Reverse auctions; require state agencies to publish detailed specifications on.

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To: Accountability,
Efficiency, Transparency
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representative Scott

HOUSE BILL NO. 32

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 31-7-13, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO 1
REQUIRE EACH STATE AGENCY TO PROVIDE DETAILED SPECIFICATIONS ON 2
WHAT IS REQUIRED TO PARTICIPATE IN A REVERSE AUCTION; TO REQUIRE 3
THE STATE AGENCY TO PUBLISH THE SPECIFICATIONS ON THE AGENCY'S 4
WEBSITE FOR THIRTY DAYS BEFORE THE DATE OF THE REVERSE AUCTION AND 5
ONCE EACH WEEK FOR THREE CONSECUTIVE WEEKS IN A NEWSPAPER HAVING 6
GENERAL CIRCULATION IN THE COUNTY OR MUNICIPALITY WHERE THE AGENCY 7
IS LOCATED; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 8
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 9
SECTION 1. Section 31-7-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 10
amended as follows: 11
31-7-13. All agencies and governing authorities shall 12
purchase their commodities and printing; contract for garbage 13
collection or disposal; contract for solid waste collection or 14
disposal; contract for sewage collection or disposal; contract for 15
public construction; and contract for rentals as herein provided. 16
(a) Bidding procedure for purchases not over $5,000.00. 17
Purchases which do not involve an expenditure of more than Five 18
Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), exclusive of freight or shipping 19
charges, may be made without advertising or otherwise requesting 20
competitive bids. However, nothing contained in this paragraph 21
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(a) shall be construed to prohibit any agency or governing 22
authority from establishing procedures which require competitive 23
bids on purchases of Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) or less. 24
(b) Bidding procedure for purchases over $5,000.00 but 25
not over $75,000.00. Purchases which involve an expenditure of 26
more than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) but not more than 27
Seventy-five Thousand Dollars ($75,000.00), exclusive of freight 28
and shipping charges, may be made from the lowest and best bidder 29
without publishing or posting advertisement for bids, provided at 30
least two (2) competitive written bids have been obtained. Any 31
state agency or community or junior college purchasing commodities 32
or procuring construction pursuant to this paragraph (b) may 33
authorize its purchasing agent, or his designee, to accept the 34
lowest competitive written bid under Seventy-five Thousand Dollars 35
($75,000.00). Any governing authority purchasing commodities 36
pursuant to this paragraph (b) may authorize its purchasing agent, 37
or his designee, with regard to governing authorities other than 38
counties, or its purchase clerk, or his designee, with regard to 39
counties, to accept the lowest and best competitive written bid. 40
Such authorization shall be made in writing by the governing 41
authority and shall be maintained on file in the primary office of 42
the agency and recorded in the official minutes of the governing 43
authority, as appropriate. The purchasing agent or the purchase 44
clerk, or his designee, as the case may be, and not the governing 45
authority, shall be liable for any penalties and/or damages as may 46
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be imposed by law for any act or omission of the purchasing agent 47
or purchase clerk, or his designee, constituting a violation of 48
law in accepting any bid without approval by the governing 49
authority. The term "competitive written bid" shall mean a bid 50
submitted on a bid form furnished by the buying agency or 51
governing authority and signed by authorized personnel 52
representing the vendor, or a bid submitted on a vendor's 53
letterhead or identifiable bid form and signed by authorized 54
personnel representing the vendor. "Competitive" shall mean that 55
the bids are developed based upon comparable identification of the 56
needs and are developed independently and without knowledge of 57
other bids or prospective bids. Any bid item for construction in 58
excess of Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) shall be broken down 59
by components to provide detail of component description and 60
pricing. These details shall be submitted with the written bids 61
and become part of the bid evaluation criteria. Bids may be 62
submitted by facsimile, electronic mail or other generally 63
accepted method of information distribution. Bids submitted by 64
electronic transmission shall not require the signature of the 65
vendor's representative unless required by agencies or governing 66
authorities. 67
(c) Bidding procedure for purchases over $75,000.00. 68
(i) Publication requirement. 69
1. Purchases which involve an expenditure of 70
more than Seventy-five Thousand Dollars ($75,000.00), exclusive of 71
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freight and shipping charges, may be made from the lowest and best 72
bidder after advertising for competitive bids once each week for 73
two (2) consecutive weeks in a regular newspaper published in the 74
county or municipality in which such agency or governing authority 75
is located. However, all American Recovery and Reinvestment Act 76
projects in excess of Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) 77
shall be bid. All references to American Recovery and 78
Reinvestment Act projects in this section shall not apply to 79
programs identified in Division B of the American Recovery and 80
Reinvestment Act. 81
2. Reverse auctions shall be the primary 82
method for receiving bids during the bidding process. Each state 83
agency shall provide detailed specifications on what is required 84
to participate in the reverse auction. The specifications must be 85
published on the agency's website for thirty (30) days before the 86
date of the reverse auction and published once each week for three 87
(3) consecutive weeks before the date of the reverse auction in a 88
regular newspaper published in the county or municipality in which 89
the agency is located. If there is no newspaper published in the 90
county or municipality, then the notice of the reverse auction and 91
specifications must be posted at the courthouse, or for 92
municipalities, at the city hall, and at two (2) other public 93
places in the county or municipality, and also by publication once 94
each week for three (3) consecutive weeks in some newspaper having 95
a general circulation in the county or municipality in the manner 96
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provided in this item 2. If a purchasing entity determines that a 97
reverse auction is not in the best interest of the state, then 98
that determination must be approved by the Public Procurement 99
Review Board. The purchasing entity shall submit a detailed 100
explanation of why a reverse auction would not be in the best 101
interest of the state and present an alternative process to be 102
approved by the Public Procurement Review Board. If the Public 103
Procurement Review Board authorizes the purchasing entity to 104
solicit bids with a method other than reverse auction, then the 105
purchasing entity may designate the other methods by which the 106
bids will be received, including, but not limited to, bids sealed 107
in an envelope, bids received electronically in a secure system, 108
or bids received by any other method that promotes open 109
competition and has been approved by the Office of Purchasing and 110
Travel. However, reverse auction shall not be used for any public 111
