REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL TO PROVIDE PAYROLL PROCESSING SERVICES TO MEMBERS OF THE GEORGIA MUNICIPAL ASSOCIATION

Transcription

1 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL TO PROVIDE PAYROLL PROCESSING SERVICES TO MEMBERS OF THE GEORGIA MUNICIPAL ASSOCIATION ISSUED BY GEORGIA MUNICIPAL ASSOCIATION JULY 9, 2010 PROPOSALS SHALL BE SUBMITTED ON OR BEFORE 2:00 p.m. EDT JULY 30, 2010 BY TO OR AT OUR OFFICE: GEORGIA MUNICIPAL ASSOCIATION 201 PRYOR STREET SW ATLANTA, GA MAILING ADDRESS P O BOX ATLANTA, GA 30348

2 I. REQUEST The Georgia Municipal Association invites written proposals from qualified payroll services companies ( Company ) wishing to provide payroll services for members of the Association. Proposals should be submitted as directed in Section V. II. BACKGROUND Created in 1933, the Georgia Municipal Association (GMA) is the only state organization that represents municipal governments in Georgia. Based in Atlanta, GMA is a voluntary, non-profit organization that provides legislative advocacy, educational, employee benefit and technical consulting services to its members. GMA's membership currently totals 502 municipal governments, accounting for more than 99% of the state's municipal population. A 64-member Board of Directors, composed of city officials, governs GMA. Program implementation is charged to the Executive Director and staff of over 80 full-time employees. For more information on GMA please visit our website at GMA s Local Government Services department administers twelve individual programs to governments in Georgia, including equipment and real property financing, cable and telecommunications franchise administration, revenue recovery for hotel and alcohol taxes and a variety of aggregated purchasing programs. These services are marketed by a GMA employee charged with promoting our Local Government Service programs though a variety of methods including but not limited to site visits, phone calls, letters, various communications and other print and online media. GMA has a long history of offering services to its member municipalities. As of July 7, 2010, 858 local governments participate in one or more of GMA s service programs including those administered by its Local Government Services and our Risk Management and Employee Benefit Systems departments. These local governments include cities, counties, school systems, regional development centers, and independent authorities (emergency management, housing, development, water/sewer/electric, etc)

3 GMA Program membership information: Risk Management & Employee Benefit Services Number of Participants Defined Benefit Retirement System 284 Deferred Compensation (457) (a) 39 Life and Health Insurance 150 Workers Compensation Insurance 483 Property and Liability Insurance 313 Local Government Services Number of Participants Combined Equipment & Real Estate Financing 200 Unemployment Compensation Assistance 105 Delinquent Business Insurance License Discovery & Collection 527 Cable & Telecommunications Administration 129 Natural Gas Purchasing 159 Hotel Excise Tax Recovery 54 Alcohol Excise Tax Recovery 14 Debt Collection 63 On-line Surplus Auctions (GovDeals) 154 US Communities Purchasing Consortium 186 Agenda and Meeting Management (new as of May 2010) 3-3 -

4 III. INSTRUCTIONS TO PROPOSERS A. Proposals should be submitted by regular or express mail to: Georgia Municipal Association Attn: Lou Comer Director, Local Government Services P O BOX Atlanta, GA Or by to Lou Comer at: [email protected] B. All proposals must be received on or before 2:00 p.m. on July 30, C. Any questions about the Request for Proposal must be directed to Lou Comer by e- mail at [email protected] no later than Tuesday, July 27. IV. SELECTION PROCESS An Evaluation Committee will evaluate all proposals received and may select up to three firms for further evaluation. Each of the three firms may be required to make a presentation before the Committee. A. The GMA has set the following tentative schedule for the selection process: Request for Proposal Issued Deadline for Proposal Submission GMA Completes Review of Proposals Begin Negotiations and Agreement Development with kkkkkk with Selected Company B. All proposers will be notified of the results of the selection process. V. SELECTION CRITERIA A. The proposals will be evaluated based upon the following criteria: Understanding the Service: This refers to the Company s understanding of GMA s program participant s needs as detailed in the RFP and the nature and scope of the work involved. Responsiveness: This refers to how well the proposal meets the needs of the GMA and its program participants. Experience: The experience of the proposed Company should be documented, including experience with governmental entities. Expertise: Specific expertise is desirable in the field including any professional or industry awards, certifications, associations, etc. the company may hold. Cost: Although cost is a significant factor, it may not be the dominant factor

