The Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission solicits statements of qualification for applicants for appointment to the following professional positions. Responses should address the general criteria and mandatory minimum criteria for the position sought, as well as the selection criteria attached hereto. All responses will be treated as confidential.
Responses (1 copy) must be addressed to Chief Operating Officer Jack Killion and received in the Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission, 6751 Westfield Avenue Pennsauken, New Jersey 08110 no later than 12:00 PM Tuesday, June 25, 2025. All submissions shall be clearly marked “Professional Qualifications 2025”. All responses shall be opened and announced publicly, immediately thereafter by the Chief Operating Officer or his designee. Responses will be reviewed by the Commissioners. All appointments will be announced at a public meeting.
Unless otherwise noted, appointments shall be for the Commission year of (July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2025) and subject to the execution of an appropriate contract. Any/all appointments shall remain in effect until such replacements have been designated and duly appointed by the Commission.
Late submissions will not be accepted and will be returned unopened. No oral, written, or other form of amendment will be accepted by the Commission after this time, unless requested by the Commission. The Commission reserves the right to reject all submissions and also to modify or amend, with appropriate notifications by the respondents. All submissions become the property of the Commission.
AUDITORS
GENERAL CRITERIA: The Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission desires to appoint a firm of certified public accountants to act as auditors for the Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission. Applicants should demonstrate knowledge of Federal and State auditing laws, requirements, and regulations, as well as experience in providing advice to municipal utility entities on records compliance issues. Any experience or knowledge of matters that directly affect the Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission should be addressed.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:
1. The firm must employ a minimum of two (2) certified public accountants that have been licensed in that capacity for a period of not less than five (5) years’ each prior to the date of appointment.
2. The firm must employ a minimum of two (2) registered public municipal accountants licensed and qualified in that capacity for a minimum of five (5) years’ each prior to the appointment.
3. Must have a minimum of five (5) years’ experience in providing auditing services to municipal utilities within the State of New Jersey.
4. Must maintain a current principal office within the State of New Jersey.
5. Must describe any special services available to municipal utilities clients.
6. Provide a list of all past and present governmental entity clients or be able to demonstrate a proven record of servicing mid-sized or larger public entities with references to be supplied upon request.
ACCOUNTING SERVICES
GENERAL CRITERIA: The Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission desires to appoint a firm of certified public accountants to serve as consultants to the Commission and Staff to; assist the Commission Staff in maintaining its general ledger and reporting systems in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, as well as, providing advice, where noted on recording processes, compliance, and internal control issues.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:
1. The firm must employ a minimum of three (3) certified public accountants that have been licensed in that capacity for a period of not less than five (5) years each prior to the date of appointment.
2. Must maintain a current office within the State of New Jersey or within a thirty (30) mile radius of the MPWC Administrative Headquarters.
3. Must describe any special services available to municipal utilities clients.
4. Provide a list of all past and present governmental entity clients or be able to demonstrate a proven record of servicing mid-sized or larger public entities with references to be provided upon request.
INSURANCE BROKER OF RECORD
GENERAL CRITERIA: The Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission desires to appoint an insurance broker of record responsible for the negotiation and placement of various insurance products required by the MPWC, including, but not limited to, general liability insurance, general property insurance including crime, boiler and machinery, automobile and employee benefits liability insurance, errors and omissions insurance, public entity legal liability insurance, errors & omissions, directors liability, environmental impairment insurance including storage tank coverage and others. Applicants should demonstrate an extensive knowledge of all insurance products required by governmental entities, utilities, and available product lines. Any experience or knowledge of matters directly affecting the Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission should be addressed.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:
1. Must be licensed as a New Jersey insurance broker for a minimum of five (5) years.
2. Must have a minimum of three (3) years’ experience representing New Jersey public entities as an insurance broker.
3. Must handle all insurance products required by the Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission.
4. Must have access to various competitive insurance lines.
5. Must have available risk management consultant services as requested by the Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission.
6. Must be able to provide consulting services relative to self-insurance programs and other alternative insurance options.
7. Provide a list of all past and present governmental entity clients or be able to demonstrate a proven record of servicing mid-sized or larger public entities with references to be provided upon request.
BROKER OF RECORD FOR EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PROGRAM
GENERAL CRITERIA: The Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission desires to appoint a broker of record for its employee benefit programs (such as health, dental, and prescription programs). Applicants should demonstrate knowledge and experience in the placement of insurance and alternative benefit programs on behalf of governmental entities with experience in areas of cost containment. Any specific experience or knowledge of matters affecting the Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission should be addressed.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:
1. Must be licensed as a New Jersey insurance broker for a minimum of five (5) years.
2. Must have a minimum of three (3) years’ experience representing New Jersey governmental entities as an employee benefit program broker. Must demonstrate the ability to handle all employee benefit programs required by the Merchantville Pennsauken Water Commission.