contract for design, construction, improvement, repair or 112
remodeling of any public facilities, including the purchase of 113
materials, supplies, equipment or goods for same and including 114
buildings, roads and bridges. The Public Procurement Review Board 115
must approve any contract entered into by alternative process. 116
The provisions of this item 2 shall not apply to the individual 117
state institutions of higher learning. The provisions of this 118
item 2 requiring reverse auction as the primary method of 119
receiving bids shall not apply to term contract purchases as 120
provided in paragraph (n) of this section; however, a purchasing 121
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entity may, in its discretion, utilize reverse auction for such 122
purchases. The provisions of this item 2 shall not apply to 123
individual public schools, including public charter schools and 124
public school districts, only when purchasing copyrighted 125
educational supplemental materials and software as a service 126
product. For such purchases, a local school board may authorize a 127
purchasing entity in its jurisdiction to use a Request for 128
Qualifications which promotes open competition and meets the 129
requirements of the Office of Purchasing and Travel. 130
3. The date as published for the bid opening 131
shall not be less than seven (7) working days after the last 132
published notice; however, if the purchase involves a construction 133
project in which the estimated cost is in excess of Seventy-five 134
Thousand Dollars ($75,000.00), such bids shall not be opened in 135
less than fifteen (15) working days after the last notice is 136
published and the notice for the purchase of such construction 137
shall be published once each week for two (2) consecutive weeks. 138
The notice of intention to let contracts or purchase equipment 139
shall state the time and place at which bids shall be received, 140
list the contracts to be made or types of equipment or supplies to 141
be purchased, and, if all plans and/or specifications are not 142
published, refer to the plans and/or specifications on file. If 143
there is no newspaper published in the county or municipality, 144
then such notice shall be given by posting same at the courthouse, 145
or for municipalities at the city hall, and at two (2) other 146
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public places in the county or municipality, and also by 147
publication once each week for two (2) consecutive weeks in some 148
newspaper having a general circulation in the county or 149
municipality in the above-provided manner. On the same date that 150
the notice is submitted to the newspaper for publication, the 151
agency or governing authority involved shall mail written notice 152
to, or provide electronic notification to the main office of the 153
Mississippi Procurement Technical Assistance Program under the 154
Mississippi Development Authority that contains the same 155
information as that in the published notice. Within one (1) 156
working day of the contract award, the agency or governing 157
authority shall post to the designated web page maintained by the 158
Department of Finance and Administration, notice of the award, 159
including the award recipient, the contract amount, and a brief 160
summary of the contract in accordance with rules promulgated by 161
the department. Within one (1) working day of the contract 162
execution, the agency or governing authority shall post to the 163
designated web page maintained by the Department of Finance and 164
Administration a summary of the executed contract and make a copy 165
of the appropriately redacted contract documents available for 166
linking to the designated web page in accordance with the rules 167
promulgated by the department. The information provided by the 168
agency or governing authority shall be posted to the web page 169
until the project is completed. 170
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4. Agencies and governing authorities using 171
federal funds for the procurement of any good or service, 172
including exempt personal and professional services, must comply 173
with the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and 174
Audit Requirements for Federal Awards - Subpart D - Post Federal 175
Award Requirements Procurement Standards, in accordance with 2 CFR 176
200.317 through 2 CFR 200.327. 177
(ii) Bidding process amendment procedure. If all 178
plans and/or specifications are published in the notification, 179
then the plans and/or specifications may not be amended. If all 180
plans and/or specifications are not published in the notification, 181
then amendments to the plans/specifications, bid opening date, bid 182
opening time and place may be made, provided that the agency or 183
governing authority maintains a list of all prospective bidders 184
who are known to have received a copy of the bid documents and all 185
such prospective bidders are sent copies of all amendments. This 186
notification of amendments may be made via mail, facsimile, 187
electronic mail or other generally accepted method of information 188
distribution. No addendum to bid specifications may be issued 189
within two (2) working days of the time established for the 190
receipt of bids unless such addendum also amends the bid opening 191
to a date not less than five (5) working days after the date of 192
the addendum. 193
(iii) Filing requirement. In all cases involving 194
governing authorities, before the notice shall be published or 195
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posted, the plans or specifications for the construction or 196
equipment being sought shall be filed with the clerk of the board 197
of the governing authority. In addition to these requirements, a 198
bid file shall be established which shall indicate those vendors 199
to whom such solicitations and specifications were issued, and 200
such file shall also contain such information as is pertinent to 201
the bid. 202
(iv) Specification restrictions. 203
1. Specifications pertinent to such bidding 204
shall be written so as not to exclude comparable equipment of 205
domestic manufacture. However, if valid justification is 206
presented, the Department of Finance and Administration or the 207
board of a governing authority may approve a request for specific 208
equipment necessary to perform a specific job. Further, such 209
justification, when placed on the minutes of the board of a 210
governing authority, may serve as authority for that governing 211
authority to write specifications to require a specific item of 212
equipment needed to perform a specific job. In addition to these 213
requirements, from and after July 1, 1990, vendors of relocatable 214
classrooms and the specifications for the purchase of such 215
relocatable classrooms published by local school boards shall meet 216
all pertinent regulations of the State Board of Education, 217
including prior approval of such bid by the State Department of 218
Education. 219
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2. Specifications for construction projects 220
may include an allowance for commodities, equipment, furniture, 221
construction materials or systems in which prospective bidders are 222
instructed to include in their bids specified amounts for such 223
items so long as the allowance items are acquired by the vendor in 224
a commercially reasonable manner and approved by the 225
agency/governing authority. Such acquisitions shall not be made 226
to circumvent the public purchasing laws. 227
(v) Electronic bids. Agencies and governing 228
authorities shall provide a secure electronic interactive system 229
