6.12 Responsible Contractor Policy
I. Purpose
The Bucks County Community College (“BCCC”) recognizes there is a need to ensure that all work on public construction and maintenance contracts is performed by responsible, qualified firms that maintain the capacity, expertise, personnel, and other qualifications and resources necessary to successfully perform public contracts in a timely, reliable, and cost-effective manner.
To effectuate the purpose of selecting responsible contractors for public contracts and to protect the BCCC’s proprietary investments in such contracts, prospective contractors and sub-contractors, should be required to meet pre-established, clearly defined minimum standards relating to contractor responsibility, particularly requirements concerning technical qualifications, competency, experience, adequacy of resources, including, equipment, financial and personnel, and satisfactory records of past performance in terms of safety, law compliance, and business integrity.
It is also critical to recognize that due to the substantial impact that skilled craft labor has on public works projects, and due to the limited availability of skilled construction craft labor and imminent craft labor skill shortages, it is necessary to require contractors and subcontractors to participate in established, formal apprenticeship training programs as a condition of bidding and performing work, for the purpose of both promoting successful project delivery and ensuring future workforce development needed for future projects.
Therefore, the BCCC shall require compliance with the provisions of this Policy by business entities seeking to provide services to the BCCC as specified herein. The requirements of this Policy are intended to supplement, not replace, existing contractor qualification and performance standards or criteria currently required by law, public policy, or contracting documents. However, in the event that any of the provisions of this Policy conflict with any law, public policy, or contracting documents of the BCCC, this Policy shall prevail.
II. Responsible Contractor Requirements
- This Policy shall apply to all public works projects undertaken by the BCCC for construction, demolition, alteration, renovation, service, or maintenance of buildings, structures, or facilities valued at or above $250,000.00 and shall apply to all contractors and subcontractors of any tier that perform work on such projects.
- All firms engaged in contracts subject to this Policy, including general contractors, construction managers, other lead or prime contractors, and subcontractors at any level, shall be qualified, responsible contracting firms that have sufficient capabilities in all respects to successfully perform contracts on which they are engaged, including the necessary experience, equipment, technical skills, and qualifications and organizational, financial, and personnel resources. Firms bidding or otherwise participating in public works contracts shall also be required to have a satisfactory past performance record and a satisfactory record of law compliance, integrity, and business ethics.
III. Contractor Responsibility Certifications
- As a condition of performing work on a public works contract subject to this Policy, a general contractor, construction manager, or other lead or prime contractor seeking award of a contract shall submit a Contractor Responsibility Certification, as specified herein. Subcontractors used on the contract are likewise required to provide similar Subcontractor Responsibility Certifications as provided by §7 of this Policy.
- The Contractor Responsibility Certification shall be completed on a form provided by the BCCC and shall refer to the project for which a bid is being submitted by name and contract or project number.
- In the Contractor Responsibility Certification, the construction manager, general contractor, or other lead or prime contractor shall confirm the following facts regarding its past performance and work history and its current qualifications and performance capabilities:
- The firm and its employees have all valid effective licenses, registrations, certificates, or other credentials required by federal, state, county, or local law, including, but not limited to, licenses, registrations, or certificates required to: (a) do business in the designated locale; and (b) perform the contract work it seeks to perform. These shall include, but not limited to, licenses, registrations, or certificates for any type of construction or maintenance trade work or specialty work which the firm proposes to self-perform.
- The firm meets the bonding requirements for the contract, as required by applicable law or contract specifications, as well as applicable insurance requirements for the contract including general liability insurance, workers compensation insurance, and unemployment insurance.
- The firm has not been debarred or suspended by any federal, state, or local government agency or authority in the past three years.
- The firm has not defaulted on any project in the past three years.
- The firm has not had any type of business, contracting, or trade license, registration, or other certification revoked or suspended in the past three years.
- The firm and its principals/owners have not been convicted of any crime relating to its contracting business in the past ten years.
- Within the past three years, the firm has not been found in violation of any law applicable to its contracting business, including, but not limited to, licensing laws, tax laws, prompt payment laws, wage and hour laws, prevailing wage laws, environmental laws, or others, where the result of such violation was the payment of a fine, back pay damages, or any other type of penalty in the amount of $5,000 or more.
- The firm will employ a sufficient number of craft labor personnel required to successfully perform any project work it self-performs or shall use qualified subcontractors to meet this requirement and shall assign workers to perform only work in their respective craft or trade for which they have sufficient skills and training or shall use qualified subcontractors to meet this requirement.
- The firm will pay all craft employees on the project, at a minimum, the applicable wage and fringe benefit rates, as established for the classification in which the worker is employed, in accordance with 43 PA. CONS. STAT. § 165-1 et. seq.
- The firm will ensure that all craft labor it employs on the project will have completed, prior to working on the project, the OSHA 10-hour training course for safety established by the U.S. Department of Labor. If the firm is a prime contractor, it shall also ensure that at least one person on the project has completed the OSHA 30-hour construction training course established by the U.S. Department of Labor.
