Legal Support Contractor(s) To Support The Walker Basin Conservancy
Requesting Organization: Walker Basin Conservancy, 615 Riverside Drive, Suite C, Reno, NV 89503 Contact: Amy Gladding, Senior Human Resources and Operations Manager, 775-463-9887 x116l amy.gladding@walkerbasin.org.
1.OVERVIEW
The Walker Basin Conservancy invites interested not-for-profit and for-profit individuals and organizations to submit proposals for legal support contractor(s) that will provide a variety of legal support for the successful implementation of the Walker Basin Restoration Program. Multiple contractors may be selected from this RFP and executed contracts will be for up to three (3) years.
2.ORGANIZATION AND PROGRAM BACKGROUND
The Walker Basin Conservancy (Conservancy) is leading the effort to restore and maintain Walker Lake while protecting agricultural, environmental and recreational interests in the Walker River Basin. The Conservancy manages thousands of acres of land in the Basin and oversees revegetation activities, habitat enhancement and ongoing research. The Conservancy protects and monitors acquired water resources to ensure that they are used as intended for riparian and watershed stewardship and to increase stream flows to Walker Lake.
The Conservancy is responsible for implementation of the Walker Basin Restoration Program, created by Public Law 111-85 (2009) with the primary purpose of restoring and maintaining Walker Lake.
For more information about the Conservancy, please visit our website at www.walkerbasin.org.
3.SCOPE OF WORK
Legal Services Scope of Work
Legal Counsel
A.Act as General Counsel to the Walker Basin Restoration Program (Program) which includes keeping the Conservancy informed as to the progress and status of all actual or pending legal matters, and ensure compliance with applicable laws, policies and regulations. The General Counsel is expected to manage, control and oversee the delivery of legal services in a competent, professional, and cost-effective manner. All legal services shall be properly supervised, and all personnel shall be qualified to handle the work assigned. If outside special counsel is retained, unless otherwise directed by the WBC Board, such special counsel shall be supervised by the General Counsel.
B.Provide legal advice and assist in strategies for implementation of the Program including review, negotiation, purchase and disposition of water rights, land and related interestsl management of program assets including leases, dispositions, and long-term management plan developmentl and
C.Provide legal advice, written legal opinions, and consultation on all matters affecting the Conservancy to the Conservancy's Board, Executive Director, Program Directors or Supervisors, and employees of the Conservancy and as requested by the Conservancy's Board, the Executive Director, or his/her designee, in accordance with such policies and procedures as may be established by the Conservancy from time to timel and
D.Be available for telephone consultation with Conservancy staff, as needed on legal matters which are within their area of operationl and
E.Prepare or review necessary legal documents such as: policiesl all agreements of any naturel all real property instruments of any nature including purchase agreements and escrows, leases, covenants, deeds, easements and licensesl memorandums of understandingl and all similar documents, all as requested by the Conservancyl and
F.Advise the Conservancy on pending and potential protests and challenges as requested by the Conservancyl notwithstanding the foregoing, it is expressly understood that General Counsel and the Conservancy will associate with local counsel to formally address any such matter(s), which local counsel will appear as attorneys of record on behalf of the Conservancyl and
G.Provide support to and attend Conservancy Board meetings as requested by the Executive Director or Board Presidentl and
H.Travel as needed, currently estimated at approximately one trip to Reno, NV per month.
Applicants may respond to the following Scope of Work, in whole or in part. Consideration will be given to all submittalsl applicants who respond in whole will not be favored over applicants who respond in part. Contracts will be awarded to the respondent whose proposal is most advantageous to the Program with price and other factors considered. If responding in part, please include the number and title from the Scope of Work for the services being proposed.
Contract(s) may be amended to add additional activities associated with pending and future obligations of the Conservancy.
4.CRITERIA FOR COMPETITIVE APPLICATIONS
Application Instructions
1. Address each item in the "Application Outline" below.
2. Limit your application to a maximum of six (6) pages and minimize supplementary materials (we will follow-up as needed).
3. Email a Word or PDF version of your application to amy.gladding@walkerbasin.orgl in the subject line, please indicate Response to RFP for Legal Support - [name of respondent].
4. Applications must be emailed no later than 5:00 pm PDT on August 15, 2019.
Application Outline
Your description (in no more than six (6) pages) of your and/or your organization's qualifications should include the following elements:
1. Contact information: Please provide a Primary Contact Person, Entity Name, Address, Phone, Email, Website, and EIN or SSN.