for the submittal of bids requiring competitive bidding that shall 230
be an additional bidding option for those bidders who choose to 231
submit their bids electronically. The Department of Finance and 232
Administration shall provide, by regulation, the standards that 233
agencies must follow when receiving electronic bids. Agencies and 234
governing authorities shall make the appropriate provisions 235
necessary to accept electronic bids from those bidders who choose 236
to submit their bids electronically for all purchases requiring 237
competitive bidding under this section. Any special condition or 238
requirement for the electronic bid submission shall be specified 239
in the advertisement for bids required by this section. Agencies 240
or governing authorities that are currently without available high 241
speed Internet access shall be exempt from the requirement of this 242
subparagraph (v) until such time that high speed Internet access 243
becomes available. Any county having a population of less than 244
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twenty thousand (20,000) shall be exempt from the provisions of 245
this subparagraph (v). Any municipality having a population of 246
less than ten thousand (10,000) shall be exempt from the 247
provisions of this subparagraph (v). The provisions of this 248
subparagraph (v) shall not require any bidder to submit bids 249
electronically. When construction bids are submitted 250
electronically, the requirement for including a certificate of 251
responsibility, or a statement that the bid enclosed does not 252
exceed Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00), on the exterior of the 253
bid envelope as indicated in Section 31-3-21(1) and (2) shall be 254
deemed in compliance with by including same as an attachment with 255
the electronic bid submittal. 256
(d) Lowest and best bid decision procedure. 257
(i) Decision procedure. Purchases may be made 258
from the lowest and best bidder. In determining the lowest and 259
best bid, freight and shipping charges shall be included. 260
Life-cycle costing, total cost bids, warranties, guaranteed 261
buy-back provisions and other relevant provisions may be included 262
in the best bid calculation. All best bid procedures for state 263
agencies must be in compliance with regulations established by the 264
Department of Finance and Administration. If any governing 265
authority accepts a bid other than the lowest bid actually 266
submitted, it shall place on its minutes detailed calculations and 267
narrative summary showing that the accepted bid was determined to 268
be the lowest and best bid, including the dollar amount of the 269
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accepted bid and the dollar amount of the lowest bid. No agency 270
or governing authority shall accept a bid based on items not 271
included in the specifications. 272
(ii) Decision procedure for Certified Purchasing 273
Offices. In addition to the decision procedure set forth in 274
subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (d), Certified Purchasing 275
Offices may also use the following procedure: Purchases may be 276
made from the bidder offering the best value. In determining the 277
best value bid, freight and shipping charges shall be included. 278
Life-cycle costing, total cost bids, warranties, guaranteed 279
buy-back provisions, documented previous experience, training 280
costs and other relevant provisions, including, but not limited 281
to, a bidder having a local office and inventory located within 282
the jurisdiction of the governing authority, may be included in 283
the best value calculation. This provision shall authorize 284
Certified Purchasing Offices to utilize a Request For Proposals 285
(RFP) process when purchasing commodities. All best value 286
procedures for state agencies must be in compliance with 287
regulations established by the Department of Finance and 288
Administration. No agency or governing authority shall accept a 289
bid based on items or criteria not included in the specifications. 290
(iii) Decision procedure for Prequalified 291
Construction. In addition to the decision procedure set forth in 292
subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (d), where purchase involves 293
renovation, restoration, or both, of the State Capitol Building or 294
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any other historical building designated for at least five (5) 295
years as a Mississippi Landmark by the Board of Trustees of the 296
Department of Archives and History under the authority of Sections 297
39-7-7 and 39-7-11, or for any other construction procurement with 298
a minimum construction cost of Ten Million Dollars 299
($10,000,000.00) where the agency or governing authority has 300
determined that prequalification of bidders is in the best 301
interest of the state, the agency or governing authority may use 302
the following procedure: Purchases may be made from the lowest 303
and best prequalified bidder. Solicitation of the 304
prequalification of bidders shall be in accordance with paragraph 305
(c) of this section and shall be determined not less than fifteen 306
(15) working days before the prequalified bidders are invited to 307
submit bids. Prequalification criteria shall be limited to 308
bidder's and proposed sub-contractor's knowledge and experience on 309
projects of similar size and scope, past performance, project 310
management team and financial stability. All best bid and 311
prequalification procedures for state agencies must be in 312
compliance with regulations established by the Department of 313
Finance and Administration. If any governing authority accepts a 314
bid other than the lowest bid actually submitted, it shall place 315
on its minutes detailed calculations and narrative summary showing 316
that the accepted bid was determined to be the lowest and best 317
bid, including the dollar amount of the accepted bid and the 318
dollar amount of the lowest bid. No agency or governing authority 319
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shall accept a bid based on items not included in the 320
specifications. 321
(iv) Construction project negotiations authority. 322
If the lowest and best bid is not more than ten percent (10%) 323
above the amount of funds allocated for a public construction or 324
renovation project, then the agency or governing authority shall 325
be permitted to negotiate with the lowest bidder in order to enter 326
into a contract for an amount not to exceed the funds allocated. 327
(e) Lease-purchase authorization. For the purposes of 328
this section, the term "equipment" shall mean equipment, furniture 329
and, if applicable, associated software and other applicable 330
direct costs associated with the acquisition. Any lease-purchase 331
of equipment which an agency is not required to lease-purchase 332
under the master lease-purchase program pursuant to Section 333
31-7-10 and any lease-purchase of equipment which a governing 334
authority elects to lease-purchase may be acquired by a 335
lease-purchase agreement under this paragraph (e). Lease-purchase 336
financing may also be obtained from the vendor or from a 337
third-party source after having solicited and obtained at least 338
two (2) written competitive bids, as defined in paragraph (b) of 339
this section, for such financing without advertising for such 340
bids. Solicitation for the bids for financing may occur before or 341
after acceptance of bids for the purchase of such equipment or, 342
where no such bids for purchase are required, at any time before 343
the purchase thereof. No such lease-purchase agreement shall be 344
