Project Information

Bid Title

INDEPENDENT THIRD-PARTY ADMINISTRATION OF 403(b) COMPLIANCE PROGRAM 27SCH001G

Issuing Agency

Town of Needham

Location

Massachusetts

Published Date

Apr 10, 2026

Closing Date

May 11, 2026

Government Level

State & Local

Status

Closed

Ref. #

27SCH001G

Original Source

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Bid Documents

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Project Description

Bid Number:	27SCH001G
Bid Title:	INDEPENDENT THIRD-PARTY ADMINISTRATION OF 403(b) COMPLIANCE PROGRAM 27SCH001G
Category:	Bids Issued by the Needham Public Schools
Status:	Open

Description: The Needham Public School District, as the lead district for a Collective Purchasing Group, seeks written proposals from qualified, independent Third-Party Administrators (TPA) to assist interested School Districts within the Collective Purchasing Group with the implementation and operation of each School District's 403(b) and related programs and act as Third-Party Administrator ("TPA") for each program.  The responsibilities for implementation and operation are defined in the Scope of Work. The RFP covers the three-year period beginning, January 1, 2027 through December 31, 2029.  Request for Proposal packages will be available from the Office of the Needham Public Schools Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations, 1330 Highland Avenue, Needham, MA 02492, or may be downloaded from http://www.needhamma.gov/bids.aspx&nbsp ; beginning, April 10, 2026 at 9:00 AM. Proposals are returnable to the Office of the Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations, 1330 Highland Avenue, Needham, MA 02492 no later than 10:00 AM, May 11, 2026, at which time and place they will be opened in the presence of one or more witnesses.  LATE PROPOSALS will not be accepted.  The Town reserves the right to reject any and all proposals as determined to be in the interests of the Town and to waive minor informalities. Bids will be awarded by the Needham School Committee, acting through the Superintendent. This legal notice is also posted on the Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers Association’s (MNPA) website at http://masspublicnotices.org/ . Publication Date/Time: 4/10/2026 9:00 AM Publication Information: Local Newpaper; COMMBUYS 04/10/2026; Goods and Services 04/13/2026 Closing Date/Time: 5/11/2026 11:00 AM Download Available: Yes Related Documents: 27SCH001G 403B Bid 403B Compliance

Attachment Preview

N​ EEDHAM PUBLIC SCHOOLS​

​1330 Highland Avenue​

​Needham, MA 02492​

​April 2026​

R​ EQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP)​

#​ 27SCH001G​

I​ NDEPENDENT THIRD PARTY ADMINISTRATION OF​

4​ 03(b) COMPLIANCE PROGRAM​

​The​ ​Needham​ P​ ublic​ S​ chool​ ​District,​​ ​as​ t​he​ ​lead​ ​district​ ​for​ ​a​ ​Collective​ ​Purchasing​ G​ roup​,​ s​ eeks​

​written​p​ roposals​​from​q​ ualified,​​independent​​Third-Party​A​ dministrators​(​TPA)​​to​​assist​​interested​​School​

D​ istricts​ w​ ithin​ t​he​ C​ ollective​ P​ urchasing​ ​Group​ ​with​ ​the​ ​implementation​ a​ nd​ o​ peration​ ​of​ ​each​ ​School​

D​ istrict's​4​ 03(b)​​and​​related​p​ rograms​a​ nd​​act​a​ s​​Third​P​ arty​A​ dministrator​​("TPA")​​for​e​ ach​p​ rogram.​ ​The​

​responsibilities for implementation and operation are defined in the Scope of Work.​

​The RFP covers the​t​hree year period beginning, January​1​ , 2027 through December 31, 2029​.​

R​ equest for Proposal packages will be available from the Office of the​N​ eedham Public Schools Assistant​

S​ uperintendent for Finance and Operations, 1330 Highland Avenue, Needham, MA 02492,​ or may be​

d​ ownloaded from​​http://www.needhamma.gov/bids.aspx​ ​beginning,​​April 10, 2026 at 9:00 AM.​​

P​ roposals are returnable to the​​Office of the Assistant​S​ uperintendent for Finance and Operations, 1330​

H​ ighland Avenue, Needham, MA 02492​n​ o later than​​10:00​A​ M, May 11, 2026​, at which time and place​

t​hey will be opened in the presence of one or more witnesses. LATE PROPOSALS will not be accepted.​

T​ he Town reserves the right to reject any and all proposals as determined to be in the interests of the Town​

a​ nd to waive minor informalities.​

​Bids will be awarded by the Needham School Committee, acting through the Superintendent.​

