SPECIFICATIONS AND PROPOSAL FOR GENERAL BANKING SERVICES FOR THE TOWNSHIP OF DEERFIELD September 1, 2013 August 31, 2016 The Township of Deerfield is issuing a Request for Proposals (RFP) to financial institutions to provide primary banking services. The Township proposes a contract term of three years with either party having the option to terminate the contract with ninety (90) days written notice of its intention to terminate. It is anticipated that these services will be re-bid at the end of the contract. The estimated effective date of this agreement is September 1, 2013. Please submit the completed RFP form included in this communication, along with any additional information regarding services the financial institution offers to municipal governments. The RFP should be submitted to the Clerk/Administrator of the Township by August 8, 2013 by 11:00am. l. Terms of the Agreement: 1. The financial institution must be fully qualified as a Public Depository Pursuant to the State of New Jersey Government Unit Deposit Protection Act and must continue to be such during the three (3) year contract period. In addition, the Township requires all banking institutions submitting a proposal to have a satisfactory rating by Federal examiners under the Federal Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). 2. The Township is not liable for any costs incurred in the preparation of proposals. 3. The Township reserves the rights to conduct oral presentations of any or all proposers prior to selection. The Township is not liable for any costs incurred by the proposer in connection with such interviews. 4. By submitting a proposal, the proposer certifies that he or she has fully read and understands the RFP and has knowledge of the scope, nature, quantity, quality or the work to be performed. 5. The proposer shall furnish such additional information as the Township may reasonably require. The Township reserves the right to make reasonable inquires of the qualifications of the proposer as it deems appropriate. 6. The Township reserves the right to conduct precontract negotiations with any or all proposers. 7. The Township reserves the right to reject any/or all proposals, and the right to seek proposals when such a procedure is in its best interest.
II. Required Services for Responding Financial Institutions: The following primary banking services are required by the Township for all financial institutions responding to the RFP: 1. Maintain the various Township checking accounts, providing monthly written statements along with cancelled checks on a disk no later than the 10 th day of the following month. 2. Interest on all accounts where applicable. 3. Capabilities for performing online banking or by telephone account transfers, stop payment, wiring services and inquiry of account balance status. 4. The statement date for all accounts shall be the last day of each month. 5. Indicate the method of determining the rate of interest and frequency of change in rate. 6. The Township expects the financial institution to provide at least next business bank day availability for checks being deposited in the Township accounts, except for the payroll account that requires same day service. 7. The cost of checks for all accounts and deposit tickets for all accounts must be provided free of charge. 8. The Township requires a bank office in a convenient location where it can transact business. Drive-up window service must be available by the bank that would host the payroll account. State the location of this bank or branch and the number of bank branches including the hours of operation within a five-mile radius of the Township. An ATM must be available at the main branch. 9. The Township requires courier pickup at the municipal building located at 736 Landis Avenue, Rosenhayn NJ 08352 daily Monday through Friday. 10. A specific client representative shall be assigned to the Township to handle inquiries, requests and problems. Response from the bank shall occur within a 24 hour period. 11. The ability to process direct deposit for payroll. III. General Information: - The total property tax levy for calendar year 2012 was $ 5,620,437.47. All tax collections are deposited into the Tax Collection account and transferred monthly to the Current account. The tax collection rate for CY 2012 was 95.30%. - The estimated population from the last census was 3,119. - The Current Operating Budget for CY13 is $ 1,780,607.33. - Payroll is processed bi-weekly. Approximately 650 payroll checks are issued annually.
The Township maintains but not limited to the accounts as listed below: Average # Checks Average Month Account Debited\Month End Balance Current Fund 54 1,400,000.00 Trust Funds (8 accounts) 10 109,000.00 General Capital 2 125,000.00 Payroll 54 10,000.00 Escrow 5 40,000.00 Tax Collection - 550,000.00 Other accounts (6 accounts) 10 100,000.00 Total average monthly balance $ 2,300,000.00 Township bank statements will be available for inspection during normal business hours, by appointment only. Contact Mary Jane Lake, Shared Service CFO (856) 455-3230x214. (e-mail address CFO@Deerfieldtownship.org) VI. Cost Proposals: The cost proposals submitted to the Township must be all inclusive. All services not mentioned or general services incidental to the operations of accounts maintained by the Township and not addressed are expected to be provided at no additional cost. V. Evaluation Criteria: The Township reserves the right to accept the proposals for all types of services from the same financial institution or split the services among different financial institutions if such would provide the Township an overall cost savings. In order to simplify and standardize all proposals, please include the attached Banking Services Fee Proposal Form, which must be used when submitting your proposal. Assume the activity estimates referred to throughout this document to be a reasonable estimate of activity to be experienced. The rates quoted per item by the proposer will be considered fixed, regardless of activity deviation. The Township does not guarantee any minimum or maximum volume of activity. The contract will be awarded to the proposer providing the primary banking services at the lowest net cost and who meets the needs of the Township most efficiently, providing the price is reasonable and is in the best interest of the Township to accept it. The following criteria will be used to evaluate the proposals: 1. Responsiveness of the proposal related to the scope of the work. 2. Ability, capacity, and skill of the financial institution to perform the services on a timely basis. 3. Reference responses and prior experience and ability to effectively service customer needs. 4. The quality, availability, and adaptability of the services to the particular need required. 5. Net cost and quality of the services to be performed. 6. Experience and expertise level of key personnel, the responsible banking component and the financial instruction in dealing with financial products and services for the public sector. 7. Financial strength and stability of the financial institution.
