Current Request for Proposals
Banking Services Request for Proposals
I. Terms & Conditions
A. General Terms & Conditions:
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Purpose: This RFP is seeking proposals from financial institutions to provide Banking Services to the Berthoud Community Library District (BCLD). The objective is to identify the banking institution that can offer the most comprehensive services at the most competitive rates. Qualified banks are requested to submit proposals to provide services as defined in the RFP. BCLD expects its financial institution to be a leader and an innovator in the development and execution of financial products and services. Further, BCLD requires that those products and services be delivered consistently and be of the highest quality.
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Interested Parties: All interested institutions are invited to submit a proposal in accordance with the terms, conditions, and specifications contained herein.
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Sole Point of Contact: Questions and requests for clarifications regarding this RFP must be addressed, in writing or email, to Amie Pilla, Library CEO, at Berthoud Community Library District, 236 Welch Ave, Berthoud, CO 80513, or ceo.bcld@gmail.com. Questions and requests for clarifications may be sent via email, provided that the RFP number, Title, and the words “question” and/or “clarification” are identified in the subject area of the email. Questions and requests without this subject identification may be considered routine emails, and may not get properly addressed. All questions and requests for clarification will be responded to and posted on the BCLD website. Any responses by the BCLD that are considered to be a change in the terms, conditions, and specifications of this RFP will be posted on the website as a RFP addendum. No communications of any kind may be considered a change to the terms, conditions, and specifications in this RFP unless formal posted addenda. Amie Pilla, Library CEO, is considered the sole point of contact with regard to this RFP. No communication from any other source shall be considered by the proposer(s) as valid information with regard to these terms, conditions, and specifications.
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Tax Exemption: BCLD, as a local government entity, is exempt from sales and use taxes. Bidders shall inform all prospective subcontractors and suppliers from whom they expect to obtain services or supplies of the tax-exempt status of BCLD. Following the contract award, an exemption certificate will be furnished by BCLD if the contractor requests.
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Expenses: BCLD assumes no liability for payment of expenses incurred by proposers in the preparation and submission of proposals in response to this invitation.
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Non-Discrimination: The financial institution agrees not to refuse to hire, discharge, promote, or demote, nor to discriminate in matters of compensation against any person otherwise qualified, solely because of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, military status, sexual orientation, marital status, or physical or mental disability.
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Governing Law: The laws of the State of Colorado shall govern any contract executed between the successful proposer and BCLD. Further, the place of performance and transaction of business shall be deemed to be in the County of Larimer, State of Colorado, and in the event of litigation, the exclusive venue and place of jurisdiction shall be the State of Colorado, and more specifically, Larimer County, Colorado.
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Non-Appropriation: Pursuant to C.R.S. Section 29-1-110, as amended, the financial obligations of BCLD as set forth herein after the current fiscal year are contingent upon funds for the purpose being appropriated, budgeted and other available. This Agreement is automatically terminated on January 1 of the first year for which funds are not appropriated. BCLD shall give the Bank written notice of such non-appropriation.
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Confidentiality: Proposal submitted to BCLD for consideration shall be subject to Colorado Open Record Law, Section 24-72-201, et seq., C.R.S., after award is made.
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Banking Services RFP Schedule:
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RFP for Banking Services Posted on Library Website: March 2025
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Deadline for proposals: April 21, 2025
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Rating and preliminary selection: April 2025
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Interviews with Selected Bank(s): May 2025
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Award of Banking Services: June 2025
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Implementation of Banking Services Contract: Approximately July 1, 2025
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B. Proposal Preparation:
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Exceptions and Deviations: Any exception to or deviations from these Terms &
Conditions must be identified, in writing, on an attachment to the proposal submission.
BCLD reserves the right to accept or reject, at its sole discretion, any exceptions or
deviations by the proposer. -
Substantive proposals: By submitting a proposal, the proposer guarantees that (a) its
proposal is genuine and is not made in the interest of, or on behalf of, any undisclosed
person, firm, or corporation; (b) it has not directly or indirectly induced or solicited any
other respondent to put in a false or sham bid; (c) it has not solicited or induced any
other person, firm, or corporation from proposing; and (d) it has not sought by collusion
to obtain for itself any advantage over any other proposer or over BCLD. -
Date Schedule: By submitting a proposal, the proposer guarantees that it will be able
to comply with the overall elements of the project calendar. -
Bank Interviews: Banks may be asked to come to the Berthoud Community Library to
give a 30-minute presentation to the selection committee and answer questions.
