Request for Proposals
Closed Pension Plans and Other Post-Employment Benefits Actuarial Services
Release Date:
May 9, 2025
Deadline for Submittal:
May 23, 2025
Contact: Jerry Gurule, Accounting Manager
Email: [email protected]
Phone Number: 510-620-6591
City of Richmond
Finance Department
INTRODUCTION
The City of Richmond is requesting proposals from qualified firms to provide actuarial services for two Closed Pension Plans and two Other Post-Employment Benefit (OPEB) plans and other related analysis pertaining to retirement benefits. This request for proposal (RFP) describes the project, the required scope of services, the consultant selection process, and the minimum information that must be included in the proposal.
Failure to submit information in accordance with the RFP requirements and procedures may be cause for disqualification. The anticipated term of this contract will be for a period of three (3) years and an option to renew for two additional years in one-year intervals upon mutual agreement of both parties.
Vendors are required to read and understand all information contained within this entire Proposal package. By responding to this RFP, the vendor agrees to read and understand these documents.
ABOUT THE CITY
The City of Richmond was incorporated in 1905 after the Santa Fe Railroad established its western terminus at Point Richmond in 1899, with ferry service to San Francisco.
The City grew significantly at the onset of World War II with the opening of the Kaiser Richmond Shipyards at Richmond’s South Shoreline in 1941 (its population quadrupled from 23,600 in 1940 to over 93,700 in 1943), as tens of thousands of new residents immigrated to the City to work in the shipyards, many of whom were Black. During the decades that followed, major developments such as Marina Bay, the Hilltop Shopping Center, the Knox Freeway, and Richmond Parkway shaped the economy and geography of Richmond. Residential development continued, and thousands of Asian and Pacific Islander and Latino persons immigrated to the community. Today, Richmond is a diverse and growing maritime, industrial, and residential community, with a population of over 110,000. The City is located on a peninsula 16 miles northeast of San Francisco, directly across the San Francisco Bay, and has a total area of 56 square miles, of which 33.7 are land area and 22.3 are water area.
PROJECT BACKGROUND / DESCRIPTION
The City contributes to the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS), an agent multiple-employer public employee defined benefit pension plan that covers substantially all eligible City employees. PERS provides retirement and disability benefits, annual cost-of-living adjustments, and death benefits to plan members and beneficiaries. PERS acts as a common investment and administrative agent for participating public entities within the State of California.
The City established the Secured Pension Override Special Revenue Fund to which proceeds of a special incremental property tax levy voted by the citizens of the City of Richmond are credited for the payment of benefits under the Pension Plans. As of April
The City also administers two single-employer pension plans; the General Pension Plan
and the Police and Firemen’s Pension Plan, both of which are closed to new members.
As of April 2025, the General Pension Plan covers 2 former employees who have retired, and the Police and Firemen’s Pension Plan covers 6 retired police and fire personnel.
In addition to the pension benefits described, the City provides post-retirement health care benefits, in accordance with City ordinances, to all employees who retire from the City on or after attaining retirement age (50 for policemen and firemen, 55 for all other employees) and who have at least ten years of service. To qualify for post-employment medical and Dental benefits, an employee must retire from the City and maintain enrollment in one of the City’s eligible health plans.
The City manages two separate Plans for OPEB. As of January 17, 2017, the Richmond Police Officers Association (RPOA) OPEB plan was adopted.
As of June 30, 2024, 682 retirees met those eligibility requirement. The City has funded these benefits on a pay-as-you-go basis and normal cost in some years.
During the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024, expenditures of $5,206,672 were recognized for post-employment health care benefits.
SCOPE OF SERVICES
The responsibilities of the consultant shall include the following:
• Analyze the data to assess any inconsistencies and make recommendations for enhancing data quality.
