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Discussion regarding procurement initiatives.
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At the October 14, 2014 City Commission meeting, concerns regarding the Request for Proposal (RFP) process and the related Procurement Code sections were discussed. The Procurement Division of the Finance Department has reviewed the overall RFP process and has determined the following changes would address concerns and strengthen the overall process.
· Protest Timeline: Allow the protest period to expire prior to placing items on the Commission Agenda, except for emergency procurements. This will be accomplished by issuing a “Notice of Intent to Award” with enough time for the protest period to lapse before the item is considered by the City Commission.
· Protest Magistrate: Before being heard by the City Commission, protests will be reviewed by a special magistrate to make a recommended determination as to the validity of the protest.
· Minimum Qualification Verification: Include a check-list with the RFP which requires proposers to specifically verify and document how they meet the minimum qualifications of a solicitation.
· Surveys and Reference Checks: Set minimum and maximum number of surveys required (if applicable) and request reference information for a specific number of clients as well as requesting client list of related clients. Procurement staff would send out surveys and make calls on references with a set questionnaire instead of having the proposer submit surveys or letters of reference. Additionally, Procurement staff can select random clients from whom to solicit feedback.
· Evaluation Criteria and Scoring: Develop a standard evaluation criteria and scoring template which provides guidance for assigning points and provides definitions or details as to how each section should be considered and evaluated.
· Evaluation Panel Composition: The Chief Procurement Officer will increase the number of panel members (e.g., five instead of three) and will include, whenever possible, members of ...
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