3. Must have access to various competitive insurance products.
4. Must be able to provide consulting services relative to cost containment and alternative products available to public entities for employee benefits programs.
5. Provide a list of all past and present governmental entity clients or be able to demonstrate a proven record of servicing mid-sized or larger public entities with references to be provided upon request.
COMMISSION ENGINEERS
GENERAL CRITERIA: The MPWC desires to qualify a pool of firms of professionals from which it can seek proposals on short notice in order to appoint a firm to provide consulting engineering services to the Commission on specific projects or consultancies. Applicants here should seek to qualify for that pool and to that end should provide all relevant information to demonstrate knowledge and experience with respect to all aspects of engineering services required by a public utility and particularly a water utility. Any experience or knowledge of matters that directly affect the Commission should also be addressed.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:
1. Must be certified to provide engineering services in the State of New Jersey.
2. Must have a minimum of five (5) years’ experience in providing consulting services to municipal authorities including demonstrated experience with such subjects as water pumping, transmission & distribution & treatment projects, utility upgrades and replacement, inflow and infiltration studies, system connection permitting and system mapping projects.
3. Must be experienced in obtaining permits and approvals from various state, county and local regulatory agencies with specific experience related to water systems issues.
4. Must maintain a staff of New Jersey licensed or certified professionals sufficient to service the Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission including, but not limited to civil engineers, land surveyors, planners, environmental scientists and construction administrators and inspectors.
a. must identify which of these or other relevant categories of professionals you employ; and
b. the number of each such professionals in your employment.
5. Must maintain an office location in close proximity to Merchantville-Pennsauken to be able to respond to emergent matters promptly.
6. Must be experienced in the preparation of grant applications.
7. Must have project managers with at least five (5) years’ of municipal experience.
8. Provide a list of all past and present governmental entity clients or be able to demonstrate a proven record of servicing mid-sized or larger public entities with references to be provided upon request.
COMMISSION BOND COUNSEL
GENERAL CRITERIA: The MPWC desires to appoint an attorney or firm who will be the primary legal representative of the Authority in all matters relating to the issuance of public debt instruments including bonds and bond anticipation notes of the Commission. Applicant should demonstrate knowledge of municipal and authority bond and finance law. Any experience or knowledge of matters that directly affect the MPWC should be addressed.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:
1. Must be licensed to practice law in the State of New Jersey and eligible to appear before all state and federal courts and administrative offices of the State of New Jersey for a period of not less than five (5) years preceding appointment.
2. Must have a minimum of five (5) years’ experience representing municipal entities in connection with the approval of bond ordinances and the issuance of municipal or authority bonds and/or notes.
3. Must maintain an office in the State of New Jersey.
4. Must have sufficient support staff to provide all services required by the Commission including, but not limited to, the preparation of all documents necessary and incidental to the issuance of bonds and other municipal obligations.
5. Provide a list of all past and present governmental entity clients or be able to demonstrate a proven record of servicing mid-sized or larger public entities with references to be provided upon request.
SELECTION CRITERIA
The selection criteria to be evaluated in awarding a contract for the services described herein shall include:
1. Qualifications of the individuals who will perform the tasks and the amounts of their respective participation.
2. Experience in providing the professional services requested by the Merchantville Pennsauken Water Commission and references related thereto (Note: If an individual or firm has been involved in business mergers the Commission will consider length of service to include work performed by the original business entity).
3. Ability to perform the tasks in a timely fashion, including staffing and familiarity with the subject matter and the Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission and the Borough of Merchantville and the Township of Pennsauken as well as the entire franchise area.
4. Annual maximum fee and hourly rates.
5. Location (distance) of primary office in relation to the Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission Administrative Offices.
6. Recent, current, and projected workload of the individual or firm.
7. Thoroughness and completeness of the applicant’s submittal or prior work product.
8. All things being equal a preference may be shown first to residents of the host communities and secondly to residents of the franchise areas.
9. Any familiarity, experience, or position in dealing with the parent/host municipalities will be considered.
10. Any other relevant information.
The Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission shall award a contract to the firm that best meets the needs and interests of the Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission and of the host communities. The Merchantville-Pennsauken Water Commission reserves the right to negotiate the terms and conditions of a contract with the successful firm or individual to obtain the most cost-effective use of public dollars.