These procedures describe how the District will procure architectural, engineering, and land surveying services; the Local Government Professional Services Selection Act will control in the event of a conflict. 50 ILCS 510/. The Superintendent will modify these procedures whenever the School Board determines by resolution that an emergency exists and a firm must be selected in an expeditious manner, or the cost of architectural, engineering, and land surveying services for the project is expected to be less than $40,000. 50 ILCS 510/8. Effective January 1, 2019, this amount increases annually by a percentage equal to the annual unadjusted percentage increase, if any, as determined by the consumer price index published by the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics for all urban consumers (CPI-U), available at: bls.gov/regions/new-england/data/cons....

Actor	Action
Architectural, engineering, or land surveying firms	May annually file a statement of qualifications and performance data with the District. 50 ILCS 510/4.
Superintendent and/or designee	Store statements of qualifications and performance data received from firms engaged in architectural, engineering, or land surveying services. Unless the District has a satisfactory relationship for services with one or more firms, request a statement of interest in the specific project utilizing one or more of the following methods: Mail or email notices of the proposed project to firms that have current statements of qualifications and performance data on file. Advertise in a daily newspaper of general circulation in the District. The advertisement must request a statement of qualifications and performance data from those firms which do not have a statement on file with the District, and must state the day, hour, and location that the statements of interest and qualifications and performance data are due. Advertise on the District’s website. The advertisement must include a description of the project and state the time and place for interested firms to submit their letters of interest and statements of qualifications and performance data, as required. 50 ILCS 510/4. Unless the District has a satisfactory relationship for services with one or more firms, evaluate the firms that submitted interest letters, according to criteria for ranking described in the last section of this procedure. The Superintendent or designee may conduct discussions with and require public presentations by firms deemed to be the most qualified regarding their qualifications, approach to the project, and ability to furnish the required services. 50 ILCS 510/5. Do not, prior to selecting a firm for contract negotiation, seek formal or informal submission of verbal or written estimates of costs or proposals in terms of dollars, hours required, percentage of construction cost, or any other measure of compensation. 50 ILCS 510/5. Select no less than three firms, who would be most qualified to provide services, and rank them in order of their qualifications. If fewer than three firms submit interest letters and the Board determines that one or both of those firms are so qualified, negotiate a contract as provided herein. 50 ILCS 510/6. Attempt to negotiate a contract at a fair and reasonable compensation, taking into account the estimated value, scope, complexity, and professional nature of the services to be rendered. 50 ILCS 510/5. If unable to agree on a satisfactory contract, terminate negotiations and proceed to negotiate with the firm ranked next in qualifications. 50 ILCS 510/5. If unable to negotiate a satisfactory contract with any of the three originally-selected firms, inform the Board. The District will re-evaluate the services requested, compile a second list of not less than three qualified firms, and continue the process. 50 ILCS 510/5.

Criteria for Ranking Firms
Unless the District has a satisfactory relationship for services with one or more firms, the criteria for evaluating the firms submitting letters of interest may include, but are not limited to:

Required Criteria for Consideration (50 ILCS 510/5)
Qualifications and ability of professional personnel
Past record and experience
Performance data
Acceptance of District’s time and budget requirements
Location of firm’s administrative offices
Workload

Permissive Criteria for Consideration
Firm’s credit rating
Firm’s financial stability
Reputation
Technological resources

UPDATED:    March 2024