• Prepare actuarial valuation reports every year for General Pension, Police and Fire Pension Plan that follow GASB 73 standards, City OPEB plan and RPOA OPEB plan that follow GASB 75 standards to include the following:
o Actuarial present value of total projected benefits
o Actuarial accrued liability
o Actuarial value of assets
o Unfunded actuarial accrued liability
o Normal cost
o Annual required contributions of the employer as a level dollar amount and as a level percentage of covered payrolls
o Net OPEB obligation for City disclosure under GASB 73 and GASB 75 • Prepare the necessary material for the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) to comply with GASB reporting and disclosure requirements. • Prepare a cash flow analysis (the “pay-as-you-go-cost”). • Prepare a sensitivity analysis showing the impact of alternative assumptions on the employer’s contributions (healthcare trend rates and investment rate assumptions).
• Provide strategies for funding and reducing costs.
• Discuss administrative draft of the report with city personnel. • Present final report at regularly scheduled City Council meeting. • City valuation report date will be the beginning of the fiscal year in July. • Assist City Staff with miscellaneous analyses as needed for various projects.
• Conduct initial discussions with the City to develop an in-depth understanding of its post-retirement health care plan in order to learn about data availability, management information system capabilities and to discuss specific issues the City would like to address during the review.
• Submit written data requests to the City (e-mail is acceptable) • Gather and compile data provided by the City and review for reasonableness.
Anomalies (if any) would be identified and clarified as appropriate.
DELIVERABLES
GASB 74/75 Full Valuation Report – City Plan
GASB 74/75 Roll-Forward Valuation Report – City Plan
GASB 74/75 Full Valuation Report – RPOA Plan
GASB 74/75 Roll-Forward Valuation Report – RPOA Plan
Funding Valuations For 2 years of Contributions – City Plan Funding Valuations For 2 years of Contributions – RPOA Plan GASB 73 Full Valuation Report – General Pension Plan
GASB 73 Roll-Forward Valuation Report – General Pension Plan GASB 73 Full Valuation Report – Police and Fire Pension Plan GASB 73 Roll-Forward Valuation Report – Police and Fire Pension Plan Funding Valuation of Contributions – General Pension Plan Funding Valuation of Contributions – Police and Fire Pension Plan
RFP SCHEDULE
Date Activity
5/9/2025 Release RFP
5/16/2025 Final Day to Submit Questions (5:00 PM)
5/19/2025 Responses to Questions posted on
BidsOnline
5/23/2025 RFP Due Date
5/28/2025 Interview Notifications to Short List
5/30/2025 Short List Interviews
6/2/2025 Final Selection and Contract Negotiations
7/1/2025 Effective Date of Contract
PROPOSAL FORMAT GUIDELINES
The proposal should be concise, well organized, and demonstrate the proposer’s qualifications and experience applicable to the Project. The proposal shall be limited to 20 single-sided pages (8.5 inches x 11 inches), inclusive of graphics, forms, pictures, photographs, dividers, etcetera, but not of cost proposal, resumes, required forms, certifications, front and back covers, or letters of commitment from sub- consultants. The required font size is 12 point, with minimum left and right margins of one- inch, and top and bottom margins of 0.7 inches.
Each proposal will adhere to the following order and content of sections. Proposal should be straightforward, concise and provide “layman” explanations of technical terms that are used. Emphasis should be concentrated on conforming to the RFP instructions, responding to the RFP requirements, and on providing a complete and clear description of the offer. Proposals, which appear unrealistic in the terms of technical commitments, lack of technical competence or are indicative of failure to comprehend the complexity and risk of this contract, may be rejected. The following proposal sections are to be included in the Vendor’s response:
A. Vendor Cover Letter
A cover letter, not to exceed three pages in length, should summarize key elements of the proposal and shall:
• Confirm that all elements of this RFP have been reviewed and understood;
• Include a statement of intent to perform the services as outlined; • Express company’s willingness to enter into an agreement under the terms and conditions prescribed by this RFP, insurance requirements (Attachment A) and in the sample Service Agreement (Attachment B); • Submit a written description and brief history of the company’s experiences, qualifications and successes in providing Actuarial services described herein. Please indicate the number of employees, client base and location of offices.
• Indicate the address and telephone number of the vendor’s office located nearest to Richmond, California and the office from which the project will be managed.
• Confirm that vendor has a minimum of three (3) years verifiable Actuarial experience
• Stipulate that the proposal price will be valid for a period of at least 180
days.
• Identify a single person for contact during the RFP review process; and • Cover letter shall be signed by an authorized official of the company.
