Illinois Administrative Code › Title 44 - GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS, GRANTMAKING, PROCUREMENT AND PROPERTY MANAGEMENT › Part 8 - CHIEF PROCUREMENT OFFICER FOR THE CAPITAL DEVELOPMENT BOARD › Subpart J - PROTESTS, DISPUTES AND CONTRACT CONTROVERSIES › Section 8.2075 - Protests

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 28, July 12, 2024
a) Any person may
				submit a protest related to the notice of the procurement, the solicitation
				document, any pre-bid/proposal meeting or any decision to reject a late bid or
				proposal.
b) Any person who has
				submitted a bid or proposal may protest a decision to reject the party's bid or
				proposal or to award to another vendor.
c) The following procedures will govern the
				resolution of protests received by the CPO that are covered under this Subpart:
1) Protest Review Officer. The CPO may
				appoint one or more Protest Review Officers, who will not be CDB employees, to
				consider procurement related protests and make a recommendation to the CPO for
				resolution of a protest. The CPO may adopt the recommendations or take other
				action.
2) Subject of the Protest.
				A protest may be filed during any phase of the solicitation and award process
				for a particular contract.
A) The subject of
				the protest shall concern violation of the Illinois Procurement Code or other
				law, any associated rules, or the terms of the solicitation itself, including
				the fairness of the evaluation or award process.
B) Protest procedures of this Section do not
				apply to issues of prequalification, suspension or debarment.
C) Information relevant to a protest shall be
				made available to the protesting party for use in its protest. The PRO or CPO
				shall determine relevancy of the information.
3) Filing a Protest. All protests shall be in
				writing and filed with the Chief Procurement Officer within 14 days after the
				protester knows or should have known of the facts giving rise to the protest.
A) Any solicitation or addendum posted to the
				Bulletin or otherwise issued establishes the "known or should have known" date
				for the subject matter of the solicitation or addendum. A protest is considered
				filed when physically received by the Protest Review or CPO office. Protests
				filed after the 14 day period will not be considered.
B) The protest shall be contained in an
				envelope clearly labeled "Protest". The written protest shall include, at a
				minimum, the following requirements:
i) The
				name, address, e-mail if available, telephone and facsimile numbers of the
				protester.
ii) The identification
				of the procurement or solicitation that is the subject of the
				protest.
iii) All information
				establishing that the protester is an interested party.
iv) A detailed statement of the factual and
				legal grounds of the protest, including all relevant documents and exhibits
				that establish the basis for the protest.
v) All information establishing the
				timeliness of the protest.
vi) The
				signature of the protester.
vii)
				Specific relief sought.
4) Stay of Award during a Protest. When a
				protest has been filed and before an award has been made, the SPO will make no
				award of the contract until the protest has been resolved, unless the award of
				the contract without delay is necessary to protect the interests of the
				State.
5) Receipt of Protests. All
				protests received by the CPO office will be distributed to CDB as soon as
				practical.
6) Requested
				Information. The protesting party must supply any additional information
				requested by the Protest Review Officer within the time periods set in the
				request. If the protesting party fails to comply with the request, the CPO
				shall consider the protest on the basis of available information or may deny
				the protest.
7) At the discretion
				of the CPO, a hearing may be scheduled in accordance with Subpart T.
8) Decision. A decision on a protest will be
				made as expeditiously as possible after receiving all relevant information.
A) The protest will be sustained only if it
				is determined by the CPO that the protest conclusively demonstrates, by the
				preponderance of the relevant information submitted, a violation of the Code or
				other law, any associated rules or policies, or the solicitation itself,
				including the evaluation or award process.
B) If the protest is sustained, the remedies
				available are limited to cancellation or revision of the solicitation,
				advertisement of the solicitation or award to the protesting party if the
				protesting party was originally denied award.
C) The decision of the CPO is final and
				conclusive unless clearly erroneous, arbitrary, capricious or contrary to law.
				(See Section 20-75 of the Code.)
9) Effect of Judicial Proceedings. If an
				action concerning the protest has commenced in a court or administrative body,
				the CPO may defer resolution of the protest pending the judicial or
				administrative determination.