Guam § 5211 - Competitive Sealed Bidding.

§ 5211. Competitive Sealed Bidding.

(a) Conditions for Use. Contracts shall be awarded by competitive sealed bidding except as otherwise

provided in § 5210 of this Article.

(b) Invitation for Bids. An Invitation for Bids shall be issued and shall include a purchase description,

a recitation of the Wage Determination most recently issued by the U.S. Department of Labor, and all

contractual terms and conditions applicable to the procurement including a demonstration of compliance

with §§ 5801 and 5802 of this Chapter, if applicable.

(c) Public Notice. Adequate public notice of the Invitation for Bids shall be given a reasonable time

prior to the date set forth therein for the opening of bids, in accordance with regulations promulgated by

the Policy Office. Such notice may include publication in a newspaper of general circulation a reasonable

time prior to bid opening. If a bid is given public notice which is within the time specified in the Policy

Office’s rules and regulations on the subject, it shall not be challenged unless the bidder can show

exceptional circumstances which would render the rules and regulations inapplicable in the case of a

particular bid being requested.

(d) Bid Opening. Bids shall be opened publicly in the presence of one or more witnesses at the time

and place designated in the Invitation for Bids. The amount of each bid, and such other relevant information

as may be specified by regulation, together with the name of each bidder shall be recorded; the record and

each bid shall be open to public inspection.

(e) Bid Acceptance and Bid Evaluation. Bids shall be unconditionally accepted without alteration or

correction, except as authorized in this Chapter. Bids shall be evaluated based on the requirements set forth

in the Invitation for Bids, which may include criteria to determine acceptability such as inspection, testing,

quality, workmanship, delivery and suitability for a particular purpose. Those criteria that will affect the

bid price and be considered in evaluation for award shall be objectively measurable, such as discounts,

transportation costs, and total or life cycle costs. The Invitation for Bids shall set forth the evaluation criteria

to be used. No criteria may be used in bid evaluation that are not set forth in the Invitation for Bids.

(f) Correction or Withdrawal of Bids; Cancellation of Awards. Correction or withdrawal of

inadvertently erroneous bids before or after award, or cancellation of awards or contracts based on such bid

mistakes, shall be permitted in accordance with regulations promulgated by the Policy Office. After bid

opening, no changes in bid prices or other provisions of bids prejudicial to the interest of Guam or fair

competition shall be permitted. Except as otherwise provided by regulation, all decisions to permit the

correction or withdrawal of bids, or to cancel awards or contracts based on bid mistakes, shall be supported

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by a written determination made by the Chief Procurement Officer, the Director of Public Works or head

of a purchasing agency.

(g) Award. The contract shall be awarded with reasonable promptness by written notice to the lowest

responsible bidder whose bid meets the requirements and criteria set forth in the Invitation for Bids and

whose bid amount is sufficient to comply with Article 13 of this Chapter, if applicable. In the event all bids

for a construction project exceed available funds as certified by the appropriate fiscal officer, and the low

responsive and responsible bid does not exceed such funds by more than five percent (5%), the Chief

Procurement Officer, the Director of Public Works, or the head of a purchasing agency, is authorized, in

situations where time or economic considerations preclude resolicitation of work of a reduced scope, to

negotiate an adjustment of the bid price, including changes in the bid requirements, with the low responsive

and responsible bidder, in order to bring the bid within the amount of available funds.

(h) Multi-Step Sealed Bidding. When it is considered impractical to initially prepare a purchase

description to support an award based on price, an Invitation for Bids may be issued requesting the

submission of unpriced offers to be followed by an Invitation for Bids limited to those bidders whose offers

have been qualified under the criteria set forth in the first solicitation.