On October 6, 2017, the Town of Miami Lakes (“Town”) issued RFP No. 2018-02 Independent Auditing Services to procure independent auditors for the purpose of conducting the Town's annual audit. The successful proposer will perform the annual examination of the Town's financial statements.

The minimum qualification requirements to submit a proposal under the RFP were to (1) be a licensed Certified Public Accounting Firms with a minimum of ten consecutive years providing auditing services as the firm's primary business function; (2) have completed at least two external government audits for two different Florida municipalities within the past five years as the primary contractor; (3) be independent from the Town of Miami Lakes, as defined by applicable law and regulations; and (4) dedicate key personnel that have successfully completed the number of required hours of continuing professional education for CPAs engaged in governmental auditing.

The RFP was advertised in the Miami Daily Business Review, posted on the Town website, Public Purchase, and DemandStar, and noticed in the Town Hall lobby. Procurement conducted a due diligence review including and background checks on the five proposal responses received. One response was disqualified from further review due to an incomplete Price Proposal.

In September of this year, the Town Council, via Resolution No. 17-1482, appointed the following individuals to serve on the Auditor Selection Committee (the “Committee”):

1.Alberto Aguiar, CPA,

2.Ramon Hospitalet

3.Jorge Barreto, CPA

4.Andre Teixeira, CPA

Ramon Hospitalet was unavailable to meet for the Evaluation Committee Meeting, and an alternate, Frank Diaz, was appointed to serve in his place.

The Committee met on November 17, 2017 to evaluate the proposals. The Committee evaluated the technical proposals based on the criteria and weights set forth in the solicitation to include Proposer's experience, qualifications and past performance, relevant experience, qualifications of key personnel and approach to providing the services. Price proposals were a weighted factor based on a 20-point scale for the total price of the initial three-year contract term. After discussion of the proposals to include firm qualifications and government experience, based on its review of the proposals, the Committee ranked the proposals as follows:

Firm Total Points Ranking

Rodriguez, Trueba & Co., CPA, PA (“RT&C) 383.6 Points 1

Alberni Caballero & Fierman, LLP (“ACF”) 380.6 Points 2

Keefe McCullough 352.4 Points 3

S. Davis & Associates, PA 345.0 Points 4

The top-ranked Proposer, RT&C, is a local business with a vested and long-standing interest in the Town of Miami Lakes. The firm applied and qualified for local preference under the Town's Procurement Ordinance, 12-142 §13. Two of the firm's partners, Mariano Rodriguez and Juan Carlos Gonzalez, are residents of Miami Lakes and have been for more than 30 and 20 years respectively. RT&C has also had an office in Miami Lakes since 2003. RT&C will bring a unique perspective to the audit of Miami Lakes since they have extensive knowledge about the Town's history.

The Committee agreed that all of the firms were qualified to perform the services. The Committee's recommendation is that the Council award a contract to the top ranked firm, Rodriguez, Trueba & Co., however, that all firms ranked above are qualified and able to perform the services. Should the Town be unable to contract with Rodriguez, Trueba & Co., it is recommended the Council proceed to contract with the next highest-ranked firm until a contract is executed. All the firms ranked above comprise the Committee's recommended list of firms as required by Florida Statute 218.391.

Based on the above, the Committee recommends that the Town Council authorize the Town Manager to negotiate and award a term contract to one of the firms ranked above for Independent Auditing Services, beginning with number one ranked proposer Rodriguez, Trueba & Co. Should negotiations be unsuccessful with the number one proposer, the Town Manager may terminate negotiations and move forward with the next highest-ranked firm until an agreement is successfully negotiated.