According to the Missouri Ethics Commission Web site, employees of Alternative Opportunities Inc., a non-profit organization based in Springfield and recipient of several Missouri license offices contracts, donated $8,050 to Gov. Jay Nixon’s 2008 gubernatorial campaign.
Despite those contributions, the Champions of Rolla Education emerged as winner in the process against AO, although it took three rounds of bidding.
Those donations were given by Bontiea Goss, the chief operations officer, Tom Goss, the chief financial officer, and Marilyn Nolan, the chief executive officer, and ranged from $1,000 to $1,375.
Nixon’s office denied any involvement in the bidding process.
“The process is 100 percent handled by professionals in the that department (Office of Administration),” said Sam Murphey, the deputy press secretary for Nixon.
As to whether the state was aware of the donations, Lori Sims, an information officer with the Office of Administration, said unless that information is requested in bid specifications, there would be no need or way to know.
AO was awarded several contracts to run license offices, however, 10 offices in Ava, Camdenton, Creve Coeur, Joplin, Nevada, Olivette, Poplar Bluff, Republic and two in Springfield were reopened for bidding after it was revealed information in the bids violated specifications.
As reported by several news outlets, AO’s bids listed as the contract manager an executive who is currently employed by W.D. Management, a company originally set up by AO but later sold to Providence Service.
Listing the executive as the contract manager was deemed a violation of the bids specifications not permitting subcontractors. AO was permitted to resubmit bids for the offices it previously were awarded. Since the reopening of bids, AO has been awarded several other offices.
“We thought the fairest thing was to have the whole office rebid,” said Ted Farnen, the director of communications for the Department of Revenue.
Missouri bidding guidelines say a bid submitted with false or misleading information could be grounds for suspension or debarment for vendors bidding on state contracts.
“The Office of Administration does not believe they (AO) had set out to be intentionally misleading,” said Simms.
It was announced on Jan. 14 CORE won the bid for the Rolla License Office it has run since 1995.
