Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 38, September 20, 2024
a) Scope of this
Section
The provisions of this Section shall govern the cancellation
of any solicitations whether issued by the IOC under competitive sealed
bidding, competitive sealed proposals, small purchases, or any other source
selection method, and rejection of bids or proposals in whole or in
part.
b) Policy
Any solicitation may be canceled when the CPO believes
cancellation to be in the State's best interest. Nothing shall compel the award
of a contract.
c)
Cancellation of Solicitation; Rejection of All Bids or Proposals Prior to
Opening
1) As used in this Section, "opening"
means the date set for opening of bids, receipt of unpriced technical offers in
multi-step sealed bidding, or receipt of proposals in competitive sealed
proposals.
2) Prior to opening, a
solicitation may be canceled in whole or in part when the CPO determines in
writing that the action is in the State's best interest for reasons including,
but not limited to:
A) the IOC no longer
requires the supplies, services or construction;
B) the IOC no longer can reasonably expect to
fund the procurement;
C) proposed
amendments to the solicitation would be of such magnitude that a new
solicitation is desirable;
D)
ambiguous or otherwise inadequate specifications;
E) the solicitation did not provide for
consideration of all factors of significance to the State;
F) prices exceed available funds and it would
not be appropriate to adjust quantities to come within available
funds;
G) all otherwise acceptable
bids or proposals received are at clearly unreasonable prices; or
H) there is reason to question whether the
bids or proposals may not have been independently arrived at in open
competition, may have been the result of collusion or may been submitted in bad
faith.
3) When a
solicitation is canceled prior to opening, notice of cancellation shall be sent
to all businesses that responded to the solicitation.
4) The notice of cancellation shall:
A) identify the solicitation;
B) briefly explain the reason for
cancellation; and
C) when
appropriate, explain that an opportunity will be given to compete on any
resolicitation or any future procurements of similar supplies, services or
construction.
d) Cancellation of Solicitation; Rejection of
All Bids or Proposals After Opening
1) After
opening but prior to award, all bids or proposals may be rejected in whole or
in part when the CPO determines in writing that such action is in the State's
best interest. The reasons for the CPO's determination may include, but are not
limited to:
A) the supplies, services or
construction being procured are no longer required;
B) ambiguous or otherwise inadequate
specifications were part of the solicitation;
C) the solicitation did not provide for
consideration of all factors of significance to the IOC;
D) prices exceed available funds and it would
not be appropriate to adjust quantities to come within available
funds;
E) all otherwise acceptable
bids or proposals received are at clearly unreasonable prices; or
F) there is reason to believe that the bids
or proposals may not have been independently arrived at in open competition,
may have been collusive, or may have been submitted in bad faith.
2) When the solicitation is
canceled or when all bids or proposals are rejected, all vendors who submitted
bids or proposals shall be sent a notice informing them of the cancellation or
rejection.
e)
Documentation
The reasons for cancellation or rejection shall be made a
part of the procurement file and shall be available for public
inspection.
f) Rejection of
Individual Bids or Proposals
1) General. This
subsection (f) applies to rejections of individual bids or proposals in whole
or in part.
2) Notice in
Solicitation. Each solicitation issued by the IOC shall provide that any bid or
proposal may be rejected in whole or in part when in the best interest of the
State as provided in this Section.
3) Reasons for Rejection. Reasons for
rejecting a bid or proposal may include, but are not limited to:
A) the business that submitted the bid or
proposal is nonresponsible as determined under Section
1120.2046;
B) the bid or proposal is not responsive,
that is, it does not conform in all material respects to the
solicitation;
C) the proposal
ultimately fails to meet the announced requirements of the IOC in some material
respect;
D) the supply or service
item offered in the bid is unacceptable by reason of its failure to meet the
requirements of the specifications or permissible alternates or other
acceptability criteria set forth in the IFB; or
E) the proposed price is clearly
unreasonable.
4) Notice
of Rejection. Upon request, unsuccessful bidders or offerors shall be advised
of the reasons for rejection.
g) Disposition of Bids or Proposals
When bids or proposals are rejected, they shall be retained
until after award. When a solicitation is canceled, the bids or proposals will
be discarded or returned to the vendor at the discretion of the Procurement
Officer.
