PRO-305 Basis for Bid Awards

SCOPE:

The purpose of this policy is to establish the authority, basis and procedures for determining official sealed and simplified bid awards under various circumstances.

POLICY:

Awarding contracts and rejecting bids are public actions and the procuring agencies performing these functions are guided by the course of action that best promotes the public interest.

It is the duty and authority of the procuring agency to exercise good judgment, due diligence, and to honestly and fairly determine the lowest responsible bidder(s).

The lowest responsible bidder is the person or firm submitting the competitive bid with the lowest price that meets the specifications of the solicitation. Bid awards will be made on this basis except as provided herein.

Wherever such action is appropriate, the procuring agency will award contracts for materials, supplies or equipment based on life cycle cost estimates. See PRO-208, Life Cycle Costing.

Any and all bids may be rejected. When the award is made to someone other than the lowest bidder, and/or when any bid is rejected, a complete written record of the full reason(s) for such actions will be created and retained in the bid file. See PRO-105, Procurement Record Retention and Access.

Tied bids exist when the total costs of two or more responses to a bid are identical. Procuring agencies will follow the procedures outlined herein to break a bid tie. If an indication of price fixing exists in any tied bid situation, agencies will consult PRO-602, Non-Collusion and Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest and may consult the State Bureau of Procurement (Bureau), before proceeding with an award.

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PRO-305 Basis for Bid Awards​​