Redistricting -- Hauser protests Legal Services contract award

The Arizona Eagletarian learned this evening that on June 3rd, Lisa Hauser, a partner in the law firm of Gammage & Burnham, filed a protest regarding the award of legal services contracts by the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission.  Hauser did not, however, either request the procurement process to be re-done or that either of the contracts awarded (to Osborne Maledon and to Ballard Spahr) be terminated.

Rather, the 12 page protest letter goes into great detail expressing Hauser's displeasure at being deemed "not susceptible for award."  The only relief she requests is reversal of that determination.

The five paragraph conclusion to the letter characterizes this particular procurement process thusly,

Some observers have commented that what transpired during this procurement does not bode well for the rest of the redistricting process. There appears to be a sharp partisan divide on the Commission that was highlighted and perhaps exacerbated by this process.

...A majority of the Commission has a right to select the counsel of their choice. But it is a shame that it had to be on a 3 to 2 vote hostile to both Republican members of the Commission and against a backdrop of so many procurement irregularities.  This does little to instill confidence in the Commission going forward.

I will try to find out more about this situation in the morning.