Dec 2011 , Vol. VI, No.1

Recent Changes to Virginia's Public Procurement Act; Part II - Bid Preferences for Virginia Firms

Authored by Megan Caramore

Virginia’s Public Procurement Act received some notable revisions during the 2011 session of the Virginia General Assembly, perhaps the most important of which were changes to bid withdrawal procedures and new bid preferences for Virginia firms.  The changes went into effect on July 1, 2011. Part I of this two part series addressed bid withdrawal changes, while Part II addresses new bid preferences.
 

Section 2.2-4324 of Virginia’s Public Procurement Act contains a number of bid preferences that favor Virginia firms over others.  For example, the Act provides that tie bids go to the Virginia firm.  Additionally, where the lowest responsible bidder is the resident of another state, and that state provides resident contractors a percentage preference, Virginia provides a like preference to a Virginia firm that is the next low bidder.
 

Now, the Act has been amended to add another preference for Virginia firms.  In situations where the lowest responsible bidder is the resident of another state, and that state provides resident contractors a price matching preference, Virginia law provides that a similar preference shall be allowed to Virginia firms.  The Virginia Department of General Services currently provides a list of states that have absolute and percentage preferences (http://www.eva.state.va.us/library/files/buyers/listing-states-preferences.pdf); however, the list has not yet been amended to include states with price matching preferences. 

Authored by attorneys, these articles are meant to bring awareness to these topics and are not intended to be used as legal advice.
For more information, contact Mike at 757-446-8626 or Bill Franczek at 757-446-8600.
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