600 KAR 6:060. Professional Engineering and

Engineering-related

Service Selection Committee.

 

      RELATES TO: KRS 45A.800-45A.835, 23

C.F.R. 172, 23 U.S.C. 112(b)(2)

      STATUTORY AUTHORITY: KRS 45A.807(2), 23

C.F.R. 172(1), 23 U.S.C. 112(b)(2)

      NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY: KRS

45A.807(2) requires the Transportation Cabinet to promulgate administrative regulations

to implement its procurement of engineering services pursuant to KRS 45A.800 to

45A.835. This administrative regulation establishes the procedure to be used by

the Transportation Cabinet when selecting engineering or engineering-related

services while implementing the provisions of KRS 45A.800 to 45A.835.

 

      Section 1. Establishing a Professional

Engineering and Engineering-related Services Selection Committee. (1) A

Professional Engineering and Engineering-related Services Selection Committee

shall be selected as set forth in KRS 45A.810(5) and (6).

      (2)(a) The Transportation Cabinet

Secretary, or designee, shall annually request voluntary applications from the

professional engineering staff in the cabinet for availability to serve in the

pool of six (6) professional engineers required by KRS 45A.810(5)(a).

      (b) The Transportation Cabinet Secretary,

or designee, shall review all applications from which the secretary shall appoint

six (6) professional engineers to serve in the pool for a period of one (1)

year.

      (c) The six (6) appointees shall meet the

requirements established in KRS 45A.810(5)(a).

      (d) A person serving on the Professional

Engineering and Engineering-related Services Selection Committee from this pool

shall not be eligible to serve on the same selection committee as a representative

of a user division as specified by KRS 45A.810(5)(b).

      (3)(a) The director of the user division

responsible for monitoring the professional services shall appoint two (2)

professional engineers from either the user division or the same functional

area from the highway district offices where the project is located in

accordance with KRS 45A.810(5)(b).

      (b) If the user division does not have

two (2) professional engineering merit employees or if the services in the

announcement are for nonengineering but related services, the director shall

appoint two (2) employees who have familiarity and experience related to the

services that are being contracted.

      (c) The director may appoint himself or

herself to the committee.

      (d) If the cabinet is procuring engineering

or engineering-related services in conjunction with another agency or

governmental entity or state, that unit outside the cabinet may be designated

as a co-user division and be eligible to appoint one (1) member of the

selection committee.

      (4) An employee of the cabinet shall not

involuntarily serve as a member of a Professional Engineering and Engineering-related

Services Selection Committee.

      (5) Each member of a Professional

Engineering and Engineering-related Services Selection Committee shall

complete, sign, and return to the committee the following forms:

      (a) Form TC 40-9E, Certification of Understanding

of Restrictions for Members of Professional Engineering and Engineering-related

Services Selection Committee;

      (b) Form TC 40-6, "Ex Parte"

Disclosure;

      (c) Form TC 40-4, Certification of

Confidentiality; and

      (d) Form TC 40-10, Certification of Conformity

with Procurement Process.

      (6)(a) If the individual, randomly

selected to serve on a selection committee in accordance with KRS

45A.810(5)(c), is an employee of a consulting firm, that consulting firm shall

not be considered for a project which is reviewed by that selection committee.

      (b) If a firm submitted a response under

the circumstance identified in paragraph (a) of this subsection, the firm's

response for that project shall be returned by the selection committee with a

letter of explanation.

      (7) After issuing approval to advertise

for a consultant to perform engineering or engineering-related services, the

secretary of the cabinet, or designee, shall establish a Professional

Engineering and Engineering-related Services Selection Committee for each project.

      (8) The Division of Program Performance shall

provide each Professional Engineering and Engineering-related Services

Selection Committee with the necessary administrative and technical support and

office supplies.

      (9)(a) Each member of a Professional

Engineering and Engineering-related Services Selection Committee shall comply

with the Executive Branch Code of Ethics established in KRS Chapter 11A.

      (b) Each member of a selection committee

shall comply with the cabinet's Official Order Number 102295 regarding

conflicts of interest.

 

      Section 2. Operation of a Professional

Engineering and Engineering-related Services Selection Committee. (1)(a)

Meetings of a Professional Engineering and Engineering-related Services

Selection Committee shall be called by the Division of Program Performance.

      (b) The quorum for meetings shall be three

(3) of the five (5) voting members. Each quorum shall include at least one (1)

member appointed by the user division responsible for monitoring the professional

services.

      (2) Subsequent meetings.

      (a) If needed, a subsequent meeting of a

Professional Engineering and Engineering-related Services Selection Committee

shall be called:

      1. By the chairperson at a mutually

convenient time; or

      2. Upon a consensus of three (3) of the

five (5) voting members of the selection committee.

