Broward County Code of Ordinances
Chapter 1, Section 266 – Cone-of-Silence.
Sec. 1-266. Cone of silence.
(a) "Cone of Silence" means a prohibition on any communication regarding a particular Request for Proposals (RFP), Request for Letters of Interest (RLI), bid, or other competitive solicitation between:
(1) Any person who seeks an award therefrom, including a potential vendor or vendor's representative, and
(2) Any County Commissioner or the Commissioner's staff,the County Administrator, Deputy and Assistants to the County Administrator, and their respective support staff, or any person appointed by the County Commission to evaluate or recommend selection in such procurement process.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Cone of Silence shall not apply to communications with the County Attorney and his or her staff, or with designated County staff who are not serving on the particular Selection and Negotiation Committee, to obtain clarification or information concerning the subject solicitation. Further, nothing herein shall prohibit a County Commissioner, the County Commissioner's staff, and other County employees from communicating with each other. For purposes of this section, "vendor's representative" means an employee, partner, officer, or director of a potential vendor, or consultant, lobbyist, or actual or potential subcontractor or sub-consultant of a vendor.
(b) A Cone of Silence shall be applicable to each RFP, RLI, bid, or other competitive solicitation upon short listing. At the time of imposition of the Cone of Silence, the County Administrator or the Administrator's designee shall provide public notice of the Cone of Silence. The County Administrator shall include in any advertisement and public solicitation for goods and services a statement disclosing the requirements of this section.
(c) The Cone of Silence shall terminate at the time the Board of County Commissioners votes to award or approve a contract, to reject all bids or responses, or otherwise takes action which ends the solicitation.
(d) Nothing contained herein shall prohibit any potential vendor or vendor's representative:
(1) From making public presentations at duly noticed pre-bid conferences or before duly noticed selection and negotiation committee meetings;
(2) From engaging in contract negotiations during any duly noticed public meeting;
(3) From making a public presentation to the County Commission during any duly noticed public meeting; or
(4) From communicating in writing with any County employee or official for purposes of seeking clarification or additional information, subject to the provisions of the applicable RFP, RLI, or bid documents.
The potential vendor or vendor's representative shall file a copy of any written communication with the County Administrator who shall make copies available to the public upon request.
(e) Nothing contained herein shall prohibit a County Commissioner or his or her respective staff from initiating contact with a potential vendor or vendor's representative and subsequent communication related thereto for the purpose of obtaining further information regarding the RFP, RLI, bid, or competitive solicitation. Such contact shall be in writing and shall be provided to the members of the applicable Selection and Negotiation Committee, including any response thereto.
(f) In addition to the penalties provided in Section 1-265, any violation of this section by a potential vendor or vendor's representative or County staff, as defined in section (a)(2):
(1) Shall render any RFP award, RLI award, or bid award to said potential vendor or vendor's representative voidable, at the sole discretion of the Board of County Commissioners; and
(2) May subject the potential vendor or vendor's representative to debarment in accordance with Chapter 21, Part IX, of the Broward County Administrative Code.
(Ord. No. 2001-15, § 8, 5-8-01)
Wednesday, May 8, 2002