Procurement officer outlines RFP process for county operational study; committee orders vendor research

Robin Allen, the county procurement officer (as described in the meeting), walked the New Castle County Fire and Ambulance Advisory Board through a 25‑page draft request for proposals for an operational study of EMS deployment and billing.

Allen described the RFP structure—advertisement and pre-solicitation timelines, mandatory 2:00 p.m. close for proposals, site-visit options, a pricing/evaluation matrix, and confidentiality agreements for the evaluation committee. She told the panel the full open-bid process typically takes “3 to 4 months,” but said the county could shorten procurement by piggybacking on existing county or state contracts or inviting a small list of vetted vendors to provide quotes.

Allen emphasized procurement rules intended to prevent leaks or conflicts of interest: proposals must be submitted by the deadline to be considered, evaluators must sign confidentiality agreements, and procurement will vet any cooperative-purchase options to ensure “apples-to-apples” comparisons.

After questions about timeline, scope and whether the county might use an existing contract, the board moved to direct Allen to identify potential vendors and return with recommendations. The motion (moved by Chief Crawford Wade) passed by voice vote; a formal roll-call tally was not provided during the meeting.

Committee members asked procurement to return with a short list of qualified vendors and suggested that the panel use the next meeting to review the vendor list and finalize the study scope.

The procurement office also noted that the RFP can request granular pricing and that the evaluation committee will include confidentiality and conflict-of-interest safeguards.

The committee adjourned after public comment and scheduling next steps.