About MRSC Rosters
What is a roster?
A roster, in the context of public procurement, is a pre-determined list of contractors, consultants, or vendors a public agency can use to solicit bids or proposals in accordance with their own policies and procedures.
What is MRSC Rosters?
MRSC Rosters is a centralized database service for public agencies in the State of Washington to find bidders. MRSC Rosters hosts three roster types: the statewide Small Works Roster, a Consultant Roster, and a Vendor Roster.
What is the benefit of using the MRSC Rosters compared to managing my own roster(s)?
Please refer to the Public Agency Membership Benefits page.
Can we use our own roster and MRSC Rosters?
For small works, you must choose a single Small Works Roster to use. RCW 39.04.152 is clear a public agency may use its own roster, may use an interagency agreement, or use the statewide Small Works Roster; but not all.
We recommend using MRSC Rosters for all your roster needs as it is the most convenient and straightforward for your potential bidders. However, there could be a scenario where a public agency uses MRSC Rosters for small works and uses its own roster for vendors or consultants.
Does MRSC Rosters help with soliciting businesses for agencies?
MRSC Rosters does not directly solicit bids or proposals for your specific projects. Our role is to accept and process electronic applications for businesses, verify their eligibility, and maintain the database. Once you establish your project-specific roster, you are responsible for following your agency’s established policies and procedures for procurement, solicitation, and award.
Signing Up
When can an agency join MRSC Rosters?
Public agencies can join MRSC Rosters at any time. Your membership will last for one year after your sign-up date.
What is the price for an MRSC Rosters membership?
Public Agencies pay an annual price based on the agency’s average Total Capital Expenditures over the past five years.
What is needed to complete an MRSC Rosters Public Agency membership application?
To complete an MRSC Rosters public agency membership application, your agency will generally need to provide:
- Basic agency information (agency type, name, address, etc.).
- Designated account users and contacts
- Agreement to the MRSC Rosters terms of use and conditions; including agreement to establish and maintain the appropriate procurement policies, processes, and procedures.
Does my Public Agency membership include all three rosters?
If you join the Small Works Roster, you also receive access to our Consultant Roster. If your agency is authorized to use a vendor roster, you can join our Vendor Roster.
If I am already a Public Agency member but have not signed up for the Vendor Roster, how do I add the Vendor Roster to my membership?
If you are already an MRSC Rosters member using the Small Works and Consultant Rosters, you can add the Vendor Roster at any time. Contact MRSC Rosters customer support directly for the specific steps and documentation required.
Finding Bidders In General
What is a roster “category”?
A roster category is a specific classification within each of the three rosters (Small Works, Consultant, Vendor) which generally describes the type of work or services a business performs or the primary scope of the solicitation. MRSC Roster categories are general and are not intended to be exact descriptions of work.
How do I search for a business without creating a project-specific roster?
There are several ways to search for businesses who have selected your agency through MRSC Rosters.
- After logging into your MRSC Rosters account, under the ROSTERS tab you will scroll down to the bottom of the page to Search for a Business and enter a specific business name to confirm the business has selected your agency to work with.
- If you want to see all the businesses who have selected a specific Project Type and/or Work Category, then go to Search Business List.
- To focus your business search for a specific project, you will need to start a project-specific roster search by clicking Generate Roster.
Can I search for businesses geographically?
No, as a public agency you cannot refine a project specific roster based on where businesses are headquartered. Businesses register with public agency members within their service area.
If I don’t see a business I’m expecting to see on my project-specific roster list, what can I do?
Contact the business to ask if they have an MRSC Rosters business membership. There are a few common reasons a business might not appear:
- They did not select your public agency on their MRSC Rosters application.
- They did not select the specific category you are searching for on their MRSC Rosters application.
- They did not meet the eligibility requirements and therefore are not currently on the MRSC Rosters.
- They have not signed up for MRSC Rosters.
If, after talking through the reasons with the business in question, and there is still an issue, please contact MRSC Rosters customer support.
Small Works Roster Specifically
How do I know which project type (Roads, Parks, Facilities, or Civil) to use?
The “project type” designation is meant to narrow and define the general nature of the construction project you will solicit. Choose one of the project types closest to the nature of the project. It does not need to be an exact match.
Should I use the Small Works Roster for purchased services if we anticipate paying prevailing wages?
No, we recommend using the Vendor Roster instead. The nature of the work guides the type of contract and contracting process you use. If you are procuring a one-time construction/improvement project estimated to cost less than $350,000, the Small Works Roster is best. If you are procuring routine and on-going maintenance services – for example, 4 times per year – a Vendor Roster is probably best. If the maintenance contract requires the payment of prevailing wages, you will want to specify this in the solicitation documents, including the wage schedule.
What is a purchased service?
A purchased service generally refers to services purchased which are routine, on-going, and/or maintenance in nature. Depending on the service and the classification or type of worker performing the service, purchased services may require the payment of prevailing wages.
Common examples of purchased services include:
- Routine landscape maintenance
- Janitorial services
- Fire alarm testing
- Security services
- Garbage collection
As discussed above, we recommend using the Vendor Roster, not the Small Works Roster, for purchased services.
How do I create a Small Works project-specific roster?
After logging into your MRSC Rosters account, under the ROSTERS tab you will scroll down to the Generate a Roster section of the page and select the appropriate orange Roster button to start your Project Specific roster search.
Add your Project Name and select the estimated dollar amount for your Small Works project Under $150,000 or Over $150,000.
Next select the Project Type which represents the nature of construction. There are four Project Types (ROADS, PARKS, FACILITLIES, CIVIL).
Then Select Work Category which describes the primary scope of the project.
After selecting the Project Type and Work Category, select “Search Businesses” at the bottom of the page.
On the List of Businesses page select your roster process and review the list of businesses which is broken down as “PWSBE CERTIFIED BUSINESSES” and “BUSINESSES”. Review the entire list of businesses to determine if this list is appropriate for the project.
Your list may be appropriate if you recognize one or more businesses you have done business with previously. Even if you don’t recognize any businesses, your list still may be appropriate. You can drill down to see more details if you double click on the business name which is green colored and review their application data.
If the list does not seem appropriate, you can go back and select a different category and rerun your search.
From the list of business page, you will generate your specific project roster by selecting “SOLICIT BUSINESSES”.
Once you “SOLICIT BUSINESSES” the platform will ask you to confirm. Once confirmed, the project specific roster will be generated, and you will not be able to add any other businesses. The completion of this step indicates you are using the project specific roster to solicit and award in accordance with your agency’s policies and procedures.