B. Background and Project Summary Section
The Background and Project Summary Section should describe your understanding of the City, the work to be done, and the objectives to be accomplished. Refer to description of services for this RFP.
C. Methodology Section
Provide a detailed description of the approach and methodology to be used to accomplish the Scope of Services of this RFP. The Methodology Section should include:
1) An implementation plan that describes in detail (i) the methods, including controls by which your firm manages projects of the type sought by this RFP; (ii) methodology for soliciting and documenting views of internal and external stakeholders; (iii) and any other project management or implementation strategies or techniques that the respondent intends to employ in carrying out the work.
2) Detailed description of efforts your firm will undertake to achieve client satisfaction and to satisfy the requirements of the "Scope of Services" section.
3) Detailed project schedule, identifying all tasks and deliverables to be performed, durations for each task, and overall time of completion. 4) Detailed description of specific tasks you will require from City staff.
Explain what the respective roles of City staff and your staff would be to complete the tasks specified in the Scope of Services.
D. Staffing
Describe proposed Project team organization, including identification and responsibilities of key personnel. Indicate role and responsibility of prime consultants and all sub-consultants. If applicable, indicate how local firms are being utilized to ensure a strong understanding of state and local laws, ordinances, regulations, policies, requirements, and permitting. Indicate the extent of the commitment of key personnel for the duration of the Project and furnish resumes of key personnel. Provide an indication of the staffing level for the Project. The City of Richmond’s evaluation of the proposal will consider the proposer’s entire team; therefore, no changes in the team composition will be allowed without prior written approval of the City of Richmond. Sub-consultant letters of commitment are required and must be submitted with the proposal.
Describe the experience of the proposer’s Project team in detail, including the team’s Project Manager, and other key staff members, on projects of similar size, capacity, and dollar value. For each similar project, include the client’s name and correct telephone number. It is the City of Richmond’s policy to interview proposers’ references as well as references identified by the City of Richmond.
E. Qualifications
The information requested in this section should describe the qualifications of the firm, key staff and sub‐contractors performing projects within the past five years that are similar in size and scope to demonstrate competence to perform these services. Information shall include:
1) Names of key staff that participated on named projects and their specific responsibilities with respect to this scope of service.
2) A summary of your firm’s demonstrated capability, including length of time that your firm has provided the services being requested in this Request for Proposal.
3) Provide at least three (3) references that received similar services from your firm. The City of Richmond reserves the right to contact any of the organizations or individuals listed. Information provided shall include:
a) Client Name and contact info
• Telephone & e-mail address
• Address
b) Description of services provided including contract amount c) Project start and end dates
F. Cost Information
Provide the total direct and indirect costs to complete all tasks identified in the Deliverables Section. Even if the method of payment to proposer will be fixed fee, a detailed cost breakdown shall be provided identifying: (1) the number of staff hours and hourly rates for each professional and administrative staff person who will be committed to this Project; (2) all other direct costs, such as materials and reproduction costs; and (3) sub-consultant services, if needed. These rates will also be used to negotiate rates for other projects (including optional tasks) that may be assigned. No additional funds will be paid above and beyond the original quote given by the selected Vendor.
Proposers will be paid at the same rates set forth in their cost proposal unless further negotiated in writing and agreed to by the City of Richmond.
G. Value Added Services
Please provide any additional services of benefit not specifically required herein, which the Respondent offers to provide.
H. Contractor Assignment of Sub-Contract
The resulting contract shall not be assigned, transferred, or sublet, in whole or in part, without the prior written approval of the City of Richmond. If Proposers intend to subcontract any portion of the resulting contract, they must describe their process for selecting such subcontractor(s) and the quality control measures that the Proposer will employ to ensure that any subcontractor complies with the provisions of Proposer’s contract with the City.
I. Previous Contracts with the City of Richmond
The proposer shall submit a list which indicates all prime contracts and/or amendments awarded to the proposer by the City of Richmond for the last three (3) years. The list shall include a short description of the Project, the Project scope of work, award date, completion date, name of City of Richmond’s assigned Project Manager, and contract value.
