Bulletins and Proposal Requests: Pre-Change Order Documentation, Contractor Pricing, and Timeline Requirements

Covers bulletins and proposal requests as pre-change order documentation instruments used to communicate potential changes, solicit contractor pricing, and establish timelines for change order processing. Addresses the architect's role in issuing these documents, contractor response obligations, and the relationship between proposal requests (G709) and formal change orders.

ARE · Construction & Evaluation

Overview

Before a change order can be executed, the parties need a mechanism to communicate proposed changes, obtain pricing, and evaluate the impact on cost and schedule. Bulletins and proposal requests serve this pre-change order function.

A bulletin is a document issued by the architect during construction to communicate design revisions, drawing changes, or specification modifications to the contractor. Bulletins describe what is changing but do not by themselves authorize the contractor to proceed with the work. They are informational documents that precede the formal change process.

A proposal request (AIA G709-2018) is a formal document issued by the architect asking the contractor to provide a price and time proposal for a described change in the work. The proposal request includes a description of the proposed change, references to affected drawings or specifications (often attached as a bulletin), and a deadline for the contractor's response. The contractor's pricing response becomes the basis for negotiating a change order.

The typical sequence works as follows: the architect identifies a change, prepares revised drawings or specifications (issued as a bulletin), sends a proposal request to the contractor referencing the bulletin, the contractor prices the work and responds within the required timeframe, the parties negotiate the price and time, and a change order is executed documenting the agreed change.

This sequence protects all parties. The owner knows the cost before authorizing the change. The contractor has clear documentation of what is being requested. The architect has a formal record of the change communication. Without this process, changes can lead to disputes over scope, cost, and authorization.

Essential

The pre-change order process is where most change-related disputes either get resolved or get started. Understanding how bulletins and proposal requests work together is critical for managing changes efficiently. Bulletins: Communicating the Change A bulletin is a numbered document that describes a revision to the contract documents during construction. Bulletins typically include revised drawing sheets (marked with delta symbols and revision clouds to highlight changes), revised specification sections, a narrative description of the change, and a date. They are sequentially numbered (Bulletin No. 1, Bulletin No. 2, etc.) and distributed to the contractor, owner, and relevant consultants. Bulletins are informational, not authorizing. The contractor should not proceed with bulletin work until a change order or construction change directive formally authorizes it. This distinction is critical: a bulletin tells the contractor what is changing, not to go ahead and build it.

Professional

The pre-change order process is where architects most frequently create professional liability exposure related to changes. The risks come from three directions: unauthorized communications, incomplete documentation, and poor timeline management. Authorization and Owner Communication Architects sometimes issue proposal requests without explicit owner authorization, particularly when they identify a design issue that clearly needs correction. While the architect may have the technical authority to identify the change, the financial authorization to pursue it belongs to the owner. Issuing a proposal request without owner knowledge can create problems: the contractor invests time pricing the change, the owner is surprised by the proposed cost, and the architect may be caught between a contractor expecting authorization and an owner who did not approve the inquiry.

TLDR

Bulletins describe design changes during construction (numbered, with marked-up drawings and spec revisions) but do not authorize work. Proposal requests (AIA G709) ask the contractor to price a described change within a specified deadline, typically 10-14 days. The sequence is: architect identifies change, issues bulletin, issues proposal request, contractor prices, parties negotiate, and a change order (G701) is executed. Always get owner authorization before issuing proposal requests. Maintain a change order log tracking every change from identification through execution. Process change orders before the work is complete when possible, because trailing change orders weaken the owner's negotiating position.

ELI5

Imagine you hired a contractor to remodel your kitchen based on a set of plans. A few weeks into construction, you decide you want a larger window over the sink. Before the contractor can install the bigger window, a few things need to happen. First, the architect draws the new, larger window and marks up the plans to show what changed. This marked-up set of plans is called a bulletin. It shows the contractor exactly what is different from the original plans. But it is not a green light to start work. It is just showing what might change. Next, the architect sends the contractor a formal request: "Based on this bulletin, how much will the larger window cost, and how many extra days will it add?" This formal request is called a proposal request (the official AIA form is called G709).

Overview

Essential

Professional

TLDR

ELI5

AREConstruction & Evaluation

Bulletins and Proposal Requests: Pre-Change Order Documentation, Contractor Pricing, and Timeline Requirements

2 min read261 words

Bulletins and Proposal Requests as Pre-Change Order Instruments

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