SECTION 103 — AWARD AND EXECUTION OF CONTRACT — AWARD AND EXECUTION OF CONTRACT
103.01 Consideration of Proposals.
The State compares the Proposals on the basis of Contract Item quantities and unit prices. The State may investigate apparent discrepancies or errors in the Proposals. If discrepancies between unit prices and the computed extensions exist, the unit price shall govern. The State reserves the right to reject any or all Proposals, to waive technicalities, or to advertise for new Proposals, if the best interests of the State are served.
103.02 Post-Qualification Requirements and Award of Contract.
The apparent low Bidder shall submit all post qualification requirements according to the State’s instructions contained in its post qualification letter.
a.Financial Statements. Unless an annual, audited financial statement or financial review statement is on file with the State for the current year according to 102.01(c), the successful Bidder is required to submit a complete set of audited financial statements certified by a CPA for Contracts exceeding $5,000,000. For Contracts valued at $5,000,000 and under, the successful Bidder is required to submit a financial review statement. For Contracts under $1,000,000, a financial compilation statement is required.
b.A ward of Contract. The State shall award the Contract within the time specified in the Notice to the responsive and responsible Bidder whose Bid is either the lowest Bid price or, for alternative contracting methods, the best value. This time period may be extended by mutual agreement of the parties. ● The successful Bidder will first receive a Notice of Tentative Award. This written communication indicates the conditional intent of the State to award the Contract and instructs the successful Bidder to arrange for the execution of the Contract Agreement and Contract Bond and for the delivery of the Certificates of Insurance. ● No Proposal shall bind the State, nor shall any Work begin within the Project limits before Contract Award. ● The Contractor shall bear all risks for any Work begun outside such areas and for any materials ordered before the State awards the Contract. ● On Contracts jointly bid, Contractors are held jointly and severally liable for the entire Contract. ● Corporate Bidders shall furnish documentary evidence that they have met all legal requirements to transact business in the State of Rhode Island as a condition to Contract Award.
103.03 Cancellation of Contract.
The State reserves the right to cancel the Contract before the Award without liability.
Part 100 — General Requirements and Covenants August 2025
SECTION 103 — AWARD AND EXECUTION OF CONTRACT 100-29
103.04 Return of Proposal Guaranty.
The State will return Proposal Guaranties to all Bidders after Contract Award or after the cancellation of the Contract is announced.
103.05 Contract Bond.
At the time of the execution of the Contract, the successful Bidder shall furnish a Contract Bond in a sum equal to the full Contract Price. The Contract Bond shall guarantee the following: • Complete performance of the Contract and all Contract Addenda • Full payment for all materials and equipment • Full payment of all wages of labor The form of the Contract Bond shall be acceptable to the State. If the Surety fails or becomes financially insolvent, the Contractor shall file a new Bond in the amount designated by the State within fourteen calendar days of such failure or insolvency. Failure to furnish a replacement Bond may result in the State withholding of any amounts due the Contractor. The Contract Bond shall be provided by a Surety licensed and authorized to conduct business in the State of Rhode Island. All Surety companies shall be listed on the most current State of the Treasury, Fiscal Services, Circular 570. Subsequent to Contract award, the State may require an increase in the Bond.
103.06 Execution of The Contract.
The successful Bidder shall execute the Contract according to the instructions contained in the Notice of Tentative Award. No Contract, express or implied, shall be binding on the State until execution of the Contract.
103.07 Failure To Execute Contract.
Failure of the successful Bidder to comply with the terms of the Notice of Tentative Award may result in a revocation of the Notice and forfeiture of the Bid Bond. Subsequently, the State may elect to award the Contract to the next lowest responsible and responsive Bidder or reject all Bids and re-advertise the Project. If the State does not execute the Contract within sixty days of Bid opening, or as agreed upon by the parties, then the Contractor may withdraw its Proposal without penalty by submitting a notice of such intent to the State. Upon submission of the notice, the Contractor releases the State from any and all liability or obligation on its behalf and any other party who may have an interest, either direct or indirect, in the award of the Contract.
103.08 Escrow of Bid Documentation.
The placing in escrow of Bid Documentation according to this is applicable only when specified in the Contract. The purpose of this is to preserve the Bid documents of the Contractor for use by the parties to resolve any disagreement, dispute, or claim between the State and Contractor.
