GOODS AND SERVICES BID SPECIFICATIONS:
A GUIDE FOR NEW JERSEY LOCAL PUBLIC AGENCIES
(Yellow Book)

Second Edition, January 2005

PREFACE

Although all bid documents are a matter of law and policy determined by local officials of the contracting unit, there has long been a call to standardize "Instructions to Bidders and Statutory Requirements" or what is generally known as "boilerplate" language. General instructions and required language are the precursors to the essential part of all bid documents, the “Technical Specifications.” The basic elements of all journalism — who, what, where, when and how — are translated into the business language of public procurement and published as a document commonly referred to as SPECIFICATIONS, BID PACKAGE, REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS or BID PROPOSAL.

The difficulty of developing ideal or standard language is compounded by the nature and variety of bids, i.e., construction, service or materials, as well as the many different types of contracting units, i.e., counties, municipalities, local commissions, and local authorities. When adapting these guidelines for your agency's use, you must consider these differences. Be sure to review the Supplemental Information, (previously known as the Notes on the Instructions to Bidders) and the Standard Bid Document Reference sections for detailed information and sample documents. Please remember that the statutory references used in this Guide are those of the Local Public Contracts Law (N.J.S.A. 40A:11-1 et seq.). If the law governing your contracting unit differs, you may need to add, modify, or delete statutory provisions.

The recommended language and statutory requirements are current as of this printing. You are urged to periodically review literature for updates and amendments. We recommend that all bid documents and revisions be reviewed by your attorney for legal compliance.

The eleven sections of Instructions to Bidders are considered the basic elements of general bid instructions and incorporate generally accepted public procurement practice. It is not suggested that these are the only sections needed by a contracting unit. However, they are the foundation on which specifications can be built.