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Stakeholders raise concerns over RFQ process that hides vendor prices in Mid Kings GSA procurement
Summary
Residents and the Stakeholder Advisory Committee told the Mid Kings River GSA board the recent request-for-qualifications (RFQ) approach prevented evaluation of vendor prices, leaving board members unsure whether the recommended vendors offer competitive costs; staff said they will consult counsel and return with clarification and potential changes.
At a Feb. 17 special meeting of the Mid Kings River Groundwater Sustainability Agency, residents and members of the Stakeholder Advisory Committee said the committee’s recent vendor selection used a request-for-qualifications (RFQ) process that did not surface vendor prices, complicating oversight.
Chip Mello, a resident who identified himself during public comment, said the committee evaluated qualifications but "we cannot see the price of these bids," and described the approach as "very odd," adding it was hard to decide whether the recommended firms offer good value. "We have to just, we score them, and then we, we decide who we pick through this bidding process through only qualifications and not through price," Mello said.
Garrett, representing the stakeholder committee, told the board the committee recommended several qualified vendors but acknowledged the lack of price information hampered the committee’s ability to judge cost and value. "One of those qualifications is what are you gonna charge us to do it," Garrett said. He recommended clearer scopes in future solicitations so price can be included in scoring and said the committee hopes to bring the recommended vendors to the board in March.
County staff and counsel said the RFQ process was chosen to move quickly and to avoid excluding firms whose approaches differed; staff said an RFQ (qualifications-only) was intentional but that a request-for-proposal (RFP) with explicit deliverables would allow price to be considered. County counsel said she would research whether the board can be provided price information and report back at the next meeting.
Board members also asked whether Kings County’s local vendor preference policy applies to Mid Kings River GSA; staff said the GSA had not adopted a local preference and that staff could prepare materials for the board to consider adopting such a policy.
The board did not take immediate formal action on procurement rules at the Feb. 17 meeting; staff committed to follow up with counsel and to present recommended changes when the vendor recommendations return to the board.
The next procedural step is for counsel and staff to report back to the board at a future meeting and for the full board to consider any changes to procurement procedures or a local preference policy.
