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On the July eight assembly, the City Commissioner will contemplate an ordinance that will increase restrictions on contact between the City and distributors throughout aggressive solicitation for items and providers. The proposed ordinance, Ordinance 20-O-04, would amend Part 2-357 of the Code of Common Ordinances.
Notably, the proposed ordinance would change the efficient date of the “cone of silence”—the interval of time when communications are prohibited between the City and a vendor. Below the ordinance, the “cone of silence” would start on the date and time when the solicitation is publicly launched. At present, the cone of silence begins on the submission due date of the solicitation response.
In accordance to the assembly agenda, the modifications to Part 2-357 embrace:
• Clarifies that the prohibited communications interval—generally referred to as a “cone of silence”—goes into impact on the date and time a aggressive solicitation is launched to the general public. The present language has the prohibited communication starting on the date the solicitation response was due to be submitted.
• Specifies that any communication in the course of the “cone of silence” should be directed to the Procurement Providers Division or the assigned Buying Agent. A vendor or their consultant might not talk with a City Commissioner or commissioner’s workers, or any metropolis worker serving on a aggressive solicitation analysis committee in the course of the “cone of silence.”
• Removes the availability exempting purchases lower than $50,000 from the prohibited communications interval.
• Establishes repercussions ought to a vendor or their consultant have interaction in prohibited communications in the course of the “cone of silence.” This contains disqualification from the solicitation course of, rejection of any bid obtained, or termination of any ensuing contract as decided by the Procurement Supervisor. As well as, partaking in prohibited communications shall be grounds for suspension or debarment of a vendor, particular person or their consultant below this code for one yr.
Employees reviews that the modifications would scale back the probability of conflicts of curiosity and strengthen moral requirements for communications between the City and distributors.
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