- The firm participates in a Class A Apprenticeship Training Program, as defined below, for each separate trade or classification in which it employs craft employees.
- For purposes of this Policy, a Class A Apprenticeship Program is an apprenticeship program registered with and approved by the U.S. Department of Labor or a state apprenticeship agency and has graduated apprentices to journey person status for at least three of the past five years. This may be an apprenticeship program subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, 29 U.S.C. § 1001 et seq. ("ERISA"), or a non-ERISA program.
- To demonstrate compliance with this Policy, the firm shall provide, with this certification, a list of all trades or classifications of craft employees it will employ on the project and documentation verifying it participates in a Class A Apprenticeship Program for each trade or classification listed.
- The requirements of §§3(c) (l 1) -(12) of this Policy help ensure that the bulk of the craft labor workforce employed on the project will have sufficient skills and training to correctly perform work assigned to them.
- The construction manager, general contractor, or other lead or prime contractor responsible for the project shall ensure that at least 70 percent of the craft labor workers employed on the project shall be comprised of either journeyperson workers who have successfully completed a Class A Apprenticeship Program as defined in §3(c)11 of this Policy or apprentices registered in such programs. The apprenticeship participation must be in the same trade or craft for which the workers are employed on the project.
- The firm shall assign craft labor personnel to work only in the craft or trade in which they are employed.
- The firm has all other technical qualifications and resources, including equipment, personnel, and financial resources to successfully perform the referenced contract and shall maintain such capabilities throughout the duration of the project, or will obtain same through the use of qualified, responsible subcontractors or vendors.
- The firm shall notify the BCCC within seven days of any material changes to all matters attested to in this certification.
- The firm understands that the Contractor Responsibility Certification required by this Policy shall be executed by a person who has sufficient knowledge to address all matters in the certification and shall include an attestation stating, under the penalty of perjury, that the information submitted is true, complete, and accurate.
- Execution of the Contractor Responsibility Certification required by this Policy shall not establish a presumption of contractor responsibility, and the BCCC may require any additional information it deems necessary to evaluate a firm's status as a responsible contractor, including information regarding the firm's technical qualifications, financial capacity or other resources and performance capabilities. The BCCC may require that such information be included in a separate Statement of Qualifications and Experience or as an attachment to the Contractor Responsibility Certification.
- The submitting firm shall stipulate in the Contractor Responsibility Certification that, if it receives a Notice of Intent to Award Contract, it will provide a Subcontractor List and required subcontractor information as specified in §6 of this Policy.
- If the submitting firm has ever operated under another name or is controlled by another company or business entity or in the past five years controlled or was controlled by another company or business entity, whether as a parent company, subsidiary, or in any other business relation, it shall attach an appendix to its Contractor Responsibility Certification that explains in detail the nature of any such relationship. Additional information may be required from such an entity if the relationship in question could potentially impact contract performance.
- If a firm fails to provide a Contractor Responsibility Certification required by this Policy, it shall be disqualified from bidding. No action of any nature shall lie against the BCCC because of its refusal to accept a bid for this reason.
IV. Pre-Qualification Requirements
Each firm subject to the requirements of this Policy must submit a Contractor Responsibility Certification at least fourteen (14) calendar days before the specified bid submission deadline. Failure to submit a Contractor Responsibility Certification by the aforesaid deadline will automatically disqualify any firm from submitting a bid or proposal for a contract.
Upon the receipt of the pre-qualification Contractor Responsibility Certification, the BCCC shall determine whether the firm meets the requirements set forth in this Policy. Notice of the BCCC’s determination shall be sent to the proposed firm no less than seven (7) calendar days before the specified bid submission deadline. All firms that are determined by the BCCC to meet the qualification requirements of this Policy shall be entitled to submit a bid or proposal for the project.
V. Waiver of Requirements
Upon a determination by the BCCC President and the Chair of the Board of Trustees that any public funding requirement for a specific project limits or precludes the application of any specific provisions of this Policy, such provisions may be waived by unanimous vote by the Board.
VI. Notice of Intent to Award Contract
- After it has received bids for a project, the BCCC shall issue a Notice of Intent to Award Contract to the firm that has submitted the lowest responsible bid.
- Such Notice shall be issued immediately or as soon as practicable after bids are opened and shall stipulate that the contract award is conditioned on the issuance of a written Contractor Responsibility Determination for the firm, as required by §8 of this Policy, compliance with Subcontractor Certifications required by §7 of the Policy, and any other qualification standards required by the BCCC.
VII. Subcontractor Responsibility Requirements
- Within seven (7) days of receiving a Notice of Intent to Award Contract, the prospective awardee shall submit to the BCCC a Subcontractor List, which provides the name and address of the subcontractors it will use on the project, the scope of the work assigned to each subcontractor, and Subcontractor Responsibility Certifications as required by this Policy.
