Prepared by the North Dakota Legislative Council staff for the Legislative Management Committee October 1998

INVITATION TO BID - LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY SECRETARIAL SERVICES

Please submit your bid in accordance with the instructions. Please use this invitation to submit your bid and attach supplemental pages as necessary. One copy of your bid must be submitted to the Legislative Council office by 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, November 4, 1998. If your bid is accepted, your bid constitutes a binding contract and includes the specifications of this invitation to bid.

BACKGROUND - 1997 SESSION

In 1997 the Legislative Assembly contracted with a secretarial service to type correspondence and envelopes, news releases, and other miscellaneous documents, e.g., written testimony presented by legislators to committees. Secretarial service employees were assigned work without regard to the political affiliation of the requester. For example, no employee was assigned to do work solely for the majority party or solely for the minority party.

During the 1997 session, the secretarial service produced 3,463 documents, which included 1,406;letters, 245 floor speeches, 267 news releases, 83;transcriptions of dictated tapes, 50 charts and lists, and 124 miscellaneous documents (labels, etc.). During the 1997 session, the secretarial service also transcribed 40 tapes of minutes of a standing committee whose clerk quit, and this additional transcription service was completed during regular working hours. During the 1997 session, the secretarial service contractor provided seven employees and one supervisor for a total amount of $41,462.50.

GENERAL SPECIFICATIONS

The successful bidder must provide personnel necessary to perform secretarial services required by the House of Representatives and the Senate of the 56th Legislative Assembly similar to that provided during the 1997 session. The period of the contract is from the first day of the 1999 regular session (January;5, 1999) through the last day of the legislative session (unknown, but probably in mid-April). The Legislative Assembly meets in session Monday through Friday, with the possibility of meeting in session on a few Saturdays. The Legislative Assembly is responsible for paying any overtime required under state or federal law if the Legislative Assembly meets on a Saturday or Sunday. Otherwise, the contractor is responsible for overtime required to complete projects on a timely basis.

Secretarial service employees will be located in a room to the west of the Senate balcony. Equipment, supplies, and postage will be provided by the Legislative Assembly. A fax machine and telephone services will be provided in the secretarial services room. Each legislator has personalized stationery. The contractor for secretarial services will be provided personal computers. Each PC is equipped with a color monitor and a mouse. The word processing software will be Lotus Word Pro 97 edition for Windows 95.

Operators will be required to use standardized formats, which will be furnished by the Legislative Council. Almost all the legislators have notebook PCs and drafts of work may be sent to the secretarial service through a network connection. One or two of the contractor's employees may be asked to take dictation from a legislator in the chamber or in an office in the legislative wing of the Capitol.

The contractor, through the onsite supervisor, is accountable to the Chief Clerk of the House with respect to projects for representatives and is accountable to the Secretary of the Senate with respect to projects for senators.

Employees of the contractor will be working with confidential information and are required to sign a nondisclosure agreement. The contractor must enforce this agreement and terminate an employee who violates the nondisclosure agreement.

The contractor must provide:

1. All recruiting and testing to ensure employees will possess high quality skills and workmanship.
2. A signed nondisclosure form from each employee.
3. Continuous monitoring of the performance of employees and provide a replacement if a current employee does not perform as required.
4. Payroll services for its employees and maintenance of all required payroll records, including necessary employee forms, taxes, Social Security, and workers' compensation.

The contractor is responsible for the discipline or the dismissal of any employee. The chairman of the House and Senate Employment Committees may discuss with the contractor the discipline or dismissal of any employee.

The contractor must provide a supervisor. The supervisor is to:

1. Supervise all employees of the contractor and provide for flexible work schedules. The supervisor must designate an assistant to assign work when the supervisor is not at work. Secretarial services should be provided between the hours of 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on each legislative day.
2. Assign all work, keeping track of all incoming and outgoing documents.
3. Supervise a proofreading process.
4. Answer the telephone and delegate this responsibility when necessary.
5. Supervise the checking in and checking out of handheld dictation units to legislators.

The staff employed to provide this contractual service must:

1. Possess proficiency in using Word Pro 97 after attending two days' training provided by the Legislative Council.
2. Be able to operate a copy machine and transcription equipment.
3. Be proficient in proofreading documents.
4. Be proficient in the English language and proper rules of grammar.
5. Be able to go to a legislator's desk in the chamber and take instructions or notes regarding a project.
6. Be able to deliver the finished product to the legislator, if necessary.

The normal turnaround for a project should be within 24 hours. A press release submitted by noon Friday must be completed by 5:00 p.m. Friday. For any extensive project or mailings, the turnaround time should be within a reasonable period, recognizing the importance of timely response to requests.

Your proposal must be accompanied by a list of no fewer than three references who can attest to your capability to handle a contract of this magnitude.

This contract can be amended only by a written modification signed by both parties to the contract.

BID SPECIFICATIONS

Bids are requested based on the general specifications outlined above. For purposes of this proposal, a legislative day is a day when the Legislative Assembly is in session.

Bid proposal: Seven employees and one supervisor for approximately 66 legislative days (amount per day) $______________

What arrangements will be made to reduce the daily contract amount if fewer employees are needed to adequately perform the work:

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

If the Legislative Assembly meets for more then 66 legislative days, each additional day of secretarial service beyond 66 days will be provided for (amount per day): $______________

Bidder: _____________________________________

Mailing address: _____________________________

___________________________________________

___________________________________________

Signature: __________________________________

Date: ______________________________________

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