Presentations will be held during the regular board meeting scheduled for the evening of
May 14, 2025. Banks will be contacted as soon as possible if selected to give a
presentation. -
Minimum Qualification: To be considered for selection, financial institution must meet
at least the following minimum qualifications:-
a. Authority to offer banking services. Institution must hold a current, unexpired charter
from either the United States Government or State of Colorado.
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b. Access to the Federal Reserve System. Institution must be member of (or have access to) the Federal Reserve System and have access to all Federal Reserved System services.
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c. Legal Compliance. Institution must be in compliance with all applicable laws, rules,
regulations, and ordinances of the State of Colorado and the United States.
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d. Public Deposit Protection Act. Institution must be a Colorado State qualified depository for public funds and must be in compliance with the Public Depository Protection Act of 1989.
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e. Local Banking. Institution must have an established office or local branch within the
Berthoud area.
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f. Discrimination. Institution must be an Equal Opportunity Employer and may not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or veteran status including such actions as employment, upgrading, demotion, or transfer, recruitment or recruitment advertising, layoff or termination, rates of pay or other forms of compensation and selection for training, including apprenticeship.
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g. Insurance. Institution must be Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insured.
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h. Bid on and have the ability and capacity to provide all of services described in Section Scope of Banking Services - Required Banking Services.
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i. Joint ventures or bank consortium submissions will not be considered.
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Submission Information and Documents: The following information and documents
shall be included in the proposal submission:-
a. Name of company, address, telephone number, email address, website URL, and
contact person’s name
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b. Addendum A – General Bank Information
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c. Addendum B – Pricing List of Required Banking Services
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d. Addendum C – Additional Services or Information
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Signatures: The proposal must be submitted in ink, signed by an officer of the proposing company.
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Withdrawal of Proposal: A Proposer may withdraw its own proposal at any time prior
to the proposal due date and time as identified herein. After that date and time, no
proposal may withdraw its proposal for any reason. All proposals shall be valid for a
period not less than 90 calendar days after the proposal due date. -
Proposal Submissions: Proposals are to be submitted in sealed envelopes, identified
with all attachments, no later than April 21, 2025, to:
Amie Pilla
Library CEO
Berthoud Community Library District
236 Welch Ave Berthoud, CO 80513 A complete submission includes the signed original with all the attachments, and two (2) complete copies, and one digital version on a flash drive and included with the hard
copies. The digital version must meet current WCAG accessibility standards. Proposals
delivered after the deadline will be received and read, but will be rejected for lateness.
The BCLD board and staff communications are subject to Colorado Open Records Act
requirements. -
Term of Contract: This contract shall commence on or about July 1, 2025. The
selected bank will enter into an agreement with BCLD as an independent contractor,
and not as an employment contract. If terms or pricing is proposed to change after April 21, 2025, BCLD requires 90-day notice prior to the effective date of change. -
Method of Compensation: BCLD anticipates that proposed banking services will be
compensated either by the credit earned on average collected balances or on a fee for
service basis, but is also willing to consider other options.​ Each month the Bank shall prepare an account analysis and/or billing statement BCLD. BCLD also requires documentation regarding how balances and costs are defining ledger and collected balances, services performed, and other costs incurred by calculated.
No funds or fees belonging to BCLD may be withdrawn from BCLD’s depositories except upon prior approval from BCLD. All charges must conform to those specified in Addendum B — Pricing List of Required Banking Services, or as is negotiated and agreed to in writing by both BCLD and the Bank. BCLD shall not be obligated to pay for any service not specified in the exhibit unless agreed to in writing by BCLD and the Bank. Prices must remain valid for a minimum contract term of three (3) years. BCLD must be offered services at fees and rates that are the same or lower than other similar entities that the bidder serves.
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C. Selection:
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Banking Selection: No proposal will be considered unless it is complete. All proposals
submitted will be first screened to determine minimum institution qualifications as
outlined in this RFP. The proposals will be ranked, based on total cost and the ability of
the proposing institution to provide the required services effectively. Proposals that do
not meet these minimum requirements will automatically be rejected and shall not
undergo further evaluation. -
Right of Acceptance and Rejection: BCLD reserves the right to accept or reject any or
all proposals and to waive any formalities, informalities, and deviations, which, in its
opinion, best serve the interests of BCLD. BCLD is not bound to accept the lowest
priced proposal, but will select the best, lowest cost proposal. -
Negotiation: Subsequent to the Proposal due date, BCLD reserves the right to
negotiate terms and conditions with proposers. BCLD reserves the right to negotiate
modifications to a proposal with a single proposer without obligation to negotiate similar modifications with other proposers. -
Basis of Award: An evaluation team will judge the merit of proposals received in
accordance with the general criteria defined within this invitation. The following criteria
will be taken into consideration when making evaluations of proposals. This list is not
intended to be exhaustive:-
a. The collateralization of public funds.
