SLED Opportunity · TEXAS · CITY OF ENNIS
AI Summary
The City of Ennis, Texas, seeks Statements of Qualifications for Employee Benefits Brokerage and Consulting Services. Submissions due by April 24, 2026. The project involves human resources consulting with emphasis on benefits strategy, compliance, and public sector expertise.
The City of Ennis is seeking Statements of Qualifications (SOQs) for Employee Benefits Brokerage and Consulting Services. See solicitation 26-115-10 on the City's OpenGov portal, submissions are due before 1:00 pm on Friday, April 24, 2026.
As described in the Submission Criteria.
As described in the Submission Criteria.
As described in the Submission Criteria.
As described in the Submission Criteria.
As described in the Submission Criteria.
Please Upload your COMPLETE Statement of Qualifications here formatted in the manner required by this RFQ.
Did you read through and confirm that you met all of the RFQ requirements?
Please upload a copy of your current insurance.
Proposers shall provide a general description of their compensation structure, including:
Detailed pricing, fee schedules, and cost proposals are not required at this stage and will not be evaluated. Such information may be requested from the highest ranked firm during contract negotiations.
Proposers shall certify that all compensation disclosures are complete and accurate, and that no additional undisclosed compensation will be received during the term of the contract.
Proposers shall disclose any actual or potential conflicts of interest that may arise in the performance of these services.
At a minimum, disclosures shall include:
Proposers shall describe how conflicts of interest are identified, disclosed, and mitigated within their organization.
The City reserves the right to determine whether a conflict of interest exists and to take appropriate action, including disqualification.
In the last 10 years has your company ever been released from a contract with or without cause?
Please provide the agency name, contact person, brief description of the project and details regarding your release from the contract?
Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.
Please provide documentation showing that you have submitted Form 1295 with the Texas Ethics Commission.
Federal Law (A-102 Common Rule and OMB Circular A-110) prohibits non-Federal entities from contracting with or making sub-awards under covered transactions to parties that are suspended or debarred or whose principals are suspended or debarred. Covered transactions include procurement contracts for goods or services equal to or in excess of $25,000 and all non-procurement transactions (e.g., sub-awards to sub-recipients).
Contractors receiving individual awards of $25,000 or more and all sub-recipients must certify that their organization and its principals are not suspended or debarred by a Federal agency.
Before an award of $25,000 or more can be made to your firm, you must certify that your organization and its principals are not suspended or debarred by a Federal agency.
Prosper certifies that neither the firm nor its principals are suspended or debarred by a Federal agency.
In accordance with Texas Government Code Chapter 2252, Subchapter A, the City of Ennis is required to give preference to Texas Resident Proposers. This preference applies to the extent that a Texas Resident Proposer would need to underbid a Nonresident Proposer to obtain a comparable contract in the state where the Nonresident's principal place of business is located.
To comply with this requirement, all Proposers must certify whether they are a Texas Resident Proposer or a Nonresident Proposer. Failure to provide this certification on the provided response forms will result in disqualification of the Proposal.
To the extent this Agreement constitutes a contract for goods or services for which a written verification is required under Sections 2252.151-.154 Texas Government Code, Consultant hereby certifies that it and its parent company, wholly- or majority- owned subsidiaries, and other affiliates, if any, is not a company identified on the Texas Comptroller’s list of companies known to have contracts with, or provide supplies or services to, a foreign organization designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the U.S. Secretary of State under federal law.
