The Sacramento Choo Choo!
Irregularities: HSR25-89 Track and System Construction Contract
Executive Summary
- The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) received two bidders (Proposers) for the $3.5 billion HSR25-89 contract.
- One of the bidders was quickly disqualified because one of the proposed managers lacked a California Professional Engineer license.
- The management role in question was a non-engineering position and hence, according to state law, did not require such a license.
The CHSRA requirement was capricious at best and legally dubious at worst.
- Because of its early disqualification, the Authority performed no scoring or analysis of the second proposal.
As a result, no comparisons of cost, qualifications or experience offered by the two bidders were ever made.
- The bidding process therefore devolved into a non-competitive, sole-source procurement.
This arrangement is legally questionable because - just like non-bid contracts - it is usually allowed only under exceptional circumstances.
- The Authority demostrated extremely poor stewardship of public monies, and its conduct should be investigated by
appropriate government agencies.