VI. Additional Information: To ensure fair consideration of all responses, the Township prohibits communication to or with any department, bureau, or employee during the submission process except in writing Any questions relative to interpretation of specifications or the RFP process should be directed to the Chief Financial Officer of the Township. Direct inquiries to: Mary Jane Lake Shared Service CFO 736 Landis Avenue, PO Box 350 Rosenhayn, NJ 08352 (856) 455-3230 ext 204/214 cfo@deerfieldtownship.org VII. Receipt of Proposal: Three (3) sealed copies of the proposal submitted by your institution should be received by the Clerk/Administrator at the above address no later than 11am on Thursday August 8, 2013. Proposal envelopes should be marked as follows: Proposals to Provide General Banking Services. No facsimile transmissions will be accepted. Proposals received by the Township after the time specified will not be considered. All proposals submitted shall be binding for ninety (90) calendar days following the above due date. All information required by the RFP must be supplied to constitute a valid proposal. The CFO, Solicitor, and Administrator will review and evaluate all proposals submitted in response to the RFP. Based on the results of this evaluation, the CFO will make a recommendation to the Township Committee. A contract will then be negotiated with the highest rated proposer and presented to Township. VIII. Proposer s Warranty: The person signing the proposal warrants that: 1. He or She is an Officer of the organization. 2. He or she has been specifically authorized to offer a proposal in full compliance with all requirements and conditions as set forth in the RFP
Township of Deerfield Banking Proposal Summary Name of Bank: Address: Person completing the proposal: Title: Phone number: Fax number: Date of Proposal: General Questions: 1. Do you have professional staff dedicated to municipal debt financing? Please list the principal members of the department and their location. 2. Identify the branch office that is being proposed to service the Township s account. Please indicate the name and contact information of the client representative. 3. What is the bank s policy on providing timely and accurate services to their customers? Indicate the average time commitment involved in waiting to conduct transactions at the main branch specified. Checklist of Services: Please complete the attached Exhibit A Checklist of Services requested by the Township. The institution shall respond with a Yes or No reply in the appropriate column as to whether the services would be available. Interest Determination: Indicate the method of determining the rate of interest and frequency of rate change. Institution processing fees: The institution shall identify any specific services which are not included in the analysis that may be subject to fees or charges payable by the Township. Financial Information: The institution shall provide financial reports for the previous two years. Pleases include an attachment at the end of the proposal. References: Indicate the institutions background in providing banking services to municipal clients. Provide a listing of comparable client references who are presently using the institutions professional services i.e. the name, telephone number and contact person. Other Information:
Please provide any other material that may be helpful in reviewing the proposal, including any attachments, Schedules, financial information etc. Township of Deerfield Exhibit A Checklist of Services Requested Yes No 1. Is the institution eligible to act as a depository for public funds per NJ State Statutes? If yes, attach a copy of the most recent GUDPA certificate to this exhibit. Yes No 2. Will statements be prepared from the first day of the month to the last day of the Month? If no, specify dates Yes No 3. Will statements be mailed in order to be received by the 10 th day of the month? If no, when would the statements be received? Yes No 4. Are all checks listed on the statement in numerical order? Yes No 5. Are canceled checks forwarded to the Township via computer disk? If no, how are they sent? Yes No 6. Does the institution perform wire transfers or electronic funds transfers? Yes No 7. Does the institution participate in the ACH system? Yes No 8. Does the institution fax notices of incoming wires, EFTs and ACH transactions? If no, how is notification made? Yes No 9. Does the institution send a separate monthly analysis for the combined fees and Interest earned for all combined accounts? Yes No 10. When given a two day lead time does the institution have provision for a direct deposit System for the township payroll? Yes No 11. Will deposit tickets be printed for the Township at no charge? If no, at what fee? Yes No 12. Will checks be printed for the Township at no charge? If no, at what fee? Yes No 13. Does the institution have an on-line banking system for use? Yes No 14. Does the on-line system, if available, permit transfers between accounts? Yes No 15. Doe the on-line system, if available, permit the Township to initiate wire transfers? Yes No 16. Does the on-line system, if available, allow more than one person access? Yes No 17. Does the institution provide a courier service daily Monday through Friday? If yes, will it pickup and deliver at a specified location? Yes No 18. Are deposits made before 3:00p.m. credited for the current day? If no, what time is final? Yes No 19. Does the institution use compensated balances to offset fees for services?