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for an annual rate of interest which is greater than the overall 345
maximum interest rate to maturity on general obligation 346
indebtedness permitted under Section 75-17-101, and the term of 347
such lease-purchase agreement shall not exceed the useful life of 348
equipment covered thereby as determined according to the upper 349
limit of the asset depreciation range (ADR) guidelines for the 350
Class Life Asset Depreciation Range System established by the 351
Internal Revenue Service pursuant to the United States Internal 352
Revenue Code and regulations thereunder as in effect on December 353
31, 1980, or comparable depreciation guidelines with respect to 354
any equipment not covered by ADR guidelines. Any lease-purchase 355
agreement entered into pursuant to this paragraph (e) may contain 356
any of the terms and conditions which a master lease-purchase 357
agreement may contain under the provisions of Section 31-7-10(5), 358
and shall contain an annual allocation dependency clause 359
substantially similar to that set forth in Section 31-7-10(8). 360
Each agency or governing authority entering into a lease-purchase 361
transaction pursuant to this paragraph (e) shall maintain with 362
respect to each such lease-purchase transaction the same 363
information as required to be maintained by the Department of 364
Finance and Administration pursuant to Section 31-7-10(13). 365
However, nothing contained in this section shall be construed to 366
permit agencies to acquire items of equipment with a total 367
acquisition cost in the aggregate of less than Ten Thousand 368
Dollars ($10,000.00) by a single lease-purchase transaction. All 369
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equipment, and the purchase thereof by any lessor, acquired by 370
lease-purchase under this paragraph and all lease-purchase 371
payments with respect thereto shall be exempt from all Mississippi 372
sales, use and ad valorem taxes. Interest paid on any 373
lease-purchase agreement under this section shall be exempt from 374
State of Mississippi income taxation. 375
(f) Alternate bid authorization. When necessary to 376
ensure ready availability of commodities for public works and the 377
timely completion of public projects, no more than two (2) 378
alternate bids may be accepted by a governing authority for 379
commodities. No purchases may be made through use of such 380
alternate bids procedure unless the lowest and best bidder cannot 381
deliver the commodities contained in his bid. In that event, 382
purchases of such commodities may be made from one (1) of the 383
bidders whose bid was accepted as an alternate. 384
(g) Construction contract change authorization. In the 385
event a determination is made by an agency or governing authority 386
after a construction contract is let that changes or modifications 387
to the original contract are necessary or would better serve the 388
purpose of the agency or the governing authority, such agency or 389
governing authority may, in its discretion, order such changes 390
pertaining to the construction that are necessary under the 391
circumstances without the necessity of further public bids; 392
provided that such change shall be made in a commercially 393
reasonable manner and shall not be made to circumvent the public 394
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purchasing statutes. In addition to any other authorized person, 395
the architect or engineer hired by an agency or governing 396
authority with respect to any public construction contract shall 397
have the authority, when granted by an agency or governing 398
authority, to authorize changes or modifications to the original 399
contract without the necessity of prior approval of the agency or 400
governing authority when any such change or modification is less 401
than one percent (1%) of the total contract amount. The agency or 402
governing authority may limit the number, manner or frequency of 403
such emergency changes or modifications. 404
(h) Petroleum purchase alternative. In addition to 405
other methods of purchasing authorized in this chapter, when any 406
agency or governing authority shall have a need for gas, diesel 407
fuel, oils and/or other petroleum products in excess of the amount 408
set forth in paragraph (a) of this section, such agency or 409
governing authority may purchase the commodity after having 410
solicited and obtained at least two (2) competitive written bids, 411
as defined in paragraph (b) of this section. If two (2) 412
competitive written bids are not obtained, the entity shall comply 413
with the procedures set forth in paragraph (c) of this section. 414
In the event any agency or governing authority shall have 415
advertised for bids for the purchase of gas, diesel fuel, oils and 416
other petroleum products and coal and no acceptable bids can be 417
obtained, such agency or governing authority is authorized and 418
directed to enter into any negotiations necessary to secure the 419
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lowest and best contract available for the purchase of such 420
commodities. 421
(i) Road construction petroleum products price 422
adjustment clause authorization. Any agency or governing 423
authority authorized to enter into contracts for the construction, 424
maintenance, surfacing or repair of highways, roads or streets, 425
may include in its bid proposal and contract documents a price 426
adjustment clause with relation to the cost to the contractor, 427
including taxes, based upon an industry-wide cost index, of 428
petroleum products including asphalt used in the performance or 429
execution of the contract or in the production or manufacture of 430
materials for use in such performance. Such industry-wide index 431
shall be established and published monthly by the Mississippi 432
Department of Transportation with a copy thereof to be mailed, 433
upon request, to the clerks of the governing authority of each 434
municipality and the clerks of each board of supervisors 435
throughout the state. The price adjustment clause shall be based 436
on the cost of such petroleum products only and shall not include 437
any additional profit or overhead as part of the adjustment. The 438
bid proposals or document contract shall contain the basis and 439
methods of adjusting unit prices for the change in the cost of 440
such petroleum products. 441
(j) State agency emergency purchase procedure. If the 442
governing board or the executive head, or his designees, of any 443
agency of the state shall determine that an emergency exists in 444
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regard to the purchase of any commodities or repair contracts, so 445
that the delay incident to giving opportunity for competitive 446
bidding would be detrimental to the interests of the state, then 447
the head of such agency, or his designees, shall file with the 448
Department of Finance and Administration (i) a statement 449
explaining the conditions and circumstances of the emergency, 450
which shall include a detailed description of the events leading 451
up to the situation and the negative impact to the entity if the 452
purchase is made following the statutory requirements set forth in 453
paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of this section, and (ii) a certified 454
copy of the appropriate minutes of the board of such agency 455
requesting the emergency purchase, if applicable. Upon receipt of 456
the statement and applicable board certification, the State Fiscal 457
Officer, or his designees, may, in writing, authorize the purchase 458
or repair without having to comply with competitive bidding 459
requirements. 460
If the governing board or the executive head, or his 461