- The prospective awardee shall not be permitted to use a subcontractor on any work performed for the BCCC unless it has identified the subcontractor on its Subcontractor List and provided a Subcontractor Responsibility Certification in accordance with the requirements of §3.
- At the time a prospective awardee submits the Subcontractor List it shall also submit Subcontractor Responsibility Certifications and applicable supporting information for all listed subcontractors to the BCCC. Subcontractor Responsibility Certifications shall be executed by the respective subcontractors on forms prepared by the BCCC and shall contain the same information, representations, and supporting information required in Contractor Responsibility Certifications, including verification of apprenticeship qualifications as required by §3(c) (l 1) for each trade or classification of craft workers it will employ on the project.
- A prospective awardee shall determine whether any firm on its Subcontractor List is organized as a sole proprietorship owned and operated by a single person. This shall apply to subcontractors at any tier. For any such entity, the prospective awardee shall ensure that the sole proprietorship subcontractor is a legitimate business entity and not a misclassified employee by requiring the subcontractor to supplement its Subcontractor Certification with its Employer Identification Number and copies of any license, certificate, or registration it is required to maintain in order to do business in the state in which it is located.
- A subcontractor listed on a firm's Subcontractor List shall not be substituted unless written authorization is obtained from the BCCC and a Subcontractor Responsibility Certification is provided for the substitute subcontractor.
- In the event that the BCCC determines that a subcontractor fails to meet the requirements of this Policy or is otherwise determined to be non-responsible, it may, after informing the prospective awardee, exercise one of the following options:
- Permit the awardee to substitute a qualified, responsible subcontractor in accordance with the requirements of this Policy, upon submission of a completed Subcontractor Certification for the substitute and approval of the substitute by the BCCC.
- Require the awardee to self-perform the work in question if the firm has the required experience, licenses, and other qualifications to perform the work in question; or
- Disqualify the prospective awardee.
- In the event a subcontractor is disqualified under this Policy, the general contractor, construction manager, or other lead or prime contractor shall not be permitted to make any type of claim against the BCCC based on a subcontractor disqualification.
VIII. Contractor Responsibility Review and Determination
- After the BCCC has issued a Notice of Intent to Award Contract to the lowest responsive bidder, it shall undertake a contractor responsibility review process to determine whether the firm is a qualified, responsible firm in accordance with the requirements of this Policy and other applicable laws and regulations. The time frame for conducting this review process shall be as determined by the BCCC.
- As part of the review process, the BCCC shall ensure that the Contractor Responsibility Certification and Subcontractor Responsibility Certifications and applicable supporting information comply with the requirements of this Policy.
- The BCCC may conduct any additional inquiries to verify that the prospective awardee and its subcontractors have the technical qualifications and performance capabilities necessary to successfully perform the contract and that the firms have a sufficient record of law compliance, integrity, and business ethics to justify the award of a public contract. In conducting such inquiries, the BCCC may seek relevant information from the firm, its prior clients or customers, its subcontractors, or any other relevant source.
- After the BCCC determines that all responsibility certifications have been properly executed and has verified that all other relevant information submitted in response to the request pursuant to the review process indicates that the prospective awardee and its subcontractors are qualified, responsible firms, it shall issue a written Contractor Responsibility Determination for the prospective awardee.
- In the event a firm is determined to be non-responsible, the BCCC shall notify the firm and proceed to conduct a responsibility review of the next lowest, responsive bidder or, if necessary, rebid the project. A Responsibility Determination may be revoked at any time if the BCCC obtains relevant information warranting any such revocation.
IX. False and Misleading Responsibility Certifications
If the BCCC determines that a Contractor Responsibility Certification, Subcontractor List, or, Subcontractor Responsibility Certification contains false or misleading material information that was provided knowingly or with reckless disregard for the truth or omits material information knowingly or with reckless disregard of the truth, the firm for which the certification was submitted shall be disqualified from the project and shall be prohibited from performing work for the BCCC for a period of three years. The BCCC may withhold payment of any monies due to the firm as damages and impose other applicable penalties and sanctions, including contract termination, as permitted by law or contract.
X. Execution of Final Contract
- A contract subject to this Policy shall not be executed until all requirements of this Policy have been fulfilled and until Contractor Responsibility Determination has been issued by the BCCC under §8(d). Upon completion of all requirements under this Policy, the BCCC may execute a final contract based upon the Notice of Intent.
- Prior to the execution of a final contract under this Policy, the BCCC shall publicly post the Notice of Intent to Award, Contractor and Subcontractor Responsibility Certifications, Subcontractor Lists, related supporting documentation, and the Contractor Responsibility Determination on the BCCC website for public inspection for a period of five (5) calendar days after the issuance of the Contractor Responsibility Determination.
XI. Effective Date
Policy 6.12 was approved by the Board of Trustees on March 5, 2026, and shall apply to all contracts advertised after the effective date