2. Organizational mission and profile: Please describe your and/or your organization's mission, expertise and experience. Please include geographic service area, number of clients, how long you have been in business, and your annual budget. If you have an annual report, please include as an attachment. If you have a website or Facebook page, please provide that information as well.
3. Key staff: Please provide names and brief biographies of key staff. You may attach resumes of key staff as appropriate.
4. Past experience: Please detail your experience in providing contractual services similar to those required by the WBC. List recent (last two to five years) accomplishments, events and previous services related to the expertise you will be offering.
5. Method of evaluation: Describe how you currently evaluate the effectiveness of the services you provide to other clients/partners and how you will evaluate the effectiveness of the services you provide through this Program.
6. Fee structure: Estimate the program/service fees and describe the fee structure for each of the services you provide including a breakdown of travel expenses. Please highlight any non-profit discounts on the services you provide.
7. References: Please include contact information of three references (clients or partners) who have benefited from your services as described above.
Selection Criteria
Proposals will be evaluated and scored on the following criteria:
1. Knowledge and track record: Applicants must demonstrate expertise and experience in those areas described in the RFP.
2. Experience in WBRP region: Preference will be given to providers who have experience working in or are otherwise familiar with the Walker River Basin.
3. Capacity and flexibility to deliver services: Providers must demonstrate that they have a degree of flexibility in how and where services are delivered and that they have the ability to tailor content and delivery methods to meet the specific needs of the WBC.
5.ELIGIBLE OFFERORS/CONFLICT OF INTEREST
Eligible applicants are individuals, institutions of higher education, other nonprofits, commercial organizations, international organizations, and local, state and Indian tribal governments. If multiple institutions are involved, they should be handled through sub-contracts.
Offerors must notify WBC in writing with this submission of any apparent or actual conflicts of interest, including organizational conflicts of interest, that are known at the time of this submission or that may arise during the life of this award, in the event an award is made. Conflicts of interest include any relationship or matter which might place the Contractor, the Contractor's employees, or the Contractor's subcontractors in a position of conflict, real or apparent, between their responsibilities under the award and any other outside interests, or otherwise. Conflicts of interest may also include, but are not limited to, direct or indirect financial interests, close personal relationships, positions of trust in outside organizations, consideration of future employment arrangements with a different organization, or decision-making affecting the award that would cause a reasonable person with knowledge of the relevant facts to question the impartiality of the Offeror, the Offeror's employees, or the Offeror's future subcontractors in the matter. Upon receipt of such a notice, the WBC will determine if a conflict of interest exists and, if so, if there are any possible actions to be taken by the Offeror to reduce or resolve the conflict. Failure to resolve conflicts of interest in a manner that satisfies WBC may result in the proposal not being selected for award.
By submitting a proposal in response to this solicitation, the Offeror warrants and represents that it is eligible for award of a Contract resulting from this solicitation and that it is not subject to any of the below circumstances:
Has any unpaid Federal tax liability that has been assessed, for which all judicial and administrative remedies have been exhausted or have lapsed, and that is not being paid in a timely manner pursuant to an Contract with the authority responsible for collecting the tax liability, where the awarding agency is aware of the unpaid tax liability, unless the agency has considered suspension or debarment of the corporation and made a determination that this further action is not necessary to protect the interests of the Governmentl or
Was convicted (or had an officer or agent of such corporation acting on behalf of the corporation convicted) of a felony criminal violation under any Federal or State law within the preceding 24 months, where the awarding agency is aware of the conviction, unless the agency has considered suspension or debarment of the corporation and made a determination that this further action is not necessary to protect the interests of the Governmentl or
Is listed on the General Services Administration's, government-wide System for Award Management Exclusions (SAM Exclusions), in accordance with the OMB guidelines at 2 C.F.R Part 180 that implement E.O.s 12549 (3 C.F.R., 1986 Comp., p. 189) and 12689 (3 C.F.R., 1989 Comp., p. 235), "Debarment and Suspension, " or intends to enter into any subaward, contract or other Contract using funds provided by WBC with any party listed on the SAM Exclusions in accordance with Executive Orders 12549 and 12689. The SAM Exclusions can be found at https:awww.sam.gov/portal/public/SAMw
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS AND RFP DEADLINES
August 20, 2019 Proposals must be received electronically as an email attachment by Amy Gladding (amy.gladding@walkerbasin.org) by 5:00 PM PST.
Proposals must be provided in Word format or searchable PDF.
August 30, 2019 The Conservancy will notify all RFP applicants of their status (acceptance or rejection).