designees, of any agency determines that an emergency exists in 462
regard to the purchase of any commodities or repair contracts, so 463
that the delay incident to giving opportunity for competitive 464
bidding would threaten the health or safety of any person, or the 465
preservation or protection of property, then the provisions in 466
this section for competitive bidding shall not apply, and any 467
officer or agent of the agency having general or specific 468
authority for making the purchase or repair contract shall approve 469
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the bill presented for payment, and he shall certify in writing 470
from whom the purchase was made, or with whom the repair contract 471
was made. 472
Total purchases made under this paragraph (j) shall only be 473
for the purpose of meeting needs created by the emergency 474
situation. Following the emergency purchase, documentation of the 475
purchase, including a description of the commodity purchased, the 476
purchase price thereof and the nature of the emergency shall be 477
filed with the Department of Finance and Administration. Any 478
contract awarded pursuant to this paragraph (j) shall not exceed a 479
term of one (1) year. 480
Purchases under the grant program established under Section 481
37-68-7 in response to COVID-19 and the directive that school 482
districts create a distance learning plan and fulfill technology 483
needs expeditiously shall be deemed an emergency purchase for 484
purposes of this paragraph (j). 485
(k) Governing authority emergency purchase procedure. 486
If the governing authority, or the governing authority acting 487
through its designee, shall determine that an emergency exists in 488
regard to the purchase of any commodities or repair contracts, so 489
that the delay incident to giving opportunity for competitive 490
bidding would be detrimental to the interest of the governing 491
authority, then the provisions herein for competitive bidding 492
shall not apply and any officer or agent of such governing 493
authority having general or special authority therefor in making 494
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such purchase or repair shall approve the bill presented therefor, 495
and he shall certify in writing thereon from whom such purchase 496
was made, or with whom such a repair contract was made. At the 497
board meeting next following the emergency purchase or repair 498
contract, documentation of the purchase or repair contract, 499
including a description of the commodity purchased, the price 500
thereof and the nature of the emergency shall be presented to the 501
board and shall be placed on the minutes of the board of such 502
governing authority. Purchases under the grant program 503
established under Section 37-68-7 in response to COVID-19 and the 504
directive that school districts create a distance learning plan 505
and fulfill technology needs expeditiously shall be deemed an 506
emergency purchase for purposes of this paragraph (k). 507
(l) Hospital purchase, lease-purchase and lease 508
authorization. 509
(i) The commissioners or board of trustees of any 510
public hospital may contract with such lowest and best bidder for 511
the purchase or lease-purchase of any commodity under a contract 512
of purchase or lease-purchase agreement whose obligatory payment 513
terms do not exceed five (5) years. 514
(ii) In addition to the authority granted in 515
subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (l), the commissioners or board 516
of trustees is authorized to enter into contracts for the lease of 517
equipment or services, or both, which it considers necessary for 518
the proper care of patients if, in its opinion, it is not 519
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financially feasible to purchase the necessary equipment or 520
services. Any such contract for the lease of equipment or 521
services executed by the commissioners or board shall not exceed a 522
maximum of five (5) years' duration and shall include a 523
cancellation clause based on unavailability of funds. If such 524
cancellation clause is exercised, there shall be no further 525
liability on the part of the lessee. Any such contract for the 526
lease of equipment or services executed on behalf of the 527
commissioners or board that complies with the provisions of this 528
subparagraph (ii) shall be excepted from the bid requirements set 529
forth in this section. 530
(m) Exceptions from bidding requirements. Excepted 531
from bid requirements are: 532
(i) Purchasing agreements approved by department. 533
Purchasing agreements, contracts and maximum price regulations 534
executed or approved by the Department of Finance and 535
Administration. 536
(ii) Outside equipment repairs. Repairs to 537
equipment, when such repairs are made by repair facilities in the 538
private sector; however, engines, transmissions, rear axles and/or 539
other such components shall not be included in this exemption when 540
replaced as a complete unit instead of being repaired and the need 541
for such total component replacement is known before disassembly 542
of the component; however, invoices identifying the equipment, 543
specific repairs made, parts identified by number and name, 544
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supplies used in such repairs, and the number of hours of labor 545
and costs therefor shall be required for the payment for such 546
repairs. 547
(iii) In-house equipment repairs. Purchases of 548
parts for repairs to equipment, when such repairs are made by 549
personnel of the agency or governing authority; however, entire 550
assemblies, such as engines or transmissions, shall not be 551
included in this exemption when the entire assembly is being 552
replaced instead of being repaired. 553
(iv) Raw gravel or dirt. Raw unprocessed deposits 554
of gravel or fill dirt which are to be removed and transported by 555
the purchaser. 556
(v) Governmental equipment auctions. Motor 557
vehicles or other equipment purchased from a federal agency or 558
authority, another governing authority or state agency of the 559
State of Mississippi, or any governing authority or state agency 560
of another state at a public auction held for the purpose of 561
disposing of such vehicles or other equipment. Any purchase by a 562
governing authority under the exemption authorized by this 563
subparagraph (v) shall require advance authorization spread upon 564
the minutes of the governing authority to include the listing of 565
the item or items authorized to be purchased and the maximum bid 566
authorized to be paid for each item or items. 567
(vi) Intergovernmental sales and transfers. 568
Purchases, sales, transfers or trades by governing authorities or 569
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state agencies when such purchases, sales, transfers or trades are 570
made by a private treaty agreement or through means of 571
negotiation, from any federal agency or authority, another 572
governing authority or state agency of the State of Mississippi, 573
or any state agency or governing authority of another state. 574
Nothing in this section shall permit such purchases through public 575
auction except as provided for in subparagraph (v) of this 576
paragraph (m). It is the intent of this section to allow 577
governmental entities to dispose of and/or purchase commodities 578
from other governmental entities at a price that is agreed to by 579
both parties. This shall allow for purchases and/or sales at 580
prices which may be determined to be below the market value if the 581
selling entity determines that the sale at below market value is 582
