PURPOSE
The purpose of this procedure is to document the steps necessary in preparing and delivering the Joint Project Acceptance Board Report to the Board of Public Works (BPW).
REFERENCES
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RESPONSIBILITIES
Bureau of Contract Administration (BCA): BCA’s Project Administration Section is responsible for preparing the initial draft of the final Acceptance Board Report after final acceptance of the project. The draft copy of the final Acceptance Board Report is distributed to the appropriate Project Manager (PM) or to the Construction Manager (CM) for review prior to submittal to the Bureau of Engineering (BOE) Board Unit.
Project Manager (PM)/Construction Manager (CM): The PM and/or the CM review the draft copy of the Acceptance Board Report and complete the sections that have been left blank for their input. The PM and/or CM make any additions or deletions to the Discussion Section of the draft copy that are necessary to adequately explain the scope of the project and include an explanation if more than 5% of the contract amount of change orders were issued on the project.
Deputy City Engineer: Following review by the PM or CM, the Deputy City Engineer for the respective program reviews the draft Acceptance Report, makes any necessary corrections and authorizes that the report be finalized. Once the report is finalized, the Deputy conducts a final review and sends it to the City Engineer for signature with a statement that it has been finalized.
City Engineer: The City Engineer signs the final Acceptance Board Report.
Inspector of Public Works: The Inspector of Public Works attests that the project has been constructed in accordance with the plans, specifications, change orders, and contract provisions and signs the final Acceptance Board Report.
PROCEDURE
Upon issuance of the Statement of Completion by the BCA Final Inspector, BCA prepares and distributes the draft Joint Acceptance Board Report to BOE and any other Bureau/Department with an interest in the project that has concluded their review. There will be blank items contained in the draft report that are to be completed by the PM/CM.
The PM/CM will complete the blank items that pertain to BOE. Usually this means making any additions or corrections to adequately explain the scope of the project, adding a section on the budget aspects of the project, and providing an explanation for any unusual amounts of change orders (COs) on the project. The draft should then be returned to BCA as soon as possible.
Regarding budget information, the PM/CM should make sure that the original contract award amount is correctly stated. The original budget for the project, established in the awarding Board Report should also be stated. This should be followed by a statement of the change order amounts on the project. This is then followed by a statement that the project completed X% above or below the award amount and Y% below the authorized budget. On most contract awards, the budget is established at the awarding amount plus 10% contingency. The contingency amount can vary, however, so it is important to always check the awarding Board Report. The CM is not authorized to expend beyond the budget amount. Should change orders begin to approach the budget amount, the CM must seek additional budget in a new Board Report before the budget is exceeded. If additional authority was obtained during the construction phase, the CM should explain this in the final Acceptance Board Report and reference the Board Report(s) granting the higher budget. As a result, no project should ever exceed its budget authority.
Regarding change orders, the Board has requested that an explanation be provided if high change order costs are experienced on a project. When total COs exceed 5% of the award amount, an explanation of COs is required in the Acceptance Board Report. For total change orders below 5%, no explanation is usually required per BCA.
To the extent possible, the final change order for the project should be negotiated and forwarded to BCA within thirty (30) days of the date of final FA by the Final Inspector. The date of final FA establishes the “completion date” of the project. The “completion date” indicates that all physical work has been completed on the project. If large or complex issues remain at the end of construction, it may not be possible to issue the final change order within thirty (30) days. In such a case, the PM/CM should forward to BCA within thirty (30) days, an estimate of any disputed monies to be withheld from retention.
In complex situations, extended negotiations may be necessary to resolve the issues and avoid litigation. The Issues Resolution Ladder should be used to elevate disputed issues that cannot be resolved at the lower level. If it is determined that all reasonable efforts to negotiate disputed items with the Contractor have been exhausted, a unilateral final change order may be issued to continue the closeout process. To be in compliance with the Public Contract Code, all retention, less disputed monies, must be released to the Contractor within sixty (60) days of the date of final FA. In order to ensure that this is done, BCA must have all final change orders or estimates of “disputed monies” within thirty (30) days of the FA date.
To be in compliance with the Contractor Responsibility Ordinance, the Contractor Performance Evaluation Report (CPER) must be forwarded to the BCA Special Research and Investigation Section (SRI) within twenty (20) days of the date of final FA. The BPW will not place any project acceptance report on the agenda, or accept any project, until the CPER is received from both the BCA and BOE.
On January 19, 2001, the BPW adopted a policy for Expediting Project Closeout to ensure compliance with City Ordinances and State Law. Board Policy requires that in the event a claim is filed against the City and the project has had Final Inspection, the City Attorney will issue written notice to the Inspector of Public Works, recommending that BCA initiate the project closeout. Dollar values will be estimated and withheld for all outstanding corrections and/or potential penalties and the Final Acceptance Board Report will proceed to the BPW for acceptance and release of retention, less monies withheld.
When BCA receives all completed draft copies and the CPERs, it will complete the “Final Acceptance Board Report” for signature by the Inspector of Public Works and the City Engineer. The Final Acceptance Board Report will not be completed and distributed for signature until such time as the CPERs are received by SRI. The Board staff then transmits a copy of the report to other groups within the Department of Public Works to inform them of the project’s completed status and to alert them to the scheduled consideration for final acceptance by the BPW. The Board staff will also notify subcontractors who have requested notification of project completion to protect lien rights.
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