5 PROPOSAL FORMAT All proposals must be prepared in the standard format described below, in order to facilitate comparison and evaluation. Failure to follow the format or address an area adequately may cause the proposal to be deemed unresponsive and therefore excluded from consideration. Any proposed deviation from the requested scope of services must be noted and fully explained. A. LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL Submit a letter of transmittal briefly stating your company s understanding of the work to be done signed by an individual authorized to bind the proposing entity stating the firm is qualified and has read and will comply with the all terms and conditions, including those listed, in Section VII of the RFP. B. QUALIFICATIONS Address the following areas: 1. Organization of company and how its resources can be put to work for GMA and its program participants. Include general information about the company, including size of the organization, location of offices, years in business, organization chart, state of incorporation, name of owners and principal parties, number and position titles of staff. Information regarding any professional associations which the Company and its staff are members should be included. 2. Recent payroll servicing relationships within Georgia, if any. Please include the names, addresses and phone numbers of contact persons. Briefly describe the work performed. 3. Five references for comparable work performed, including a summary of engagements with other governmental agencies if applicable. Include name of organization, address, contact person and contact information including a phone number and address. 4. Qualifications of staff proposed for the assignment, their position in the firm and types and amount of equivalent payroll experience. 5. Technology tools for accessing reports online, entry of payroll information on-line and exports of payroll data for use in updating individual cities general ledger. 6. Describe the Company s customer service policy. B. FEE PROPOSAL Provide cost structure for services related to the issuance of payroll checks including all items listed in Section VI of the RFP

6 VI. SCOPE OF SERVICES The Company shall provide payroll services for the members of GMA. The following items should be addressed as part of the response: Payroll Processing Basic payroll processing services for governmental entities with weekly, biweekly, twice monthly and monthly paid employees, including requirements specific to public safety employees Calculate gross wages and appropriate withholding taxes Process benefit, retirement, advance and other miscellaneous deductions from employee paycheck and credit back to city for disbursement to appropriate vendors Respond to wage garnishment inquiries Remit garnishment amounts deducted to proper agency or individual Ability to print and deliver paychecks per the payroll cycle Ability to provide paper checks and direct deposit Ability to have up to 10 direct deposit accounts Resolve ACH returns Process state mandated New Hire Reporting Transmitting payroll data via telephone, fax and internet Ability to provide, or interface to, an electronic timekeeping and attendance solution Assist with Georgia New Hire requirements and E-Verify requirements Payroll Reporting for State and Federal Purposes Prepare and remit state SUTA and withholding amounts and tax returns(many cities are reimbursable employers for purposes of unemployment tax) Prepare and remit Federal 941 tax deposits and returns (many cities are reimbursable employers for purposes of unemployment tax) Remit Federal unemployment 940 tax deposits and reports, if required Prepare W-2/W-3 filings with full reconciliation to 941 s General Reporting Requirements Ability to interface payroll data with a financial system Ability to create general ledger report specific to the city Ability to create electronic data for use in importing to the city s general ledger system Ability to download payroll data into a spreadsheet and/ or an external database Flexible reporting to detail payroll by department including all employee and employer taxes Ability to produce hard copy and electronic reports by date range preferably in multiple formats, including but not limited to Excel, Word and PDF format. System must have accrual tracking Online payroll and reporting Ability to allow employees internet access to review payroll information - 6 -

7 Other Requirements Commercial liability policy with at least $1,000,000 million in coverage per occurrence; Professional liability Errors and Omissions coverage with at least $3,000,000 per occurrence Provide timely updates on any changes to federal and state rules or laws specific to payroll Complete hands on functional training to payroll system users VII. TERMS AND CONDITIONS 1. Company will perform all work in accordance with all federal, state and local laws applicable to payroll administration. 2. The Company will meet monthly with GMA staff to discuss marketing efforts and customer implementations. These meetings can occur via conference call. Provide monthly report listing entities using the payroll processing service to GMA. The Company will also provide recommendations on how GMA s program participants can improve their payroll processes. The Company shall provide updates to GMA and its program participants on changes in state and federal laws related to payroll. 3. The Company will be fully responsible for maintaining accurate records of all correspondence, documents, accounting records, transactions and other relative evidence. These records shall remain on file for a period of at least seven (7) years. All records and books shall be made available to the GMA and its program participants upon request. 4. The Company will work with GMA to offer a minimum of four (4) regional educational/marketing seminars and/or webinars to program participants and prospective participants during the first 12 months of the contract. A representative of the company is required to attend these sessions. 5. Any agreement executed between the company and GMA shall include a revenue sharing provision to compensate the Association for the use of its name and marketing efforts. Please affirmatively state your willingness to enter into such an agreement based upon mutually agreed upon terms in your letter of transmittal. 6. The Company will agree to employ courteous business procedures to the end of maintaining the GMA s program participants goodwill. 7. GMA reserves the right to reject any and all proposals, or to award the contract to the next most qualified Company if the selected Company does not execute the contract within thirty (30) days after the award. 8. GMA reserves the right to request clarification of information submitted and to request additional information of one or more applicants

8 9. Any proposal submitted shall constitute an irrevocable offer, for a period of ninety (90) days