To the extent this Agreement constitutes a contract for goods or services for which a written verification is required under Sections 2271.001-002 Texas Government Code, Consultant and its parent company, wholly- or majority- owned subsidiaries, and other affiliates, if any, further certifies and verifies that it does not boycott Israel, and agrees that it will not boycott Israel during the term of this Contract. For purposes of this Contract, the term “boycott” shall mean and include terminating business activities or otherwise taking any action that is intended to penalize, inflict economic harm on, or limit commercial relations with Israel, or with a person or entity doing business in Israel or in an Israeli-controlled territory. (Tex. Gov’t Code §§ 2270.001-.002, 808.001-.006, .051-.057, .101-.102)
The foregoing certification is made solely to comply with Chapter 2271, Texas Government Code, as amended, to the extent the applicable provision in Chapter 2271.001, Texas Government Code does not contravene applicable Texas or federal law. As used in the foregoing verification, “boycott Israel” shall have the meaning assigned to such term in Section 808.001(1), Texas Government Code. Consultant understands “affiliate” to mean an entity that controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with the Underwriter and exists to make a profit.
To the extent this Agreement constitutes a contract for the purchase of goods or services having a value of at least $100,000 that is paid wholly or partly from public funds for which a written verification is required under Section 2274.002, Texas Government Code, as amended, Consultant hereby verifies that it and its parent company, wholly- or majority- owned subsidiaries, and other affiliates, if any,
A. do not have a practice, policy, guidance or directive that discriminates against a firearm entity or firearm trade association; and
B. will not discriminate during the term of this Agreement against a firearm entity or firearm trade association.
The foregoing verification is made solely to comply with Section 2274.002, Texas Government Code, as amended, to the extent Section 2274.002, Texas Government Code does not contravene applicable Texas or federal law. As used in the foregoing verification, “discriminate against a firearm entity or firearm trade association” shall have the meaning assigned to such term in Section 2274.001(3), Texas Government Code. Consultant understands “affiliate” to mean an entity that controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with the Underwriter and exists to make a profit.
Consultant hereby certifies that it will not be granted direct or remote access to, or control of, critical infrastructure, as defined by Section 2275.0101(2), Texas Government Code, in this State, excluding access specifically allowed by the governmental entity for product warranty and support purposes; and is not owned by or the majority of stocks or other ownership interest of the company is held or controlled by: (i) individuals who are citizens of China, Iran, North Korea, Russia or a designated country; or (ii) a company or other entity, including a government entity, that is owned or controlled by citizens of or is directly controlled by the government of China, Iran, North Korea, Russia or a designated country; or headquartered in China, Iran, North Korea, Russia or a designated country. Regardless of whether the company’s or its parent company’s securities are publicly traded; or the company or its parent company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange as: a Chinese, Iranian, North Korean or Russian company; or a company of a designated country. “Cybersecurity” means” the measures taken to protect a computer,
computer network, computer system, or other technology infrastructure against unauthorized use or access, as defined in Section 2275.010(3).
The foregoing certification is made solely to comply with Chapter 2275, Texas Government Code, as
amended.
To the extent this Agreement constitutes a contract for goods or services for which a written verification is required under Section 2274.002, Texas Government Code, as amended, Consultant hereby verifies that it and its parent company, wholly- or majority- owned subsidiaries, and other affiliates, if any, do not boycott energy companies and, will not boycott energy companies during the term of this Contract. The foregoing verification is made solely to comply with Section 2274.002, Texas Government Code, as
amended, to the extent Section 2274.002, Texas Government Code does not contravene applicable Texas or federal law. As used in the foregoing verification, “boycott energy companies” shall have the meaning assigned to the term “boycott energy company” in Section 809.001, Texas Government Code. Consultant understands “affiliate” to mean an entity that controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with the Underwriter and exists to make a profit.
Proposer confirms their authority (and has uploaded necessary documentation proving such) to execute this Proposal in its entirety as submitted and enter into a contract on behalf of the Company Name stated in said Proposal.
Do you wish to utilize the electronic pricing table for this project? This does not prevent the proposer from submitting a breakdown of their costs if required.
Do you wish to separate the main proposal and the cost proposal into two separate documents and have them provided separately from one another
Q (Firm Experience & Public Sector Experience): Regarding the Firm Experience & Public Sector Expertise criterion, can the City clarify how “comparable size and complexity” to Ennis will be evaluated (e.g., population, number of benefit-eligible employees, plan types, or budget)?
