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Doing Business With HACLA: FAQ

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HACLA procures a wide variety of goods, services and equipment. Our primary areas are:

a.      Construction – redevelopment and rehabilitation of buildings and housing structures

b.      Goods – office supplies, equipment

c.      Services – consulting, legal, resident services, maintenance, etc.

 

Formal contracting opportunities over $150,000 are advertised on the Los Angeles Business Assistance Virtual Network (BAVN). You are encouraged to register for free at www.labavn.org in order to receive automatic notification of these opportunities.

Informal contracts under $150,000 are solicited from vendors that are in the HACLA Vendor Database and Section 3 Business Registry.

HACLA maintains a Section 3 Business Registry and encourages its prime contractors to use that list to identify business to subcontract with. The Registry is available at www.hacla.org/forms under Reference Materials tab.

Contract Administrators can be available for general questions; however, any specific questions relating to the bid must be submitted by the deadline specified in the bid.

Pre-bid conferences are not mandatory, however, attendance is encouraged as it is a good opportunity to understand the bid requirements, hear from the Contract Administrator about the project, and to address your questions.

Below are a few tips to remember when responding to solicitations:

  • Attend the pre-bid or pre-proposal conference.
  • Submit questions as described in the solicitation.
  • Get a clear understanding of the Scope of Work or Specifications.
  • Review and understand the terms and conditions of the proposed contract.
  • Choose contract references wisely.
  • Submit a professional, neat and well organized bid/proposal.
  • Know your limitations when it comes to bonding, delivery schedules or insurance. You must meet the requirements as stated in the solicitation.  Identify a sub-contractor if necessary.

A “Responsive” bid or proposal is one that conforms to the essential requirements of the solicitation including, without limitation, specifications, delivery schedule, warranty, and submittal of the required documents. Responsive bidders must conform to the material requirements of the solicitation.

Invitations for Bid (IFB) are competitive sealed bids based on price. Contract award is made to the lowest, responsible and responsive bidder. A bid preference may be granted for Section 3 Businesses (see Section 3 FAQ).

 

Request for Proposals (RFP) is a competitive proposal method used to procure professional services. Contract is awarded to the responsible and responsive offer based on best value for HACLA. Offers are evaluated on a number of factors, as specified in the RFP, including Section 3 commitments and price.

 

All contract awards are subject to insurance, bonding, labor compliance and license requirements as applicable.

 

Contract awards that exceed $150,000 are presented to the HACLA Board of Commissioners for approval.

 Vendor application questions should be directed to the department at [email protected] or to [email protected]

Labor compliance inquiries should be directed to the Labor Compliance Administrator at [email protected].

Section 3 is a provision of the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Act of 1968. The purpose of Section 3 to ensure that employment and other economic opportunities generated by certain HUD financial assistance shall, to the greatest extent feasible, and consistent with existing Federal, State and local laws and regulations, be directed to low-and very low income persons, particularly those who are recipients of government assistance for housing, and to business concerns which provide economic opportunities to low- and very low-income persons.

See also the Section 3 FAQ and www.hacla.org/section3.

Refer to the Section 3 link on our website for information about the regulation and HACLA’s policy. See also the Section 3 FAQ.

 “Labor Surplus Area” (LSA) is defined as a business which, together with its immediate subcontractors, will incur more than 50% of the cost of performing the contract in an area of concentrated unemployment or underemployment, as defined by the DOL in 20 CFR Part 654, Subpart A, and in the list of Labor Surplus Areas published by the Employment and Training Administration.  Visit U.S. Department of Labor website for more information on Labor Surplus Area. The website provides description of Labor Surplus Areas and most recent LSA Listings. For your convenience, following link is the LSA listing for the period through September 2015 for the state of California. CA LSA Listing 

 

“Minority Owned Business Enterprise” (MBE) is defined as a business which is at least 51% owned by one or more minority group members; or, in the case of a publicly-owned business, one in which at least 51% of its voting stock is owned by one or more minority group members, and whose management and daily business operations are controlled by one or more such individuals. Minority group members include, but are not limited to Black Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, Asian Pacific Americans, Asian Indian Americans, and Hasidic Jewish Americans.

“Small Business Enterprise” (SBE) refers to an independently owned; not dominant in its field of operation; and not an affiliate or subsidiary of a business dominant in its field of operation. The size standards in 13 CFR Part 121 will be used, unless HACLA determines that their use is inappropriate.

"Women's Business Enterprise" (WBE) is defined as a business that is at least 51% owned by a woman or women who are U.S. citizens and who control and operate the business.

HACLA does not issue certifications. We will honor your certification from other municipalities. If you qualify as one of those types of businesses, please identify yourself as such in the vendor application and Section 3 Business Certification form.