§ 2-210. Protests.

(a)

Protests allowed. Any bidder, proposer, offeror, quoter or responder may protest the terms, conditions and specifications of a method of procurement used by the county, or a recommended award of a contract resulting from a method of procurement used by the county.

(b)

Contact by protestor. A protestor, or someone acting on behalf of a protestor, is prohibited from directly contacting any county officer, agent or employee, other than the county coordinator or a county employee designated by the county coordinator for purposes of communication with procurement protestors, to discuss any matter relating in any way to the procurement being protested. This prohibition begins with the issuance of the procurement solicitation and ends upon execution or issuance of a contract or other award document, or upon cancellation of the procurement solicitation. Failure to adhere to this restriction may result in the protest being rejected or denied by the county without further consideration.

(c)

Protest submittal. In order for a protest to be considered by the county, in addition to all other requirements of this section, the protestor must submit a completed written protest. After submittal of a completed written protest, the protestor shall supply any additional information requested by the county coordinator or his/her designee within the time period set forth in the request. Failure of a protestor to timely submit any of the required information or documentation in its written protest or any requested additional information or documentation as specified herein will result in the protest being rejected by the county without further consideration. In order to expedite handling of a protest, the envelope containing the protest must be labeled "Bid Protest." The written protest shall include the following, at a minimum:

(1)

The name and address of the protestor and, if relevant, the name and address of the protestor's legal counsel; and

(2)

Appropriate identification of the procurement matter, including, but not limited to, the title and any number assigned to the solicitation; and

(3)

The reasonable identification of the section or sections in this article or other applicable laws, ordinances, policies or procedures the protestor alleges have been violated; and

(4)

A brief description of the actions or activities of the county officers, agents or employees that are alleged to be in violation of the code sections, laws, ordinances, policies or procedures identified in section 2-210(c)(3); and

(5)

An attachment or appendix containing all supporting exhibits, evidence or documents to substantiate any claims contained in the protest, unless not available within the filing time, in which case such items shall be identified and the reason for unavailability shall be described and the expected availability date of such items shall be indicated; and

(6)

A request for review by the county coordinator, including, where relevant, a description of the action(s) the protestor desires the county coordinator to order or direct should the protest be sustained.

(d)

Protests of the terms, conditions and specifications of a method of procurement.

(1)

A protestor of the terms, conditions and specifications of a method of procurement or procurement solicitation used by the county shall first notify the county coordinator in writing, of its intent to protest such terms, conditions, and specifications within three business days of the posting of the county's procurement solicitation or any subsequent addenda.

(2)

With respect to a protest of the terms, conditions and specifications contained in a county procurement solicitation, including but not limited to any provisions governing the methods for ranking or evaluating bids, proposals, or replies, awarding contracts, reserving the rights of further negotiation, or modifying or amending any bid, proposal, reply, or contract, the formal written protest shall be filed within seven business days (as defined in this section as beginning at 8:00 a.m. and ending at 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except for county recognized holidays) after the posting of the procurement solicitation or the posting any subsequent addenda.

(3)

In order for a protest to be considered by the county, a protestor must submit a completed written protest containing all the information and documentation required in section 2-210(c). Failure of a protestor to timely submit any of the required information or documentation will result in the protest being rejected by the county without further consideration.

(4)

Upon receipt of a timely filed written protest of the terms, conditions or specifications of a method of procurement issued by the county, the county coordinator shall stop the subject procurement solicitation process until the subject protest is resolved, unless it is determined that particular facts and circumstances require the continuance of the procurement solicitation process without delay to avoid an immediate and serious danger to the public health, safety or welfare of the county or any of its citizens. The county coordinator shall take as much time as necessary to review the documentation and provide a written decision to the protestor. Nothing contained herein shall prohibit the county coordinator from issuing an addendum to extend the due date of the solicitation.

(5)

The protestor may appeal a denial by the county coordinator to the board. The formal written appeal must be delivered to the board's administrative office within seven business days of receipt of the decision of the county coordinator and shall include the factual and legal basis for the protestor's disagreement with the decision of the county coordinator. The decision of the board shall be final.

(6)

Any bidder, proposer, offeror, quoter or responder who fails to submit a protest of the terms, conditions, and specifications of a procurement solicitation within the specified time frame will be deemed to have waived any right to protest the terms, conditions or specifications of that solicitation.

(e)

Protests of recommended award.

(1)

A protestor of a recommended award pursuant to a procurement solicitation issued by the county (herein "recommended award") shall first notify the county coordinator in writing, of its intent to protest a recommended award of such a procurement solicitation within three business days of the posting or providing of notice of recommended award.

(2)

A protestor of a recommended award shall file a formal written protest with the county coordinator within seven business days of the posting or providing of notice of recommended award.

(3)

In order for a protest of a recommended award to be considered by the county, a protestor must submit a written protest containing all the information and documentation required in section 2-210(c). In addition to all other requirements of section 2-210(c), the protestor must demonstrate in its written protest that it would be entitled to the recommended award and the reasons therefor. Failure of a protestor to timely submit any of the required information or documentation will result in the protest being rejected by the county without further consideration.

(4)

If a protest of a recommended award is ultimately denied, the full amount of any bond will be retained by the county. If a protest of a recommended award is upheld at any stage of the protest process, the full amount of any bond will be returned to the protestor. If the subject procurement solicitation is terminated at any point in the appeal process, the bond will be returned.

(5)

Upon receipt of a timely filed formal written protest of a recommended award, the county coordinator shall stop the contract award process until the protest is resolved, unless it is determined that particular facts and circumstances require the continuance of the contract award process without delay to avoid an immediate and serious danger to the public health, safety or welfare of the county or any of its citizens. Nothing herein shall prohibit proceeding with evaluation of bids or proposals, contract negotiations or other similar activities.

(6)

The county coordinator shall furnish a decision in writing within seven business days of receipt of the formal written protest of a recommended award. The county coordinator may conduct such due diligence investigations as he/she deems necessary to respond to the protest.

(7)

The protestor of a recommended award may appeal the decision of the county coordinator to the board. The formal written appeal must be delivered to the board's administrative office within seven business days of receipt of the decision of the county coordinator and shall include the factual and legal basis for the protestor's disagreement with the decision of the county coordinator. The decision of the board shall be final.

(g)

Administrative proceedings before the board.

(1)

The administrative appeal proceedings before the board provided in this section are quasi-legislative in nature and will not constitute public hearings or quasi-judicial proceedings. In the event a protestor who has appealed the county coordinator's decision on any procurement matter provided for in this section to the board, the county coordinator shall provide such protestor with a copy of the appeal procedures set forth in this section prior to the protestor's appeal being heard by the board.

(2)

A bidder, proposer, offeror, quoter or responder who has been recommended for an award which is being protested shall be afforded the opportunity to participate in the protest process, including the administrative appeal proceedings before the board. The county coordinator shall provide the recommended awardee with a copy of the appeal procedures set forth in this section prior to the appeal being heard by the board. Any bidder, proposer, offeror, quoter or responder who is afforded the opportunity to participate in the protest proceedings shall be bound by the board's determination and may not protest that decision.

(Ord. No. 2018-005 , § 2, 10-2-2018)