Board rejects Flooring company’s bid protest, cites strict NRS 338 requirements

The Washoe County School District Board unanimously denied a bid protest from Continental Flooring on April 28, finding the company's bid non‑responsive after staff determined the subcontractor license number on the contractor's 5% list was incorrect.

Andrea Sullivan, the district's senior director of supply chain management, told trustees that NRS 338 requires a bid to include the name of each first‑tier subcontractor, the subcontractor's license number and a description of the scope of work, and that failure to provide those items at the time of bid renders a bid non‑responsive. "The bid must contain these three items," Sullivan said. "If a contractor fails to submit the 5% list within the required time, the contractor's bid shall be deemed non‑responsive."

Chris Coleman, president of Continental Flooring, argued by Zoom that his company submitted a subcontractor list but made a typographical error on the license number and asked the board to treat the error as a minor informality. "We did submit the form," Coleman said. "We simply made a typographical error." He urged trustees to consider the $68,000 price difference between his low bid and the next bidder.

But trustees and the district’s legal counsel stressed statutory language and precedent. Deputy Chief General Counsel Kevin Pic said the statute's "must" and "shall" wording leaves little room for waiver and cited prior practice. Vice President Woodley warned that allowing exceptions could invite increased appeals and undermine the integrity of public bidding.

Trustees voted to deny Continental Flooring's appeal and to proceed with recommendation of award to the next low responsive bidder, SI Legacy Flooring Floor Finishing Inc.

What happens next: The district will hold off awarding the contract until the appeal resolution has been finalized and proceed to award to the next responsive bidder as directed by procurement rules.