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b. The quality level of services to be performed and proposed approach to cost
control, service monitoring and administration.
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c. Cost of service charge/compensation amount and cost-effectiveness of
method requires for services performed.
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d. Experience, expertise and qualifications of key bank personnel assigned to
Library accounts.
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e. Financial strength and stability of the financial institution.
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f. Clarity, completeness and timelines of transactions documentation and reports
or statements generated for the Library.
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g. Reference responses and prior experience with other public fund relationships.
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h. Value of any new products or services suggested.
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i. Interview.
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j. Data security procedures, policies, and history.
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k. Any other items deemed in the best interest of BCLD including considerationmade regarding creative and value-added banking solutions.
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Addendum A—General Bank Information
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​Deposit Balances Collateral: In accordance with the Public Deposit Protection
Act, all deposits of public funds must be fully secured by collateral. Please
provide a description of how the Bank manages and reports its collateral of public
funds deposits. Also, please describe the securities to be used for collateral, and
the frequency of reporting to BCLD, and fully describe how BCLD would protect
its position in the collateral in the event of a failure of the Bank. -
Do you have any accounts specifically for local governments or non-profits?
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Bank Profile: Describe the Bank’s ownership structure.
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Financial Strength: Identify key measures of the Bank’s financial strength
including capital ratios, market capitalization and total assets. -
Security and Controls: Briefly discuss the Bank’s security and controls and to the
extent appropriate, discuss security for the services outlined in Section Required
Banking Services including what controls the Bank has in place to protect data
integrity; ensure that files or transactions are not duplicated or lost; prevent
unauthorized transactions; reduce Bank employee errors and detect or prevent
fraud. Also, discuss the Bank’s experience with the frequency of fraud in each
service area. Finally, describe the policies and procedures in place to safeguard
information if subcontractors are used by the Bank. -
Disaster Recovery: Briefly describe the Bank’s disaster recovery plan including
the following information: location of the backup facilities with identification of any
third party involvement; the time necessary to transfer processing; and how often
the recovery process is tested. Describe the Bank’s contingency plans for critical
processes such as payroll ACH, wire transfers, and online transactions and
reporting. -
Subcontracted Services: For each service described in Section Required
Banking Services, indicate if a subcontractor is used. Include the subcontractor’s
name and location. Describe the Bank’s process for resolving issues and policies
for communication between the Library, the Bank, and its subcontractors. -
Competitive Position and Future Commitment: Describe what differentiates the
Bank’s service from that of other providers. Include in the discussion how the
bank keeps the products offered current, what approach the Bank takes to develop new services, and what new services or features the Bank plans to offer within the next five years. Discuss the Bank’s approach to implementation and communication of changes in the banking system that may affect the Library’s services or processing. Also, describe any current services that are noteworthy or innovative. -
Customer Relations: The Library prefers a single account relationship manager
and a backup located in the Berthoud area that are available and responsive to
the Library’s needs from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Mountain Time, Monday through
Friday. The Library considers the manager /backup to be vital and wants to be
able to meet with them if necessary. This manager /backup is expected to act as
a liaison to coordinate all Library banking activities and must have the ability and
authority to resolve any problems that may arise. The Bank is expected to notify
the Library in advance of a change in the manager or the backup. In the Bank’s
proposal, list names, titles and locations of the primary and backup Bank
employees who will be assigned to the Library’s account and identify the area or
division of the organization in which these individuals work -
Why should we choose your institution above all others?
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Customer References: Provide references from at least three (3) customers to
which the Bank is currently providing the services included in Section Required
Banking Services. Library or other governmental references are preferred.
References should include a contact name and phone number.
Addendum B—Required Banking Services
All services listed in this section are necessary and should be provided by the proposing
banks. This list is not meant to be a complete list of proposed services. Please also
include the most current comprehensive fee schedule.
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a. General Account Services
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b. Depository Services
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c. Paper Disbursement Services
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d. General ACH Services
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e. Wire & Other Funds Transfer Service
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f. Balance & Compensation Information
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g. Online Reporting and Transaction Capabilities
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h. Account Analysis
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i. Credit Card Services
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j. Safe Deposit Box
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k. Direct Deposit File
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l. Stop Check Services​
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Do you have an account balance minimum or limit?
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Do you charge any handling fees?