REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
Bid Number 2026-004
Internal Audit Services
Finance Department
501 Main Street South
Southbury, CT
March 19, 2026
Overview:
A. General Information
The Town of Southbury invites proposals from qualified accounting firms interested in providing
internal audit functions for the Town. The internal audit function will be performed to ensure
that the operating procedures including all internal controls are being followed and all
expenditure of funds are in accordance with, laws, regulations, and Town policy.
To be considered, three (3) copies of a proposal must be received by Dan Colton, Finance
Director, at 501 Main Street South, Southbury CT, by 12:00 PM on April 9, 2026. The Town
reserves the right to reject any or all the proposals submitted.
The Town reserves the right to request an interview from proposers as part of the evaluation
process.
It is anticipated the selection of a firm will be completed by April 23, 2026. Following the
notification of the selected firm, a contract will be prepared for review and approval by the
Chairman of the Board of Finance on or before May 1, 2026. The Town reserves the right to
reject any or all proposals, to waive any non-material irregularities or information in the
proposal, and to accept or reject any items or combination of items.
B. Term of Engagement
It is the intent of the Town of Contract for the services presented herein for a term of three (3)
years.
The proposal package shall present all-inclusive audit fees for each year of the contract.
Scope of Work:
The internal audit will evaluate the adequacy of internal financial controls with an emphasis on
areas vulnerable to fraud and abuse, the competence of the Town’s current financial policies and
procedures, and the appropriateness of the Towns financial and auditing structure. The
objectives of the engagement are:
An annual review and update of risk assessment
Annual testing and evaluation of one or more of the Towns departments
considering risk, control weaknesses, and complexity of operations:
o Make an independent selection of key controls for testing to ensure
controls are appropriate and effective when applied.
o Test the design and effectiveness of these internal controls to detect
deficiencies.
o Perform audit procedures designed to identify unusual and/or questionable
transactions.
Preparation of reports which analyze significant risk assessment findings,
recommended changes for strengthening internal controls and reducing identified
risks.
Areas that may be addresses include but are not limited to:
Accounting records
Bank reconciliations
Receipts and revenues
Purchasing
Accounts payable and expenditures
Payroll
Financial reporting
Grants management
Capital assets
Financial management system administration
Work Paper Retention:
All working papers and reports must be retained at the auditor’s expense for a minimum of five
(5) years, unless the Town notifies in writing of a need to extend the retention period. The
auditor will be required to make working papers available to the Town.
Time Requirements:
The Town will be ready to start the internal audit by October 15th each year.
The auditor shall provide all drafts and recommendations for improvements to the Board of
Finance Audit Committee within a reasonable timeframe after the last day of fieldwork. The
auditor should be available for any meetings that may be necessary to discuss the draft audit
report. Once all issues of discussion are resolved, the completed reports shall be delivered to the
Board of Finance Audit Committee. It is expected that this process will be completed and the
final product delivered by December 31st.
CONTRACT CONSIDERATIONS
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY – AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
The successful firm shall comply in all aspects with the Equal Employment Opportunity Act. A
firm with 15 or more employees shall be required to have an Affirmative Action Plan that
declares that the Contractor does not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, national
origin, or age, which specifies goals target dates to assure the implementation of equal
employment. A firm with fewer than 15 employees shall be required to have a written equal
opportunity policy statement declaring that it does not discriminate based on race, color,
religion, sex, national origin, or age.
Findings of noncompliance with applicable State and Federal equal opportunity laws and
regulations could be sufficient reason for revocation or cancellation of this contract.
INDEMNIFICATION
The awarded firm agrees to indemnify, defend, and save harmless, the Town of Southbury, as
well as its officers, agents, and employees from any and all claims and losses to the extent
caused by the negligent act, error, or omission of the awarded firm resulting from the
performance of this contract, except to the extent caused by the negligent acts of the Town of
Southbury or its officers, agents or employees.
The Town, as a sovereign government, cannot indemnify businesses or individuals.
INSURANCE
Prior to the execution of any contract, the Town of Southbury requires that any awarded
contractor providing materials, equipment, or services to the Town must provide to the Town
a certificate of insurance (Acord or other approved format) naming the Town of Southbury as
additional insured, for the following:
General liability (including completed operations coverage) in the amounts of
$1,000,000 (combined single limit) Bodily Injury/Property Damage coverage per
occurrence and $2,000,000 general aggregate coverage.
Automobile Liability in the amount of $1,000,000 (combined single limit),
Property Damage, and Bodily Injury coverage
Professional Liability, in an amount not less than $500,000.00 per
occurrence and $1,000,000.00 aggregate.
Worker's Compensation as defined in the Connecticut General Statutes
Any subcontractor to a contracted firm shall be likewise covered and shall furnish certificates
of coverage acceptable to the Town before starting work.
The awarded firm shall maintain professional liability insurance until the expiration of the statute
of limitations. In the event there is no statute of limitations specifically applicable to this project,
the awarded firm shall maintain coverage for a reasonable period after the date of substantial
completion of the project as agreed to by the Town and the awarded firm.
INVOICING AND PAYMENT
Invoices shall be paid promptly by the Town unless any items thereon are questioned, in which
case payment will be withheld pending verification of amount claimed and the validity of the
claim. Standard payment terms are Net 30 Days from receipt of properly executed invoice(s). If
your firm submits a proposal that includes payment schedules based on the completion of
designated phases, those stages must be clearly outlined in your proposal. The Town cannot
make payments for "execution of contract" (payments due upon contract signing). The Town is
tax-exempt and shall not be charged tax.
AWARD CONSIDERATIONS
The Town may reject any or all proposals or submittals for such reason as it may deem proper. In
acceptance of proposals or submittals, the Town will be guided by consideration of the interests
of the Town. The Town also reserves the right to negotiate further with one or more of the firms
as to any features of their proposals or submittals and accept modifications of the work and price
when such action will be in the Town's best interests.
Firms selected for an interview will be provided with the interview panel's content; the selected
firms will be required to submit affidavits relating to their relationship(s) with members of the
panel. The names of interview committee members will be released solely for the purpose of
preparation of affidavits; the selected firms shall not directly contact the panel members prior
to immediately following the interview process.
The individual signing this submittal hereby declares that no person or persons other than
members of his/her own organization are interested in this project or in the contract proposed to
be taken; that it is made without any connection with any other person or persons making a
proposal for the same work and is in all respects fair and without collusion or fraud; that no
person acting for or employed by the Town of Southbury is directly or indirectly interested
therein, or in the supplies or works to which it relates or will receive any part of the profit or any
commission therefrom in any manner which is unethical or contrary to the best interests of the
Town of Southbury.
Unless otherwise noted within a proposal, proposals received in response to this document,
including proposed fee schedules, are assumed to be valid and binding for one hundred and
twenty (120) days from receipt of the proposal. If an award is not made within such time, the
proposal can be deemed to be either no longer valid or can be extended with the mutual consent
of the Town and the firm submitting the proposal. Documents/reports/data become the property
of the Town of Southbury.
This page summarizes the opportunity, including an overview and a preview of the attached documents.