Section Overview and Policies:

This section provides guidance on the requirements agencies must follow when procuring and paying for moving services from the Office of General Services’ (OGS) centralized contracts. It is important that agencies become familiar with these requirements. The moving services contract is a multi-award contract that requires agencies to solicit bids from the contract vendors to ensure the agency receives the best value for moving services. The OGS Moving Services centralized contract provides a listing of eligible contractors by region. Services available under these contracts include planning and preparation, moving, disassembly, assembly and other general activities related to relocation of agencies. By using these pre-established contracts, agencies save administrative time and the expense of individual solicitations. Each agency is required to complete a streamlined bid process, referred to as a “best and final offer” (BAFO) process, from the list of eligible contractors. The BAFO is an abbreviated bid process by which an agency can solicit final total pricing for its specific move based upon the competitive hourly rates in the contracts. The contract allows users to further negotiate advantageous rates for time and materials to accomplish moving tasks.

Policy References:

NYS OGS Group 79004 – Moving Services Award #23140 (replaces #22723) – centralized contract currently effective March 3, 2019 through March 2, 2024.

NYS Department of Labor Prevailing Wage Rates (Section 3 of the Contract Award Document)

Process and Transaction Preparation:

The moving services contract is a not-to-exceed contract, which requires close monitoring so an agency is not overcharged for services performed. Vendors cannot charge the agency more than the original price quote obtained as a result of the BAFO process for each cost category included in the BAFO response. When billing the agency, vendors must reduce the amount charged per cost category if the actual move takes less time, manpower, or equipment than originally quoted. However, if the actual move requires more time and/or more employees/trucks than provided for in the contractor’s BAFO response, the final charge may not be adjusted upward. That is, hours, rates, or charges for employee and equipment cannot exceed those provided in response to the contractor’s best and final offer. Exceptions where additional charges would be allowed may include but are not limited to: acts of God, building equipment malfunction, or police department or fire company blocking access to or from a building where a move is taking place. All such charges must be fully documented as to occurrence, location, time, and duration and requires the authorization of the OGS’ Procurement Services Group or the agency representative. It is also necessary that the contractor make every attempt to notify the agency representative of the problem during the actual occurrence. No charges are allowed for traffic delays that do not directly block access to the building.

Taking the following steps will help your agency get the services expected at the right price.

RECEIVING A THOROUGH BID

To receive a thorough BAFO, an agency should identify the move origin and destination locations, prepare a complete list of all items to be moved, and document any other details pertinent to the move in the Project Definition. See OGS Contract Award Notification Section 4 for information about the Project Definition and refer to the Project Definition contract document for the form, requirements, and instructions.

Ensure a detailed BAFO response is received from the vendor with hourly rates that are reflected in the centralized contract. The BAFO response should identify, by job title, the number of workers needed, estimated hours of work, hourly rates for the move and any vehicles or specialty packing items needed. It is incumbent upon the contractors to pay their employees the prevailing wage rates as established by the New York State Department of Labor. OGS’ Contract Award Notification, Section 3: PREVAILING WAGE RATES points users to the NYS Department of Labor website for the prevailing wage rate schedule applicable to these contracts.

ESTABLISHING A MOVING COORDINATOR

Agencies should identify a moving coordinator to monitor the move. Throughout the move, the coordinator should maintain an independent record of the dates of the move, the number of movers, their titles, start and end times, lunch breaks, number and type of equipment and vehicles, and specialty packing items used. The agency should use this record to evaluate the accuracy of the invoice the vendor submits for payment.

The moving coordinator should also verify the vendor posts, on the job site, the assigned prevailing rate schedule and a statement informing workers of their right to contact the Department of Labor if they are not receiving the proper prevailing wage rate.

REVIEWING THE VENDOR’S INVOICE

The vendor’s invoice should be reviewed when submitted to ensure it is detailed and follows the outline of the vendor’s BAFO response (e.g., hourly rate and hours worked by title).

The detailed costs on the contractor’s invoice should also be compared to the independent record maintained by the moving coordinator. Specifically, compare dates and hours worked by title, number of movers, equipment and vehicle types and hours used, specialty packaging used, and other items as outlined in the agreement.

In addition, the hourly rates, titles, and others charges on the invoice should be compared against the corresponding contract values. For contract pricing by region and within each region, by county see the pricing by region contract document.

RECEIVING CERTIFIED PAYROLL RECORDS

To ensure the vendor pays its employees for the hours billed to the State, the agency should obtain certified payroll records from the vendor. Vendors are required to provide certified payroll forms to agencies upon request. The agency should consider using U.S. Department of Labor payroll form WH-347 (available at the U.S. Department of Labor website), as this form meets numerous federal standards and meets the requirement in the NYS Moving Services Award for vendors to provide certified payroll records. The form includes each employee’s name, address, individual identifying number (e.g., last four digits of an employee’s social security number), classification, hourly rate, daily and weekly hours worked, deductions, and wages paid.

The agency should compare the number of hours reported on the invoice, by title, to the total number of hours worked by title on the certified payroll records to ensure the invoiced hours do not exceed the hours on the certified payroll record. The agency should also compare the hourly wage rates the vendor paid its employees, by title, to the corresponding prevailing wage rates on the Department of Labor website to ensure the records indicate employees were paid a rate greater than or equal to the prevailing wage rate.

Guide to Financial Operations

REV. 07/23/2020