J. Exceptions to this Request for Proposals
The proposer shall state whether or not it takes exception(s) to this RFP, including but not limited to the City of Richmond’s Standard Services Agreement – RFP (Attachment B). If the proposer does take exception(s) to any portion of the RFP or contract, the specific portion to which exception(s) is taken must be identified by section number and explained. Requests for changes or additions to sections of City of Richmond’s Standard Services Agreement must be shown by requesting deletion of specific words and/or by providing new requested contract language. Requests for complete replacement of the City of Richmond’s Standard Services Agreement for another contract will not be granted. Failure to make exceptions to the RFP or Standard Services Agreement within the proposal will be deemed a waiver of any objection. Exceptions will be considered during the proposal evaluation process.
K. Statement of Impartiality and Disclosure
The nature of this Project requires an impartial unbiased approach on the part of the proposer’s team. This proposal shall include a statement declaring that the proposer’s and sub-consultants are not currently, and will not, during the performance of these services, participate in any other similar work involving a third-party with interests currently in conflict or likely to be in conflict with City of Richmond’s interests. Additionally, proposer is required to disclose any pending or active investigations or litigation that may affect the reputation or ability of the proposer to carry out the Project.
PROCESS FOR SUBMITTING PROPOSALS
Questions Concerning Request for Proposals
All questions must be submitted via the electronic BidsOnline system on the Q&A tab by 5:00pm PST, on May 16, 2025. If the City finds it necessary to issue an addendum, prospective Offerors will receive e-mail notification of addendum.
Otherwise, answers to questions received will be provided on the Q&A tab and notification will be sent by May 19, 2025. It is the proposer’s responsibility to periodically check the BidsOnline website www.ci.richmond.ca.us/bids for any possible Addenda to the RFP that may have been posted.
Any party submitting a proposal shall not contact or lobby any City Council member, City official, employee (except those specified for contact) or agent regarding the RFP.
Any party attempting to influence or circumvent the RFP, bid submittal, and review process may have their proposal rejected for violating this provision of the RFP.
Interested parties may download copies of the above mentioned proposal by visiting the City's web site, www.ci.richmond.ca.us/bids. To download RFP, new vendors will be required to register. Once the vendor downloads any documents relative to a solicitation, that vendor's name will appear on the Prospective Bidders list for that project and will receive any addenda or notifications relating to the RFP.
Submission of Proposals
The proposal and any required certifications shall be signed by an individual or individuals authorized to execute legal documents on behalf of the proposer.
Electronic Proposals shall be submitted via the City’s secure online bidding system. All required sections of the proposal must be submitted via the website. Contractor is solely responsible for “on time” submission of their electronic proposal. The Bid Management System will not accept late proposals and no exceptions shall be made. Contractors will receive an e-bid confirmation number with a time stamp from the Bid Management System indicating that their bid was submitted successfully. The City will only receive those proposals that were transmitted successfully.
The proposal must be received no later than 3:00 p.m., local time, on May 23, 2025.
The City of Richmond reserves the right to waive inconsequential irregularities.
GENERAL GUIDELINES
This RFP does not commit the City of Richmond to award a contract, to defray any costs incurred in the preparation of a proposal pursuant to this RFP, or to procure or contract for work. The City of Richmond may reject a proposal without providing the reason(s) underlying the declination. A failure to award a contract to the proposer with the lowest cost proposal shall not constitute a valid cause of action against the City of Richmond. The City shall not be responsible for work done, even in good faith, prior to final approval of the proposed contract. The City may investigate the qualifications of any respondent under consideration, require confirmation of information furnished by the respondent, and require additional evidence or qualifications to perform the Services described in this RFP.
The City reserves the right to:
1. Reject any or all proposals.
2. Issue subsequent Requests for Proposal.
3. Postpone opening for its own convenience.
4. Remedy technical errors in the Request for Proposal process.
5. Negotiate with any, all, or none of the Respondents.
6. Solicit best and final offers from all or some of the Respondents.
7. Select one or more Respondents.
8. Accept other than the lowest proposed fees.
9. Waive informalities and irregularities in proposals.
Public Records
All proposals submitted in response to this RFP become the property of the City of Richmond and public records and, as such, may be subject to public review. Documents protected by law from public disclosure will not be disclosed by the City of Richmond if clearly marked with the word "confidential" on each applicable page. Trade secrets may be marked as confidential only to the extent they meet the requirements of California Government Code section 6254.7. Only information claimed to be a trade secret at the time of submittal to the City of Richmond and marked as "confidential" will be treated as a trade secret.