      (b) A motion or decision of the selection

committee shall require a simple majority affirmative vote of all members

present for passage.

      (c) Voting by proxy shall not be allowed.

      (3)(a) The Professional Engineering and Engineering-related

Services Selection Committee shall give fair and impartial consideration to

each response certified in accordance with KRS 45A.825(5).

      (b) The selection committee shall utilize

the evaluation factors and weights indicated in the announcement for each

project to screen each certified firm response.

      (c) Prior to the selection committee

determining the three (3) most qualified firms, each voting selection committee

member shall review all certified responses and preliminarily evaluate and

numerically rate each firm using the weighted evaluation factors that appeared

in the procurement bulletin.

      (4) In an executive session pursuant to

the requirements established in subsections (5) through (13) of this section,

the selection committee shall determine the three (3) best qualified firms and

develop a ranking of the three (3) by considering the weighted evaluation

factors that appeared in the procurement bulletin.

      (5)(a) Each committee member shall list

the three (3) firms he or she ranked highest.

      (b) Each firm included in a list prepared

by a committee member shall be placed on the short list of firms.

      (6)(a) All firms included on the short

list shall be individually discussed by the committee with regard to their

qualifications, the quality of their proposals, and the evaluation factors.

      (b) Each committee member shall be given

the opportunity to provide insight into the reasons for selecting or not

selecting each firm for the project.

      (c) A firm shall be eliminated from

further consideration by consensus of the selection committee members.

      (7)(a) Each firm remaining under

consideration after the discussion period established in subsection (6) of this

section shall be individually ranked by the committee members using secret

ballots.

      (b) A new listing of short-listed firms

based on the composite rankings of the secret ballots shall be discussed by the

selection committee.

      (c) A firm shall be eliminated from

further consideration by consensus of the selection committee members.

      (8) If at the end of the process

established in subsection (7) of this section, more than three (3) firms remain

under consideration, the process established in subsection (7) of this section

shall be repeated until three (3) firms remain for consideration by the

selection committee.

      (9) Each of the three (3) firms

identified in subsection (8) of this section shall be individually ranked by

the committee members using secret ballots.

      (10)(a) Unless there is a tie between two

(2) of the firms, the results of subsection (9) of this section shall determine

the ranked order of the three (3) best qualified firms.

      (b) If there is a tie ranking and if one

of the firms has indicated that more of its work tasks will be performed in Kentucky, that firm shall be ranked higher than the other with which it had tied.

      (c) If there is a tie ranking and if the

work tasks to be performed in Kentucky are equal, the selection committee shall

again perform the functions established in subsection (7) of this section until

the tie is broken.

      (11) If the selection committee elects,

it may interview a responding firm to aid in its determination of the best

qualified firm.

      (12) For a selection committee review

involving statewide services advertised in accordance with Section 1(5) of 600

KAR 6:050, the committee shall rank:

      (a) The top three (3) firms; or

      (b) If more than three (3) firms are

specified in the procurement bulletin, the number of firms specified in the

bulletin.

      (13) The evaluations and ratings of the

individual selection committee members shall be considered preliminary and

confidential working documents and shall not be available to the public.

      (14)(a) The Chairperson of the

Professional Engineering and Engineering-related Services Selection Committee

shall notify the Director of the Division of Program Performance, or designee, of

the firms determined by the committee to be the three (3) best qualified and

the order of their ranking.

      (b) The Division of Program Performance shall

send the letters required in KRS 45A.825(7)(c).

      (c) The Division of Program Performance shall

immediately notify by letter the top-ranked firm of its selection for the

advertised project.

 

      Section 3. Incorporation by Reference.

(1) The following material is incorporated by reference:

      (a) "Certification of Understanding

of Restrictions for Members of Professional Engineering and Engineering-Related

Services Selection Committee", Form TC 40-9E, effective April 2006;

      (b) "Ex Parte" Disclosure, Form

TC 40-6, effective September 1998;

      (c) "Certification of

Confidentiality", Form TC 40-4, effective September 1998;

      (d) "Certification of Conformity

with Procurement Process", Form TC 40-10, effective January 1997; and

      (e) The Transportation Cabinet's Official

Order Number 102295 regarding Conflict of Interest, June 15, 2004 edition.

      (2) This material may be inspected,

copied, or obtained, subject to applicable copyright law, at the Division of

Program Performance, Transportation Cabinet Office Building, 200

Mero Street, Frankfort, Kentucky 40622, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30

p.m. (22 Ky.R. 1412; Am. 1843; eff. 4-5-96; 24 Ky.R. 2762; 25 Ky.R. 837; eff.

10-6-98; 29 Ky.R. 1878; eff. 5-15-03; 33 Ky.R. 548; 1312; eff. 11-9-06.)