Ryan Ray
So far, an issue with the City of Tallahassee’s request for proposal process regarding an important city function is no closer to being resolved than when we first reported on it earlier this month. Rumblings continue in the wake of the city’s transfer of its $500 million in retirement funds to the stewardship of Great West Retirement via an opaque, black-box assessment process, and the city has done little to quell them.
Following an RFP process that ended abruptly and left much to be desired — particularly in the absence of a usual set of best practices known as a “best and final offer” phase of the negotiations — the city’s Treasurer-Clerk’s office as of today has still not answered questions about why this RFP did not seem to warrant his office’s greatest efforts to get the best deal possible for Tallahassee taxpayers and retirees.
While SaintPetersBlog was able to briefly reach Treasurer-Clerk retirement officer Darryl Thompson on one occasion, in which he said he wanted to clarify certain points on his office’s conduct during the bid process, follow-up phone calls and messages have not been returned.
But inquiring Tallahasseean minds still demand to know the following about key elements of this momentous deal, upon which so far precious little sunshine has shone.
For instance: Why wasn’t there a best and final offer phase?
Normally, an RFP procurement process has many steps wherein a consultant asks for and evaluates bids. They rank those bids, then go back to the top ones and ask for best and final, and negotiate at length.
Why did that not happen in this case?
Even the final financial details are yet to be disclosed — What is the total amount of the winning bid?
Was the Treasurer-Clerk or anyone on the panel who made this decision contacted by a lobbyist or someone working for Great West?
If so, do you have any emails or documents between your office or that of any of the panel members between you and members of the Great West team or lobbyists on their behalf?
Here’s hoping the City will make good on its obligation to its taxpayers, workers, and citizens to ensure everyone has equal access to municipal contracts and the vital information thereof. Call us anytime.