Insurance Requirements
The City of Richmond requires consultants doing business with it to obtain insurance, as shown in RFP Attachment A. The required insurance certificates must comply with all requirements of the standards as shown and must be provided within fifteen (15) days of issuance of the Notice of Intent to Award and prior to the commencement of any work on the Project.
Business Licenses
The successful Contractor and all subcontractors used in the work will be required to hold or to obtain a City of Richmond business license for which the fee will not be waived.
Compliance with City Ordinances
The contractor and all subcontractors shall comply with the City of Richmond Nondiscrimination Clauses in City Contracts Ordinance (Richmond Municipal Code (RMC) Chapter 2.28), Business Opportunity Ordinance (RMC Chapter 2.50), Local Employment Program Ordinance (RMC Chapter 2.56), Living Wage Ordinance (RMC Chapter 2.60) and Ordinance Banning the Requirement to Provide Information of Prior Criminal Convictions on all Employment Applications (“Ban the Box”) (RMC Chapter
2.65), which are incorporated into the Contract Documents by this reference.
Sanctuary City Contracting Ordinance (SCCO)
The Richmond Sanctuary City Contracting Ordinance No. 12-18 (Attachment D) prohibits the City from granting and or retaining contracts with any person or entity that provides Data Broker or Extreme Vetting services to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Division of the United States Department of Homeland Security (“ICE”).
Proposers must submit the attached Sanctuary City Compliance Statement with their Proposal. (Attachment C)
Limited Liability Company Disclosure Statement (LLCS)
Resolution No. 86-21 (Attachment E), approved by City Council on July 6, 2021, requires disclosure of the identities of beneficial & responsible owners of Limited Liability Corporations (LLC). Proposers must submit the attached Disclosure Statement of Limited Liability Companies Form with their Proposal (Attachment F).
Collusion
By submitting a proposal, each respondent represents and warrants that its proposal is genuine and not false or collusive or made in the interest of, or on behalf of any person not named therein; that the respondent has not directly or indirectly induced or solicited any other person to submit a false proposal, or any other person to refrain from submitting a proposal; and that the respondent has not, in any manner, sought collusion to secure any improper advantage over any other person submitting a proposal.
Withdrawal of Proposals
A respondent may withdraw their proposal before the expiration of the time for submission of proposals by delivering to the Finance Department a written request for withdrawal signed by, or on behalf of, the respondent.
Ownership of Documents
All reports, studies, information, data, statistics, forms, designs, plans, procedures, systems and any other materials produced for the Project shall be the sole and exclusive property of the City. No such materials or properties produced in whole or in part for the Project shall be subject to private use, copyrights or patent rights by Respondent in the United States or in any other country without the express written consent of the City. The City shall have unrestricted authority to publish, disclose (except as may be limited by the provisions of the Public Records Act), distribute, and otherwise use, copyright or patent, in whole or in part, any such reports, studies, data, statistics, forms or other materials or properties produced for this project.
PROPOSAL EVALUATION AND SELECTION PROCESS
All proposals shall be reviewed to verify that the Respondent has met the minimum requirements. Proposals that have not complied with requirements, do not meet minimum content and quality standards, or take unacceptable exceptions to the General Terms and Conditions of the Service Agreement, will be eliminated from further consideration. Proposals will be reviewed and evaluated by an evaluation committee comprised of City of Richmond personnel.
The top Proposals may then be invited to make a presentation to the evaluation panel at no cost to the City. The selected proposal shall provide the most cost effective approach that meets the City’s requirements. The lowest price proposal will not necessarily be
selected.
The City reserves the right to reject any or all proposals, or to make no award. The City also reserves the right to require modifications follow‐up with requests for additional information, including, but not limited to, follow‐up interviews. The City may request Best and Final offers based upon improved understanding of the offers or changed scope of service. The City will negotiate with that vendor to determine final pricing, and contract form. Because this proposal is negotiable, all pricing data will remain confidential until after award is made, and there will be no public opening and reading of Proposals.
