Facilities & Procurement Public Hearing

COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA COMMITTEE ON FACILITIES AND PROCUREMENT R O B E R T C. W H I T E , J R ., C H A I R NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING on B23-0545, the “Small Business Procurement Reform Omnibus Amendment Act of 2019” and Contract CW75765 with Sagitec Solutions, LLC Tuesday, September 29, 2020, 12:00 PM Live via Zoom Video Conference Broadcast Council Channel 13 (Cable Television Providers) DC Council Website (www.dccouncil.us) On Tuesday, September 29, 2020, Councilmember Robert C. White Jr., Chair of the Committee on Facilities and Procurement will hold a Public Hearing on B23-0545, the “Small Business Procurement Reform Omnibus Amendment Act of 2019” and on Contract CW75765 with Sagitec Solutions, LLC. The public hearing will take place via the Zoom web conferencing platform at 12:00 PM. Members of the public will be able to view the public hearing on cable television on Council Channel 13 or online at: https://dccouncil.us/council-videos/ or at: entertainment.dc.gov. B23-0545, the “Small Business Procurement Reform Omnibus Amendment Act of 2019” was introduced on November 19, 2019 by Councilmembers Robert C. White Jr., McDuffie, Nadeau, T. White, Cheh, Bonds, and Todd. The bill was referred to the Committee on Facilities and Procurement and the Committee on Business and Economic Development. The stated purpose of the legislation is to provide remediation for subcontractors in the event of non-payment by contractors or higher-tier subcontractors, to ensure that small businesses receive contracts set aside for small businesses that are subsequently issued on the open market. The legislation is also intended to clarify definitions within the Certified Business Enterprise program, standardize program compliance verification with a site visit schedule, create an anonymous violation reporting mechanism, incentivize small business subcontracting, and close loopholes to prevent program abuse and manipulation. The Committee also intends to conduct continuing oversight of Contract CW75765 with Sagitec Solutions, LLC. A disapproval resolution was filed, and ultimately withdrawn on this resolution, with the express intent of following up on the issues identified with the procurement in a subsequent hearing. The concerns raised include allegations of bias by a District contracting officer, manipulation of bidder scores, the use of a letter contract to initiate a procurement of over $1 million dollars, the extension of that letter contract twice without Council approval, and Page 1 of 2 the use of emergency powers to avoid Council review of a project impacting the unemployment tax system. The Committee invites the public to testify remotely or to submit written testimony. Anyone wishing to testify must sign up in advance by contacting the Committee by e-mail at facilities@dccouncil.us or by phone at (202) 741-8593, and provide their name, phone number or e-mail, organizational affiliation, and title (if any) by the close of business on Friday, September 25, 2020. Witnesses are encouraged, but not required, to submit their testimony in writing electronically in advance to facilities@dccouncil.us. Public witnesses will participate remotely and using audio only. The Committee will follow-up with witnesses with additional instructions on how to provide testimony through a web conferencing platform. All public witnesses will be allowed a maximum of four minutes to testify, while Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners will be permitted five minutes to testify. At the discretion of the Chair, the length of time provided for oral testimony may be reduced due to schedule constraints. Witnesses who anticipate needing language interpretation, or require sign language interpretation, are requested to inform the Committee on Facilities and Procurement of the need as soon as possible but no later than five (5) business days before the proceeding. We will make every effort to fulfill timely requests, however requests received in less than five (5) business days may not be fulfilled and alternatives may be offered. The Committee encourages the public to submit written testimony to be included for the public record. Copies of written testimony should be submitted by e-mail to facilities@dccouncil.us. The record for this public hearing will close at the close of business on Tuesday, October 13, 2020. Page 2 of 2