Uncertain delays create timing issues for states, public safety in preparation for FirstNet
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Uncertain delays creates timing issues for states, public safety in preparation for FirstNet
This is not a straightforward bid to build a commodity item to familiar specifications. If it was a straightforward bid, a reversal of the procurement process might allow a different bidder to assume the project after certain foundational pieces were put in place in a standardized manner. But the flexible FirstNet RFP was designed so that different bidding teams could take very different approaches, as long as they satisfied the core objectives.
As a result, if an award was given to AT&T pending an appeal, there is a very real possibility that any work done by AT&T would have little or no value to Rivada Mercury, if it eventually won the procurement after an appeal, according to sources. Transferring that work likely would not be helpful or practical.
Perhaps more important is the potential impact that a procurement-award reversal would have on states and public safety. If a nationwide-contractor award was announced without all legal issues being resolved, states and FirstNet would be obligated to expend considerable human and financial resources as they proceed through the “opt-out” decision process based on the state plan proposed by the initial contractor. And that may be fine, if the initial contractor remains in place after all legal options are exhausted.
But an ugly scenario could ensue if the procurement decision somehow is reversed. State plans based on the initial contractor would have to be scrapped, as FirstNet would have to contemplate its next move—possibilities include developing new state plans with another contractor or rebidding the entire project—that likely would involve a very significant delay of several months.
Delays are the last thing that public-safety representatives want to hear in relation to FirstNet. That’s particularly true for state officials whose salaries and FirstNet-related operations are funded—at least in part—by money from the State and Local Implementation Grant Program (SLIGP).
Currently, SLIGP funds are scheduled to expire in at the end of this year or early in 2018. If an award can be made this spring, most states still should have enough SLIGP funds to execute their FirstNet-related considerations and outreach. If there are considerable delays for legal or other reasons, new funding sources may need to be identified to implement these plans.
To say that there are a lot of FirstNet variables to consider at the moment is an understatement. The confusion is compounded by the fact that no one in the general public knows how compelling Rivada Mercury’s case may be, because so many of the key arguments have been sealed to the public or redacted.
Hopefully, this legal dispute and the related FirstNet procurement can be resolved as quickly and as clearly as possible. No matter who the contractor is, it is important that public-safety agencies throughout the country soon are able establish firm plans associated with the much-anticipated network.