Overall responsiveness to the RFP is an important factor in the evaluation process. The criteria upon which the evaluation of the proposals will be based include, but are not limited to, the following:
The Proposal/Methodology and Approach to Work – 20%
The proposer’s responsiveness to the RFP including completeness and thoroughness of proposal ; all required information must be provided in the format specified. This category will also evaluate:
• Ability to provide services as outlined in the RFP.
• Approach and proposed methodology to project scope
• Demonstrated knowledge of the work required
• Explanation of the Project or services required
• Innovative approaches and internal measures for timely completion of Project
Experience/Past Performance/References – 10%
Consideration will be given based upon the firm’s experience, years in business, past and current client references; technical expertise and professional competence in areas directly related to this RFP; number of years of experience in performing similar work.
Project Team – 10%
Respondent should demonstrate that all key personnel have been successfully involved with projects of similar scope and magnitude. This category will evaluate the firm’s:
• Qualifications and relevant individual experience
• Unique qualification of key personnel
• Staff Availability / Time commitment of key members
• Organization chart
Proposer Qualifications – 30%
This category will evaluate the respondent’s ability to take upon itself the responsibilities set forth in the Scope of Services and produce the required outcome in a timely manner.
Consideration will be given for the overall quality of the proposal, including a demonstrated understanding of the purpose, scope and objective of the services to be performed. It is the intention of the City of Richmond to award a contract to the Respondent who furnishes satisfactory evidence that the Respondent has the requisite experience and ability to enable the Respondent to execute the work successfully and
properly, and to complete services in a timely manner. To determine the degree of responsibility to be credited to the Respondent, the City of Richmond will weigh the evidence that the Respondent has performed satisfactorily other contracts of like nature, magnitude and comparable difficulty and comparable rates of progress.
Cost Proposal – 30%
Interview/presentations
Upon request of the City of Richmond, vendors may be requested to give an oral presentation/demonstration on vendor’s proposal, which would include a detailed analysis of how each of the RFP requirements would be addressed should Offeror receive the award. The demonstration shall be conducted at no cost to the City. The purpose of the demonstration is to observe the system in an operational environment and to verify its capability, suitability, and adaptability to the performance requirements stipulated in this solicitation.
The City will schedule the system demonstration date, time, and location with the successful finalists. If the vendor fails to perform the demonstration on the specified date stipulated, the City may elect to reject the proposal or to re-schedule the demonstration in its best interest.
Vendors are not guaranteed an opportunity to demonstrate. Vendors may be eliminated from consideration based solely on inability to meet minimal requirements and/or review of written proposals. The City shall be the sole judge of the acceptability of the system in conformance with the specifications and its decision shall be final.
Pre-Award Negotiations
After the proposals are opened, but prior to award, the City may elect to conduct negotiations with the highest ranked respondent for purposes of:
• Resolving minor differences and information
• Clarifying necessary details and responsibilities
• Emphasizing important issues and points
• Receiving assurances from respondents
• Cost/budget clarifications
If the City cannot successfully negotiate a contract with the highest ranked respondent, the City may begin negotiations with the second highest ranked respondent.
Selection may be made without further discussion, negotiations or Offeror’s presentations; therefore, Offeror shall offer the most favorable terms in response to this RFP. Offeror must demonstrate an understanding of the scope of service to be provided and the ability to accomplish the tasks set forth. Offeror shall include information that will enable the City to determine the Offeror’s overall qualifications. The City reserves the right to request additional information or clarification on any matter included in the proposal response, to enable the City to arrive at the final award
decision.
Award - When the Review Panel has completed its work, City staff will then recommend a firm to the City Manager and City Council for approval. The services provided by the successful bidder shall be governed by a Standard Services Agreement (Attachment B).
Attachments
A. Insurance Requirements
B. Standard Contract
C. Sanctuary City Compliance Statement
D. Sanctuary City Contracting Ordinance No. 12-18
E. Limited Liability Corporation (LLC) Resolution No. 86-21 F. Limited Liability Corporation Form