The following protest procedures have been adopted by SF Bay Ferry pursuant to Section IX.F of the SF Bay Ferry Administrative Code and Chapter 8 of the SF Bay Ferry Procurement and Contracting Procedures Manual.
Right to File Protests. A protest may be filed for contracts in excess of $250,000 only by an Interested Party, defined as an actual or prospective bidder or proposer whose direct economic interest could be affected by SF Bay Ferry’s conduct of the solicitation. Interested Parties do not include subcontractors or suppliers of an actual or prospective bidder/proposer, or individual firms that make up a Joint Venture, acting independently of the Joint Venture. All protests relative to RFPs or IFBs must be filed in accordance with the procedures and within the time periods stated in this chapter, unless otherwise specified in the solicitation.
To the extent that any provision below conflicts or is otherwise inconsistent with a process or procedure set forth in an RFP or IFB, the provision in the RFP or IFB will prevail. To the extent that a provision of an RFP or IFB does not permit protests, that prohibition will prevail over and negate a process permitted below that is inconsistent with that prohibition.
Requirements for Protests.
A. Protests Based on Solicitation Requirements. The following procedures apply to protests based on solicitation requirements:
1. Protests dealing with restrictive specifications or alleged improprieties in a solicitation must be filed no later than ten (10) calendar days prior to the date for submittal of proposals, statements of qualifications, or bids. Protests must be in writing (email or mail is acceptable) and addressed to the Executive Director.
2. The protest must contain a statement describing the reasons for the protest and any supporting documentation. Additional materials in support of the initial protest will only be considered if filed within the time limit specified above. The protest must indicate the ruling or relief desired from the Executive Director.
3. Materials submitted by a protester or bidder will not be withheld from any other interested party, except to the extent that the withholding of information is permitted or required by law or regulation. If the protest contains proprietary material, a statement advising of this fact may be affixed to the front page of the protest document and the alleged proprietary information must be identified wherever it appears. Notwithstanding a designation of material as proprietary, the Executive Director will have the discretion to determine whether or not such material should be withheld from the other interested parties, and if the Executive Director determines that the material should be made available, the protesting potential proposer or bidder waives any claim based on such disclosure.
B. Protests Based on Contract Award. The following procedures apply to protests based on award of a contract:
1. Interested Parties may protest SF Bay Ferry’s Notice of Intent to award a contract by filing a protest in writing (email or mail is acceptable) with the Executive Director within 72 hours after the Notice of Intent to award a contract is issued by SF Bay Ferry.
2. The protest must identify the specific procurement involved and specify in detail the grounds of the protest, the facts supporting the protest, and the status of the protester.
3. The protest must include all relevant supporting documentation with the protest at the time of submittal.
Except as modified by the procurement documents, if a protest does not comply with the above requirements, the protest will not be considered and will be returned to the protester.
Evidentiary statements, if any, will be submitted under penalty of perjury. The protester will have the burden of proving its protest by clear and convincing evidence. Failure to file a protest within the applicable period will constitute a waiver of the right to protest the determination, authorization, or award, as applicable, other than any protest based on facts not reasonably ascertainable as of such date.
Statements by Other Interested Parties. SF Bay Ferry may distribute a copy of the protest and/or the Executive Director’s decision to all bidders or proposers. SF Bay Ferry may invite Interested Parties to submit a response to a protest.
Resolution of Protest. The Authority’s Executive Director will respond to protests as soon as possible. The Executive Director will advise the protester of the decision in writing. All decisions of the Executive Director are final, unless the protestor appeals to the FTA as outlined in Section 1.5 below.
FTA Review. If the procurement is subject to FTA procurement rules and requirements, the protester may file an appeal of the Executive Director’s final decision with the FTA within five working days of receiving the Executive Director’s final decision. The protester should submit a copy of the appeal to the Executive Director. FTA’s review of an appeal will be limited to alleged violations of federal law or regulations, as well as allegations that SF Bay Ferry has not reviewed a protest or has not complied with SF Bay Ferry’s protest procedures.