Part 100 — General Requirements and Covenants August 2025
100-30 SECTION 103 — AWARD AND EXECUTION OF CONTRACT
a.Copy of Bid Documentation. The Bidder shall submit a legible copy of all Bid Documentation used to prepare the Bid for this Contract with its Proposal or as otherwise specified in a separate, sealed container clearly marked “Bid Documentation” and shall be labeled with the Contractor's name and address, the date of submittal, the Project Number, the Contract Number, and Project Name.
b.Co st Itemization . The Bid Documentation shall clearly itemize the costs of performing the work of each Contract item in the Proposal. Contract items shall be separated into those items necessary to present a complete and detailed estimate of all costs. Plant, equipment, material, labor, jobsite overhead, and indirect costs shall be detailed in the Contractor’s usual format. The allocation of contingencies, mark ups, and other items shall be identified for each Contract item. All costs shall be identified. For Contract items amounting to less than $10,000, the Contractor may provide costs without a detailed breakdown. The Bid Documentation shall include all quantity take- offs, calculations of rates of production and progress, copies of quotes from Subcontractors and suppliers, memoranda, narratives, add/deduct sheets, and all other information used by the Contractor to arrive at the Bid submitted by the Contractor.
c.Cost Reconciling. If the itemized cost breakdowns and allocations described elsewhere are not revised to reflect the final Bid prices, then information shall be submitted reconciling the Bid preparation documents and the Bid unit prices. This reconciliation shall be considered part of the Bid Documentation and included in the Bid Documentation submittal.
d.S eparate Bid Documentation. If any Contractor’s Bid is based on S ubcontracting any part of the work, each Subcontractor/Supplier, whose total S ubcontract price exceeds five percent of the total Contract Price bid by the Bidder, shall provide separate Bid Documentation to be included with those of the Bidder.
e.E scrowed Bid Documents . These are the property of the Contractor and are not public records. If a third party requests a copy of the escrowed bid documents, the Contractor, and not the State, shall take the legal steps needed to defend the confidentiality of the escrowed Bid Documents.
f.A ffidavit . The Contractor shall submit an affidavit, signed under oath by an authorized representative with its Bid Documentation, listing each Bid document submitted by author, date, nature, and subject matter. The affidavit shall attest that the affiant has per sonally examined the Bid Documentation, that the affidavit certifies that the material submitted for escrow constitutes all the documentary information used in preparation of the bid, and that all such Bid Documentation is included in its submission to the State.
g.D uration and Use. If awarded the Contract, the Bid Documentation shall be escrowed with a mutually agreeable document storage facility and preserved by that institution/facility as specified in the following Sections of this clause.
h.R eturn of Bid Documents. The State shall return the sealed containers containing the Bid Documents with the return of Proposals to the unsuccessful Bidders upon Contract Award.
Part 100 — General Requirements and Covenants August 2025
SECTION 103 — AWARD AND EXECUTION OF CONTRACT 100-31
i.Escrow . The Bid Documents shall be escrowed for the duration of the Contract and shall be released to the State upon receipt of written authorization by the Contractor, or notification of the Contractor’s intention to file a claim or its initiation of litigation against the State. In the absence of such actions, the Bid Documentation shall be released to the Contractor upon Acceptance and Final Payment. According to its certification that the sealed container placed in escrow contains all materials relied upon by the Contractor in preparing its Bid, the escrowed Bid Documentation shall be the only documents accepted from the Contractor regarding preparation of the Bid.
j.Failure to Provide Bid Documentation. Failure to provide Bid Documentation according to the requirements of this Section may render the Bid non-responsive under 102.07.
k.E scrow Costs . The cost of the escrow storage will be borne by the State. The State will provide escrow instructions to the document depository consistent with this clause.
Referenced in this section
Award and Execution of Contract in other states
- Alaska 103 · AWARD AND EXECUTION OF CONTRACT
- Alabama 103 · AWARD AND EXECUTION OF CONTRACT
- Arkansas 103 · AWARD AND EXECUTION OF CONTRACT
- Colorado 103 · AWARD AND EXECUTION OF CONTRACT
- Georgia 103 · Award and Execution of Contract
- Idaho 103 · AWARD AND EXECUTION OF CONTRACT
- Indiana 103 · AWARD AND EXECUTION OF CONTRACT
- Kansas 103 · Award and Execution of Contract
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Source: Standard Specifications for Road and Bridge Construction (Blue Book), 2022 (Aug 2025 compilation) Edition. Pages 39–42 of 951. View official source ↗