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AshBritt raises procedural concerns after debris-removal evaluation; commissioners order interviews
Summary
A representative for AshBritt argued Martin County’s debris-removal RFP evaluation departed from its published rules and asked the board to require presentations or a re-score. Commissioners directed staff to shortlist top scorers and hold interviews before final awards.
Holly Merrill Reshine, director of Florida government relations for AshBritt and a Monroe County commissioner, told the Martin County Board of County Commissioners that the panel evaluating RFP 2026-3769 for post-disaster debris removal “appears to have departed from the rules this RFP set for itself,” and that the county’s award decision was decided by a 1.1-point margin.
Reshine said three irregularities changed the outcome: committee members used averaged raw scores rather than first-place tallies that the RFP said should determine the winner; an evaluator lowered AshBritt’s past-performance score based on outside experience with the firm; and two recommended firms were credited for a documentation system that the RFP listed only as a contract term. “Each issue by itself is small. Together, on a 1.1 margin, they are decisive,” she said, asking the board to require presentations or return proposals for re-scoring under the method the RFP requires.
County procurement staff said the solicitation allowed for various evaluation methods and that no formal protest was filed during the procurement period. Still, during board discussion commissioners noted the number of proposers and the narrow margin and asked staff to bring the highest-scoring firms back for interviews so the selection committee could re-score with presentations.
Commissioner Hetherington proposed shortlisting top-scoring firms for live interviews; the board voted unanimously to direct staff to reconvene the selection committee, identify the top proposers (the board suggested firms with scores of 90 and above), hold presentations or interviews, and re-score before any final award. Procurement staff said the change will not alter the solicitation text but will add the interview step prior to contract awards.
The board did not make a final award on the debris-removal contract at the June 23 meeting; staff will return with the interview process and a rescored recommendation at a later meeting.