in the best interest of the taxpayers of the state. Governing 583
authorities shall place the terms of the agreement and any 584
justification on the minutes, and state agencies shall obtain 585
approval from the Department of Finance and Administration, prior 586
to releasing or taking possession of the commodities. 587
(vii) Perishable supplies or food. Perishable 588
supplies or food purchased for use in connection with hospitals, 589
the school lunch programs, homemaking programs and for the feeding 590
of county or municipal prisoners. 591
(viii) Single-source items. Noncompetitive items 592
available from one (1) source only. In connection with the 593
purchase of noncompetitive items only available from one (1) 594
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source, a certification of the conditions and circumstances 595
requiring the purchase shall be filed by the agency with the 596
Department of Finance and Administration and by the governing 597
authority with the board of the governing authority. Upon receipt 598
of that certification the Department of Finance and Administration 599
or the board of the governing authority, as the case may be, may, 600
in writing, authorize the purchase, which authority shall be noted 601
on the minutes of the body at the next regular meeting thereafter. 602
In those situations, a governing authority is not required to 603
obtain the approval of the Department of Finance and 604
Administration. Following the purchase, the executive head of the 605
state agency, or his designees, shall file with the Department of 606
Finance and Administration, documentation of the purchase, 607
including a description of the commodity purchased, the purchase 608
price thereof and the source from whom it was purchased. 609
(ix) Waste disposal facility construction 610
contracts. Construction of incinerators and other facilities for 611
disposal of solid wastes in which products either generated 612
therein, such as steam, or recovered therefrom, such as materials 613
for recycling, are to be sold or otherwise disposed of; however, 614
in constructing such facilities, a governing authority or agency 615
shall publicly issue requests for proposals, advertised for in the 616
same manner as provided herein for seeking bids for public 617
construction projects, concerning the design, construction, 618
ownership, operation and/or maintenance of such facilities, 619
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wherein such requests for proposals when issued shall contain 620
terms and conditions relating to price, financial responsibility, 621
technology, environmental compatibility, legal responsibilities 622
and such other matters as are determined by the governing 623
authority or agency to be appropriate for inclusion; and after 624
responses to the request for proposals have been duly received, 625
the governing authority or agency may select the most qualified 626
proposal or proposals on the basis of price, technology and other 627
relevant factors and from such proposals, but not limited to the 628
terms thereof, negotiate and enter contracts with one or more of 629
the persons or firms submitting proposals. 630
(x) Hospital group purchase contracts. Supplies, 631
commodities and equipment purchased by hospitals through group 632
purchase programs pursuant to Section 31-7-38. 633
(xi) Information technology products. Purchases 634
of information technology products made by governing authorities 635
under the provisions of purchase schedules, or contracts executed 636
or approved by the Mississippi Department of Information 637
Technology Services and designated for use by governing 638
authorities. 639
(xii) Energy efficiency services and equipment. 640
Energy efficiency services and equipment acquired by school 641
districts, community and junior colleges, institutions of higher 642
learning and state agencies or other applicable governmental 643
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entities on a shared-savings, lease or lease-purchase basis 644
pursuant to Section 31-7-14. 645
(xiii) Municipal electrical utility system fuel. 646
Purchases of coal and/or natural gas by municipally owned electric 647
power generating systems that have the capacity to use both coal 648
and natural gas for the generation of electric power. 649
(xiv) Library books and other reference materials. 650
Purchases by libraries or for libraries of books and periodicals; 651
processed film, videocassette tapes, filmstrips and slides; 652
recorded audiotapes, cassettes and diskettes; and any such items 653
as would be used for teaching, research or other information 654
distribution; however, equipment such as projectors, recorders, 655
audio or video equipment, and monitor televisions are not exempt 656
under this subparagraph. 657
(xv) Unmarked vehicles. Purchases of unmarked 658
vehicles when such purchases are made in accordance with 659
purchasing regulations adopted by the Department of Finance and 660
Administration pursuant to Section 31-7-9(2). 661
(xvi) Election ballots. Purchases of ballots 662
printed pursuant to Section 23-15-351. 663
(xvii) Multichannel interactive video systems. 664
From and after July 1, 1990, contracts by Mississippi Authority 665
for Educational Television with any private educational 666
institution or private nonprofit organization whose purposes are 667
educational in regard to the construction, purchase, lease or 668
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lease-purchase of facilities and equipment and the employment of 669
personnel for providing multichannel interactive video systems 670
(ITSF) in the school districts of this state. 671
(xviii) Purchases of prison industry products by 672
the Department of Corrections, regional correctional facilities or 673
privately owned prisons. Purchases made by the Mississippi 674
Department of Corrections, regional correctional facilities or 675
privately owned prisons involving any item that is manufactured, 676
processed, grown or produced from the state's prison industries. 677
(xix) Undercover operations equipment. Purchases 678
of surveillance equipment or any other high-tech equipment to be 679
used by law enforcement agents in undercover operations, provided 680
that any such purchase shall be in compliance with regulations 681
established by the Department of Finance and Administration. 682
(xx) Junior college books for rent. Purchases by 683
community or junior colleges of textbooks which are obtained for 684
the purpose of renting such books to students as part of a book 685
service system. 686
(xxi) Certain school district purchases. 687
Purchases of commodities made by school districts from vendors 688
with which any levying authority of the school district, as 689
defined in Section 37-57-1, has contracted through competitive 690
bidding procedures for purchases of the same commodities. 691
(xxii) Garbage, solid waste and sewage contracts. 692
Contracts for garbage collection or disposal, contracts for solid 693
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waste collection or disposal and contracts for sewage collection 694
or disposal. 695
(xxiii) Municipal water tank maintenance 696
contracts. Professional maintenance program contracts for the 697
repair or maintenance of municipal water tanks, which provide 698
professional services needed to maintain municipal water storage 699
tanks for a fixed annual fee for a duration of two (2) or more 700
years. 701
(xxiv) Purchases of Mississippi Industries for the 702
Blind products or services. Purchases made by state agencies or 703
governing authorities involving any item that is manufactured, 704
processed or produced by, or any services provided by, the 705
