(a) Any Respondent who is allegedly aggrieved in connection with the Solicitation, evaluation, or award of a contract by the Agency may formally protest to the Agency's director of business operations.

(1) Such protests must be made in writing and timely received by the Agency's director of business operations.

(2) The protest must be received by the Agency's director of business operations within 10 working days after the Protestant knows, or should have known, of the occurrence of the action that is protested.

(3) The Protestant shall mail or deliver copies of the protest to: Director of Business Operations, 101 E. 15th Street, Room 316T, Austin, Texas 78778. The Protestant must also mail or deliver copies of the protest to Interested Parties known to the Protestant.

(b) A protest that is not filed timely shall not be considered unless the director of business operations determines that the protest raises issues that are significant to the Agency's procurement practices or procedures.

(c) The protest must be in writing and contain:

(1) the identifying name and number of the Solicitation being protested;

(2) identification of the specific statute or regulation that the Protestant alleges has been violated;

(3) a specific description of each act or omission alleged to have violated the statutory or regulatory provision identified above in paragraph (2) of this section;

(4) a precise statement of the relevant facts including: (A) sufficient documentation to establish that the protest has been timely filed; and (B) a description of the resulting adverse impact to the Protestant;

(5) a statement of the argument and authorities that the Protestant offers in support of the protest;

(6) an explanation of the action the Protestant is requesting from the Agency; and

(7) a statement confirming that copies of the protest have been mailed or delivered to any other Interested Party known to the Protestant.

(d) The protest must be signed by an authorized representative for the Protestant and the signature notarized.

(e) The Protestant may appeal determination of a protest to the Agency's deputy executive director.

(1) The appeal filed under these procedures must be in writing, addressed to the Agency's deputy executive director; and

(2) The protest must be received by the deputy executive director no later than 10 business days after the date of receipt of the written determination issued by the director of business operations.

(f) The Agency may move forward with a Solicitation or contract award without delay, in spite of a timely filed protest, to protect the best interests of the Agency or the state.

Source Note: The provisions of this §800.301 adopted to be effective October 26, 2020, 45 TexReg 7608