Section 0690-03-01-.06 - PROCUREMENT PROCESS-ELEMENTS OF SOLICITATION DOCUMENT AND PROCESS PRIOR TO AWARD(1) Solicitations-Elements. Each written solicitation shall contain the following elements at a minimum:(a) The description of the technical requirements for the goods or scope of services to be procured;(b) Terms and conditions that clearly state the requirements for response and language to bind the parties in the event of award;(c) Clear and definitive technical requirements and scope that allow for open competition where practicable;(d) The solicitation shall contain directions regarding the submittal of proposals;(e) Instructions for packaging, shipping, and delivering commodities purchased and instructions for storage by the vendor, where applicable or appropriate;(f) Any requirements for proposal, performance or payment bonds;(g) A timeline of the solicitation process that specifies the solicitation deadlines; A detailed description of the evaluation factors to be considered in evaluating the proposals, e.g., by way of example only, proposer qualifications, experience, technical approach, and cost;(h) A declaration of whether the contract award is subject to successful contract negotiation;(i) A statement that the Chief Procurement Officer shall have the sole discretion to amend a solicitation in writing at any time prior to award; and(j) An estimate of the purchase requirements for the current contract period, if applicable and for the new contract period if the solicitation will result in an agency or statewide term contract.(2) Inspection of Solicitation File.(a) Each solicitation shall contain a schedule indicating the dates and times for solicitation opening, the timeline for evaluation and the anticipated Award date. Once the state issues the Notice of Intent to Award, the Open File Period begins. The solicitation file shall be open for public inspection for seven (7) calendar days upon request. The Central Procurement Office or a Delegated State Agency shall give the requestor a reasonable opportunity to inspect the solicitation file. If there is no protest of the Notice of Intent to Award, the State will proceed with the contract award.(3) Cancellation of Solicitation or Rejection of Responses.(a) The Chief Procurement Officer shall have the discretion to cancel a solicitation in its entirety and reissue the solicitation in whole or in part as documented and approved by any other approval authority of the original solicitation.(b) The Chief Procurement Officer shall have the discretion to reject any and all responses.1. Any response that does not meet the requirements of a solicitation may be considered nonresponsive and the response may be rejected.2. Any response that restricts the rights of the State or otherwise qualifies the proposal may be considered nonresponsive and the response may be rejected.3. All responses may be rejected by the Chief Procurement Officer or Delegated State Agency for the following reasons:(i) Unreasonably high prices or failure of all responses to meet technical specifications;(ii) Error or defect in the solicitation;(iv) `Unavailability of funds;(v) Lack of adequate competition; or(vi) A determination by the State Agency, with the concurrence of the Chief Procurement Officer and any other approval authority, that proceeding with the procurement would be detrimental to the best interests of the State.4. Rejection of all responses and any approvals required shall be documented and an explanation shall be provided as to the reasons for the rejection of all responses.5. A report of rejected responses and cancelled solicitations shall be reported in such format and timetable as requested by the Comptroller of the Treasury.Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0690-03-01-.06
Original rule filed February 5, 1982; effective June 1, 1982. Amendment filed January 24, 1986; effective April 15, 1986. Repeal and new rule filed November 25, 1987; effective February 28, 1988. Repeal and new rule filed October 22, 2013; effective January 20, 2014.Authority: T.C.A. § 4-56-102, 4-56-105, 12-3-305, and 12-3-502.