While those who lie on official government documents are typically penalized or prosecuted, there is a new trend in Missouri – we reward them. Alternative Opportunities, Inc. (also known as AO), a not-for-profit corporation located in Springfield, failed to disclose a management contract that it had with a for-profit company when submitting bids to run several of Missouri’s license offices. The Request for Proposal issued for these license office contracts expressly forbid groups from using undisclosed management companies. AO was caught red-handed and the Missouri Department of Revenue very publicly yanked all of the contracts that AO had been awarded in an effort to minimize the impact this scandal could have on the Governor.One would expect that AO would not be awarded any new contracts nor would they get back any of the contracts that they had lost. After all, they quite willingly failed to comply with the rules of the bidding process. The terms of the RFPs made it clear that what they had done was wrong and that they should have been disqualified immediately.

Unfortunately, the Department of Revenue’s decision to pull all of AO’s contracts was just a show by some of Nixon’s political hacks. In the last week, AO has been awarded three new license office contracts. Apparently, lying does pay – at least while Nixon’s in the Governor’s Mansion.

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