Mississippi Industries for the Blind. 706
(xxv) Purchases of state-adopted textbooks. 707
Purchases of state-adopted textbooks by public school districts. 708
(xxvi) Certain purchases under the Mississippi 709
Major Economic Impact Act. Contracts entered into pursuant to the 710
provisions of Section 57-75-9(2), (3) and (4). 711
(xxvii) Used heavy or specialized machinery or 712
equipment for installation of soil and water conservation 713
practices purchased at auction. Used heavy or specialized 714
machinery or equipment used for the installation and 715
implementation of soil and water conservation practices or 716
measures purchased subject to the restrictions provided in 717
Sections 69-27-331 through 69-27-341. Any purchase by the State 718
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Soil and Water Conservation Commission under the exemption 719
authorized by this subparagraph shall require advance 720
authorization spread upon the minutes of the commission to include 721
the listing of the item or items authorized to be purchased and 722
the maximum bid authorized to be paid for each item or items. 723
(xxviii) Hospital lease of equipment or services. 724
Leases by hospitals of equipment or services if the leases are in 725
compliance with paragraph (l)(ii). 726
(xxix) Purchases made pursuant to qualified 727
cooperative purchasing agreements. Purchases made by certified 728
purchasing offices of state agencies or governing authorities 729
under cooperative purchasing agreements previously approved by the 730
Office of Purchasing and Travel and established by or for any 731
municipality, county, parish or state government or the federal 732
government, provided that the notification to potential 733
contractors includes a clause that sets forth the availability of 734
the cooperative purchasing agreement to other governmental 735
entities. Such purchases shall only be made if the use of the 736
cooperative purchasing agreements is determined to be in the best 737
interest of the governmental entity. 738
(xxx) School yearbooks. Purchases of school 739
yearbooks by state agencies or governing authorities; however, 740
state agencies and governing authorities shall use for these 741
purchases the RFP process as set forth in the Mississippi 742
Procurement Manual adopted by the Office of Purchasing and Travel. 743
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(xxxi) Design-build method of contracting and 744
certain other contracts. Contracts entered into under the 745
provisions of Section 31-7-13.1, 37-101-44 or 65-1-85. 746
(xxxii) Toll roads and bridge construction 747
projects. Contracts entered into under the provisions of Section 748
65-43-1 or 65-43-3. 749
(xxxiii) Certain purchases under Section 57-1-221. 750
Contracts entered into pursuant to the provisions of Section 751
57-1-221. 752
(xxxiv) Certain transfers made pursuant to the 753
provisions of Section 57-105-1(7). Transfers of public property 754
or facilities under Section 57-105-1(7) and construction related 755
to such public property or facilities. 756
(xxxv) Certain purchases or transfers entered into 757
with local electrical power associations. Contracts or agreements 758
entered into under the provisions of Section 55-3-33. 759
(xxxvi) Certain purchases by an academic medical 760
center or health sciences school. Purchases by an academic 761
medical center or health sciences school, as defined in Section 762
37-115-50, of commodities that are used for clinical purposes and 763
1. intended for use in the diagnosis of disease or other 764
conditions or in the cure, mitigation, treatment or prevention of 765
disease, and 2. medical devices, biological, drugs and 766
radiation-emitting devices as defined by the United States Food 767
and Drug Administration. 768
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(xxxvii) Certain purchases made under the Alyce G. 769
Clarke Mississippi Lottery Law. Contracts made by the Mississippi 770
Lottery Corporation pursuant to the Alyce G. Clarke Mississippi 771
Lottery Law. 772
(xxxviii) Certain purchases made by the Department 773
of Health and the Department of Revenue. Purchases made by the 774
Department of Health and the Department of Revenue solely for the 775
purpose of fulfilling their respective responsibilities under the 776
Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act. This subparagraph shall stand 777
repealed on June 30, 2026. 778
(xxxix) Purchases made by state agencies related 779
to museum exhibits. Purchases made by an agency related to the 780
fabrication, construction, installation or refurbishing of museum 781
exhibits. An agency making a purchase under this exemption in 782
excess of the bid threshold set forth in paragraph (c) of this 783
section shall publicly advertise a Request for Qualifications or 784
Request for Proposals in which price as an evaluation factor is at 785
least twenty percent (20%) out of the one hundred percent (100%) 786
total weight, but shall be otherwise exempt. Any contract arising 787
from a purchase using this exemption must be approved by the 788
Public Procurement Review Board prior to execution by the agency. 789
The agency shall submit a written report on December 1 of each 790
year to the Chairs of the Senate and House Appropriations 791
Committees, the Chairs of the Senate and House Accountability, 792
Efficiency and Transparency Committees and the Chair of the Public 793
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Procurement Review Board, identifying all purchases made by the 794
agency using this exemption in which the cost of the option 795
selected by the agency was more than twenty-five percent (25%) 796
higher than the lowest cost option available. 797
(n) Term contract authorization. All contracts for the 798
purchase of: 799
(i) All contracts for the purchase of commodities, 800
equipment and public construction (including, but not limited to, 801
repair and maintenance), may be let for periods of not more than 802
sixty (60) months in advance, subject to applicable statutory 803
provisions prohibiting the letting of contracts during specified 804
periods near the end of terms of office. Term contracts for a 805
period exceeding twenty-four (24) months shall also be subject to 806
ratification or cancellation by governing authority boards taking 807
office subsequent to the governing authority board entering the 808
contract. 809
(ii) Bid proposals and contracts may include price 810
adjustment clauses with relation to the cost to the contractor 811
based upon a nationally published industry-wide or nationally 812
published and recognized cost index. The cost index used in a 813
price adjustment clause shall be determined by the Department of 814
Finance and Administration for the state agencies and by the 815
governing board for governing authorities. The bid proposal and 816
contract documents utilizing a price adjustment clause shall 817
contain the basis and method of adjusting unit prices for the 818
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change in the cost of such commodities, equipment and public 819
construction. 820
(o) Purchase law violation prohibition and vendor 821
penalty. No contract or purchase as herein authorized shall be 822
made for the purpose of circumventing the provisions of this 823
section requiring competitive bids, nor shall it be lawful for any 824
person or concern to submit individual invoices for amounts within 825
those authorized for a contract or purchase where the actual value 826
of the contract or commodity purchased exceeds the authorized 827
amount and the invoices therefor are split so as to appear to be 828
authorized as purchases for which competitive bids are not 829