A: Population - 25,544000 Employees 236 -250 Plan types – Medical, Dental, Vision, Voluntary Life/ADD, Supplemental Life Insurance, Long Term Care Include experience with some bigger cities due to geographical relevance (Waxahachie, Red Oak, Midlothian, Mansfield, Corsicana, Glenn Heights or others)
Q (Key Personnel & Account Team): With respect to the Key Personnel & Account Team criterion, can the City clarify its expectations regarding availability or service-level expectations the City is seeking for account management and support? Is availability referring to geographic location? Additionally, how will professional certifications such as CEBS be weighted relative to overall experience?
A: Account team must be responsive and available as needed - via mail/phone/virtual meetings. In-person meetings at City Hall – during Annual Open enrollment to give educational presentation to all shifts day and some evenings (night shifts for Public Works, Police, Fire ); City Commission evening meeting presentations (if needed to clarify to City Commission), Lunch and Learn set-ups and as needed.
Q (Renewal Date): What is the renewal date of your current benefit vendors? Are you expecting to go out to bid for your providers in 2026 for 2027 benefits?
A: Plan year is fiscal year 10/01/26 – 9/30/27. Rebid will be every 5-7 years unless determined otherwise by the City Administration.
Q (Demonstrated Success & References): Regarding the Demonstrated Success & References evaluation criterion, can the City clarify the types of measurable results it considers most relevant (e.g., cost savings, trend reduction, plan performance improvements, employee engagement outcomes)? What are the City’s expectations regarding the number or type of client references (e.g., municipal-only or public sector broadly)?
A: Success measures - Effective plan design to include: cost containment and savings Positive trend in plan performance improvement Improving employee engagement levels Targeted educational material and content provided Improving benefits utilization strategies Municipal client references desired but another public sector is acceptable.
Q (Release for Cause): Release for Cause – what does this mean? What is the definition of “for cause?”
A: Cause - Breach of contracts, terms and plan provisions.
Q (Timeline): What is your timeline for making a decision on this RFQ?
A: Benefit plan year is effective 10/01/26 with Open enrollment presentations and materials due no later than 8/1/26. A decision on the RFQ will be made as soon as the bid closes.
Q (Retiree and Wellness ): Is the City satisfied with the current transition process for retirees moving from the active plan to Medicare? Are there specific pain points regarding the administration of Medicare Part B reimbursements or secondary coverage? What percentage of the retiree population currently utilizes the City’s digital enrollment tools versus traditional paper-based methods, and is there a goal to increase digital adoption among this group? Does the City have a specific wellness fund or 'carrier credit' currently in place, and how is the success of those wellness initiatives currently being measured against actual medical claims?"
A: Current transition from active to Medicare is acceptable. Retiree participation is a minimal percentage due to the costs of retiree benefits currently not subsidized as much as it is for Active employees. Retiree transition to Medicare is through age 65 and is facilitated by TPA and retiree. Digital enrollment tools are currently not open to retirees. Enrollments are manually administered by the current TPA. Wellness plan program is currently funded through the self-insurance fund and not separately.
Q (Question for the Evaluation Team: Adding LeaveXpert to Support Disability & Leave Benefits): Would the City of Ennis be open to considering LeaveXpert, a specialized cloud-based leave and absence management solution, as a complementary tool alongside the employee benefits brokerage and consulting services in your current RFP? LeaveXpert integrates seamlessly with short-term and long-term disability, FMLA, and other leave programs, helping the City improve compliance, reduce administrative burden, enhance transparency, and support greater fiscal responsibility — all while working alongside your selected benefits consultant and broker of record.
A: We will consider reviewing LeaveXpert and any other recommended tool, budget allowing.
SLED stands for State, Local, and Education. These are solicitations issued by state governments, counties, cities, school districts, utilities, and higher education institutions — as opposed to federal agencies.
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