purpose.
6.11 QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS
Questions and comments regarding this solicitation must be submitted online using the city’s bid system and click the Q & A tab of the bid, no later than three (3) days before the Submittal Deadline. Answers, if any, made by the City will be sent using the online bid system to all known proposal holders.
6.12 CORRESPONDENCE
All correspondence is to be submitted to
Sid Lambert
[email protected]
909-350-7678
6.13 AWARD OF CONTRACT
Issuance of this Request for Proposal and receipt of proposals does not commit the City to award a contract. The City reserves the right to reject any or all proposals to accept any proposal or portion thereof, to waive any irregularity, and to take the proposals under advisement for the period of time stated in the “Request for Proposals”, as may be required to provide for the best interests of the City of Fontana. In no event will an award be made until all necessary investigations are made as to the responsibility and qualifications of the proponent to whom the award is contemplated. All responses to this solicitation shall become the property of the City and will be retained or disposed of accordingly. No proponent may withdraw his proposal for a period of ninety (90) days after the time set for opening thereof.
6.14 TERM OF CONTRACT
Contract period shall be limited to the respective project. Proposer understands that this contract shall not bind nor purport to bind the City of Fontana for any contractual commitment in excess of the original contract period. In the event the City exercises its options, all terms, conditions, and provisions of the original contract shall remain the same and apply during the extension period, unless otherwise mutually agreed to in writing by both parties.
6.15 INSURANCE
Prior to the commencement of any services hereunder, Consultant shall provide to the City certificates of insurance with the City named as additional insured. Such policies shall be subject to approval by the City and shall require thirty days’ notice to the City before any 13 | P a g e
cancellation. Failure to furnish such evidence, if required, may be considered default of the Consultant.
(1) Worker's Compensation Insurance covering all employees and principals of the Consultant, in a minimum amount of $1 million per accident, and meeting the laws of the State of California;
(2) Commercial General Liability Insurance covering third party liability risks; including without limitation contractual liability, in a minimum amount of $1 million per occurrence for bodily injury, personal injury, and property damage.
If commercial general liability insurance or other form with a general aggregate limit is used, either the general aggregate shall apply separately to this project, or the general aggregate limit shall be twice the occurrence limit; (3) Commercial Auto Liability and Property Insurance covering “any auto” with a minimum amount of $1 million combined single limit per accident for bodily injury and property damage.
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7. PROPOSAL DOCUMENTS
CM-24-167-SP
7.1 PROPOSAL SUBMITTAL INFORMATION
A. Submittal of Proposal: A digital file containing proposal and cost shall be submitted in response to this RFP. The proposal(s) shall be submitted no later than 2:00 p.m. on March 28, 2024 and submitted online through the electronic bid system.
Late submittals will not be considered. Fax submittals will not be accepted.
B. Examination of the content of the RFP: By submitting a response, the applicant represents that it has thoroughly examined and become familiar with the contents of the RFP’s and conditions of the standard City contract documents (Professional Services Agreement) (Attached), and that it is capable of performing quality work to achieve the City of Fontana's objectives.
C. Pre-Contractual Expenses: The City shall not be liable to pay any cost incurred by any firm or persons in submitting a proposal(s) in response to this request for qualification/request for proposal.
D. Contract Award: Issuance of this RFP and receipt of proposals does not commit the City to award a contract. The City reserves the right to accept or reject any or all responses received in reply to this RFP; reject or cancel in part or in its entirety this request for proposal. Similarly, all responses to this request for qualifications/request for proposal shall become the property of the City and will be retained or disposed of accordingly.
7.2 EVALUATION AND SELECTION PROCESS
A. Submittal Review: A committee will review and evaluate each submittal to determine if it meets the "submittal information" requirements for the project. Failure to meet the requirements will be cause for eliminating the applicant from further consideration.
B. Selection: Based on the committee's evaluation and utilizing the Proposal scoring method of each applicant's proposals, additional data submission and oral interview, the firms will be ranked by the Evaluation Committee.
.
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8. PROPOSAL EVALUATION FORM
Proposer’s Name:
FACTOR WEIGHT SCORE
(0-4)
WEIGHT SCORE
1. SUBMITTAL QUALITY
The selection panel will judge based on
the overall quality of the submittal
including the determination that all
requested items have been included, are
in the proper order and appear to be
feasible both in terms of timing and
sequence of key milestones
10 2. BREADTH AND QUALITY OF
EXPERIENCE
The selection panel, based on the list of
references and the associated work, as
well as on the experience of key staff as
outlined in the resumes, will evaluate the
Firm’s experience in meeting the needs of
the County and any related or associated
efforts.
25 Ability to communicate service in an
organized, clear, and concise manner
10 3. FEE STRUCTURE AND SCHEDULE
40 The selection panel will evaluate the
potential cost of each proposal, however,
is not using the cost as the primary
components of selection.
3. INTERVIEW
TOTAL 100
SCORE: 0=Unacceptable 1= Poor 2=Fair 3= Good 4=
Excellent
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