D​ aniel Gutekanst​

​Superintendent of Schools​

T​ own of Needham​

N​ eedham, Massachusetts​

​1​

P​ rimary Procurement Contact​

E​ vent​

T​ itle​

​Contract Number​

​RFP Available​

​Pre-Bid Meeting​

​Proposal Presentation​

​Deadline for Written Questions​

​Addenda​

​Needham Public Schools​

​Procurement in Brief​

​Melane Bisbas​

S​ chool Business and Operations Coordinator​

1​ 330 Highland Avenue​

​Needham, MA 02492​

​Phone: 781-455-0400 x 11204​

m​ elane_bisbas@needham.k12.ma.us​

​Date​

​Details​

​INDEPENDENT THIRD PARTY ADMINISTRATION OF​

​403(b) COMPLIANCE PROGRAM​

​#27SCH001G​

R​ equest for proposal packages are​

​available from the Office of the​

A​ ssistant Superintendent for Finance and​

O​ perations, 1330 Highland Avenue,​

​Needham, MA 02492, or may be​

d​ ownloaded from​

A​ pril 10, 2026 9:00 AM​

h​ ttp://www.needhamma.gov/bids.aspx​.​

​Bidders who access bid materials from​

​the Town’s website are responsible for​

a​ cknowledging receipt of those materials​

​using the Acknowledgement of Receipt​

​form found in Appendix B and for​

c​ hecking the website periodically for​

​any addenda that may be issued.*​

​No Prebid is Scheduled​

M​ ay be requested​

Q​ uestions must be submitted in writing,​

​via fax, email or US post to:​

​Melane Bisbas​

​School Business and Operations​

A​ pril 24, 2026 12:00 PM​

C​ oordinator​

1​ 330 Highland Avenue​

​Needham Public Schools will​

n​ ot respond to questions​

s​ ubmitted after the above date.​

​Needham, MA 02492​

​Phone: 781-455-0400 x 11204​

m​ elane_bisbas@needham.k12.ma.us​

O​ ral communications are not binding on​

t​he School Department. Responses to​

​questions submitted in writing will be​

​forwarded to all persons on record as​

h​ aving received the RFP.​

​If any changes are made to this RFP, an addendum will be issued. Addenda​

w​ ill be mailed or faxed or emailed to all bidders on record as having received​

t​he RFP. Addenda also will be posted to the Town of Needham bid website​

​at​​http://www.needhamma.gov/bids.aspx​.​

2​ ​

​When and Where are Bids Due?​

N​ umber of Required Copies​

​Bid Opening​

​Bid Surety (Bond) Requirements​

​Contract Award​

​Contract Length​

B​ ids are due to the Office of the​

​Assistant Superintendent for Finance and​

O​ perations, 1330 Highland Avenue,​

N​ eedham, MA 02492 by the due date​

​May 11, 2026 10:00 AM​ a​ nd time. If, on the bid due date, the​

​above office is closed due to​

L​ ATE PROPOSALS will not be​ u​ ncontrolled events such as fire, snow,​

​accepted​.​

​ice, wind, or building evacuation, the bid​

o​ pening will be postponed to the next​

​normal business day (M-F, excluding​

​holidays.) Bids will be accepted at the​

​same location until that date and time.​

O​ ne original + 3 copies of all forms​

S​ ealed proposals are NOT publicly​

M​ ay 11, 2026 10:00 AM​

o​ pened. Proposals will be opened in the​

​presence of one or more witnesses. A list​

o​ f bidders will be made available after​

t​he submission deadline.​

​None Required​

​Award will be made within 90 business days after the bid opening.​

3​ Years​

​Upon Award of Contract​

​Payment Bond​

N​ one Required​

​Performance Bond​

N​ one Required​

​Insurance​

R​ efer to Contract Terms​

​*​​Bid Acknowledgement​

​It is recommended (but not required) that bidders acknowledge receipt of the bid package using the​

​Acknowledgement of Receipt form found in​​Appendix​​C​. Bidders who complete and return this​

​acknowledgement will be entered as a bidder of record in the Bid Distribution Register, thereby ensuring that they​

​will receive notification of any addenda or answered questions related to this bid. Bidders who do not complete​

​and return the Acknowledgement Form are responsible for checking the website regularly for any addenda that​

