25-0077-RG INTERNAL AUDIT SERVICES

The School District of Manatee County, Florida is seeking a professional accounting services firm to perform internal audit services through a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) solicitation number 25-0077-RG. The procurement is for an initial three-year contract beginning July 1, 2025, with potential for two one-year renewals, focusing on conducting internal audits in compliance with Chapter 1001.42(12)(I), Florida Statutes. Key objectives include comprehensive risk assessments, financial verification, evaluating internal controls, compliance, operating efficiency, and asset safeguarding. Respondents must have a local office within 60 miles of the district, be licensed to practice public accounting in Florida, be a member of professional accounting institutes, and have at least five years of continuous CPA services in the government sector. The evaluation process will distribute 100 possible points across experience in internal audit services (25 points), personnel experience (20 points), audit approach and methodology (25 points), references (5 points), and fee schedule (25 points). Proposals are due on October 21, 2024, with anticipated board approval on November 12, 2024, and interviews with shortlisted firms scheduled for November 5, 2024.

The district currently uses PeopleSoft as its ERP system and has previously outsourced internal audit services to Carr, Riggs & Ingram since July 2019. No specific set-aside designations or restrictions for disadvantaged enterprises were explicitly noted in the documentation. Five firms submitted qualifications: Carr Riggs and Ingram, LLC; RSM US LLP; Mauldin & Jenkins, LLC; Frazier and Deeter, LLC; and Marcum, LLP, with the top three (Carr Riggs and Ingram, LLC; RSM US LLP; and Mauldin & Jenkins, LLC) advancing to interviews. The solicitation anticipates a contract where the district and Audit Committee will jointly determine a not-to-exceed price for each project using contractually established hourly rates as a guideline. While specific budget ranges were not disclosed, the fee schedule attachment indicates that rates will be established for various staff levels including Partner, Manager, Supervisor, Senior Accountant, Staff, Paraprofessional, Specialist, and Other categories, covering fiscal years ending June 30, 2025 through June 30, 2027.