a​ re issued to this bid.​

​3​

​TABLE OF CONTENTS​

​I. General Information & Instructions to Bidders​

​1. Questions​

2​ . Bid Addenda​

3​ . Pre-Bid Conference​

​II. Basis for Use of Competitive Sealed Proposals (RFP)​

​III. Contract Award and Bidder Qualifications​

​IV. Purchase Description and Scope of Services​

​V. Comparative Evaluation Criteria​

B​ ID FORMS​

​BID FORM I- BID CHECKLIST​

​BID FORM II-BIDDER INFORMATION AND STATEMENT OF QUALIFICATIONS​

B​ ID FORM III- PRICE PROPOSAL​

A​ TTACHMENT A- EXCEL FORM​

B​ ID FORM IV- CERTIFICATES OF COMPLIANCE WITH​

M​ ASSACHUSETTS TAX LAWS AND NON-COLLUSION​

​BID FORM V- CERTIFICATE OF CORPORATE VOTE​

A​ PPENDIX A- MASTER AGREEMENT​

​APPENDIX B- DISTRICT AGREEMENT​

​APPENDIX C- ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF RECEIPT​

5​ ​

6​ ​

6​ ​

7​ ​

1​ 0​

1​ 0-12​

1​ 3​

2​ 1​

​24​

​25​

​30​

​31​

3​ 4​

3​ 5​

3​ 6​

​44​

​51​

​4​

N​ EEDHAM PUBLIC SCHOOLS​

​1330 Highland Avenue​

​Needham, MA 02492​

A​ pril 2026​

I​ NDEPENDENT THIRD PARTY ADMINISTRATION OF​

4​ 03(b) COMPLIANCE PROGRAM​

R​ EQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP)​

​#27SCH001G​

​I.​ I​ NFORMATION & INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS​

1​ .​ ​Collective Procurement:​

T​ he​ ​Needham​ ​Public​ S​ chool​ ​District,​ a​ s​ t​he​ ​Lead​ ​District​ ​for​ ​a​ C​ ollective​ ​Purchasing​ G​ roup​

​(CPG)​,​ ​seeks​ ​written​ p​ roposals​ f​rom​ q​ ualified,​ ​independent​ ​Third​ P​ arty​ A​ dministrators​ (​TPA)​ t​o​

​assist​ ​interested​ S​ chool​ ​Districts​ w​ ithin​ t​he​ ​Collective​ ​Purchasing​ ​Group​ ​with​ ​the​i​mplementation​

​and​ ​operation​ ​of​ e​ ach​ ​School​ D​ istrict's​ 4​ 03(b)​ ​and​ r​elated​ p​ rograms​ a​ nd​ a​ ct​ ​as​ T​ hird​ ​Party​

​Administrator​(​"TPA")​f​or​​each​p​ rogram.​ T​ he​r​esponsibilities​​for​​implementation​a​ nd​o​ peration​​are​

d​ efined in the Scope of Work.​

T​ he Massachusetts public school districts and public school collaboratives that comprise​

t​he C​ ollective Purchasing Group (CPG)​ are: Acton-Boxborough​R​ egional, Andover Public​

​Schools, Arlington, Ashland, Assabet Valley Collaborative, Athol Royalston Regional School​

D​ istrict, Ayer Shirley Regional, Bedford, Brookline, Canton, Carlisle, Concord, Concord-Carlisle​

R​ egional, Danvers, Essex North Shore Agricultural & Technical School District, Edgartown,​

E​ verett, Franklin, Georgetown, Greater Lawrence Technical, Greater Lowell Technical, King Philip​

​Regional School District, Lee, Lexington, Lincoln, Lincoln-Sudbury Regional, Lunenburg,​

​Lynnfield, Manchester-Essex Regional, Marblehead, Marlborough, Martha’s Vineyard Regional,​

N​ arragansett Regional School District, Natick, Needham, New Bedford, North Middlesex Regional,​

​Northampton, Northborough, Northborough-Southborough Regional School District, Oak Bluffs,​

P​ entucket Regional School District, Pittsfield, Quabbin Regional School District, Reading, Saugus,​

S​ ilver Lake Regional, South Coast Educational Collaborative, South Middlesex Regional Vocational​

​Technical School District/ Joseph P. Keefe Technical School, South Shore Educational​

​Collaborative, Southborough, Southeastern MA Educational Collaborative, Stoneham, Stoughton,​

S​ udbury, Tewksbury, Tisbury, Up-Island Regional, Walpole, Wayland, Wellesley, Westford, Weston,​

W​ hittier Regional Vocational Technical High School, Wilmington, Winchendon, Winchester, and​

​Woburn​​(collectively referred to as the "Collective​P​ urchasing Group").​

​Needham​ ​Public​ S​ chool​ D​ istrict​ ​is​ ​the​ L​ ead​ ​District​ ​for​ t​he​ ​Collective​ ​Purchasing​ G​ roup,​ ​with​

r​esponsibility​f​or​t​he​p​ rocurement​u​ p​​to​a​ nd​i​ncluding​​award​o​ f​a​ ​​contract​(​Master​A​ greement).​ T​ he​

L​ ead​ D​ istrict​ w​ ill​ f​orm​ ​a​ c​ ommittee​ t​o​ e​ valuate​ ​Technical​ P​ roposals​ b​ ased​ ​on​ ​the​ M​ inimum​

E​ valuation​ ​Criteria​ a​ nd​ t​he​ ​Comparative​ E​ valuation​ C​ riteria​ s​ et​ f​orth​ i​n​ t​his​ ​RFP,​ ​and​ ​the​ ​Price​

​Proposals.​

T​ he​ c​ ontract​ ​(Master​ A​ greement)​ ​resulting​ ​from​ t​his​ R​ FP​ ​will​ b​ e​ u​ p​ ​to​ t​hree​ y​ ears​ ​(36​ ​months.)​

​Each​ d​ istrict​ i​n​ ​the​ C​ ollective​ ​Purchasing​ ​Group​ w​ ill​ ​have​ ​the​ a​ bility​ a​ nd​ ​authority​ ​to​ ​access​ ​the​

​5​

Commodity Codes

• NAICS 524292Third Party Administration of Insurance and Pension Funds
• NAICS 541611Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services
• NAICS 541990All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

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