required. Submission of such invoices shall constitute a 830
misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than Five Hundred 831
Dollars ($500.00) nor more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), 832
or by imprisonment for thirty (30) days in the county jail, or 833
both such fine and imprisonment. In addition, the claim or claims 834
submitted shall be forfeited. 835
(p) Electrical utility petroleum-based equipment 836
purchase procedure. When in response to a proper advertisement 837
therefor, no bid firm as to price is submitted to an electric 838
utility for power transformers, distribution transformers, power 839
breakers, reclosers or other articles containing a petroleum 840
product, the electric utility may accept the lowest and best bid 841
therefor although the price is not firm. 842
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(q) Fuel management system bidding procedure. Any 843
governing authority or agency of the state shall, before 844
contracting for the services and products of a fuel management or 845
fuel access system, enter into negotiations with not fewer than 846
two (2) sellers of fuel management or fuel access systems for 847
competitive written bids to provide the services and products for 848
the systems. In the event that the governing authority or agency 849
cannot locate two (2) sellers of such systems or cannot obtain 850
bids from two (2) sellers of such systems, it shall show proof 851
that it made a diligent, good-faith effort to locate and negotiate 852
with two (2) sellers of such systems. Such proof shall include, 853
but not be limited to, publications of a request for proposals and 854
letters soliciting negotiations and bids. For purposes of this 855
paragraph (q), a fuel management or fuel access system is an 856
automated system of acquiring fuel for vehicles as well as 857
management reports detailing fuel use by vehicles and drivers, and 858
the term "competitive written bid" shall have the meaning as 859
defined in paragraph (b) of this section. Governing authorities 860
and agencies shall be exempt from this process when contracting 861
for the services and products of fuel management or fuel access 862
systems under the terms of a state contract established by the 863
Office of Purchasing and Travel. 864
(r) Solid waste contract proposal procedure. Before 865
entering into any contract for garbage collection or disposal, 866
contract for solid waste collection or disposal or contract for 867
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sewage collection or disposal, which involves an expenditure of 868
more than Seventy-five Thousand Dollars ($75,000.00), a governing 869
authority or agency shall issue publicly a request for proposals 870
concerning the specifications for such services which shall be 871
advertised for in the same manner as provided in this section for 872
seeking bids for purchases which involve an expenditure of more 873
than the amount provided in paragraph (c) of this section. Any 874
request for proposals when issued shall contain terms and 875
conditions relating to price, financial responsibility, 876
technology, legal responsibilities and other relevant factors as 877
are determined by the governing authority or agency to be 878
appropriate for inclusion; all factors determined relevant by the 879
governing authority or agency or required by this paragraph (r) 880
shall be duly included in the advertisement to elicit proposals. 881
After responses to the request for proposals have been duly 882
received, the governing authority or agency shall select the most 883
qualified proposal or proposals on the basis of price, technology 884
and other relevant factors and from such proposals, but not 885
limited to the terms thereof, negotiate and enter into contracts 886
with one or more of the persons or firms submitting proposals. If 887
the governing authority or agency deems none of the proposals to 888
be qualified or otherwise acceptable, the request for proposals 889
process may be reinitiated. Notwithstanding any other provisions 890
of this paragraph, where a county with at least thirty-five 891
thousand (35,000) nor more than forty thousand (40,000) 892
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population, according to the 1990 federal decennial census, owns 893
or operates a solid waste landfill, the governing authorities of 894
any other county or municipality may contract with the governing 895
authorities of the county owning or operating the landfill, 896
pursuant to a resolution duly adopted and spread upon the minutes 897
of each governing authority involved, for garbage or solid waste 898
collection or disposal services through contract negotiations. 899
(s) Minority set-aside authorization. Notwithstanding 900
any provision of this section to the contrary, any agency or 901
governing authority, by order placed on its minutes, may, in its 902
discretion, set aside not more than twenty percent (20%) of its 903
anticipated annual expenditures for the purchase of commodities 904
from minority businesses; however, all such set-aside purchases 905
shall comply with all purchasing regulations promulgated by the 906
Department of Finance and Administration and shall be subject to 907
bid requirements under this section. Set-aside purchases for 908
which competitive bids are required shall be made from the lowest 909
and best minority business bidder. For the purposes of this 910
paragraph, the term "minority business" means a business which is 911
owned by a majority of persons who are United States citizens or 912
permanent resident aliens (as defined by the Immigration and 913
Naturalization Service) of the United States, and who are Asian, 914
Black, Hispanic or Native American, according to the following 915
definitions: 916
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(i) "Asian" means persons having origins in any of 917
the original people of the Far East, Southeast Asia, the Indian 918
subcontinent, or the Pacific Islands. 919
(ii) "Black" means persons having origins in any 920
black racial group of Africa. 921
(iii) "Hispanic" means persons of Spanish or 922
Portuguese culture with origins in Mexico, South or Central 923
America, or the Caribbean Islands, regardless of race. 924
(iv) "Native American" means persons having 925
origins in any of the original people of North America, including 926
American Indians, Eskimos and Aleuts. 927
(t) Construction punch list restriction. The 928
architect, engineer or other representative designated by the 929
agency or governing authority that is contracting for public 930
construction or renovation may prepare and submit to the 931
contractor only one (1) preliminary punch list of items that do 932
not meet the contract requirements at the time of substantial 933
completion and one (1) final list immediately before final 934
completion and final payment. 935
(u) Procurement of construction services by state 936
institutions of higher learning. Contracts for privately financed 937
construction of auxiliary facilities on the campus of a state 938
institution of higher learning may be awarded by the Board of 939
Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning to the lowest 940
and best bidder, where sealed bids are solicited, or to the 941
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offeror whose proposal is determined to represent the best value 942
to the citizens of the State of Mississippi, where requests for 943
proposals are solicited. 944
(v) Insurability of bidders for public construction or 945
other public contracts. In any solicitation for bids to perform 946
public construction or other public contracts to which this 947
section applies, including, but not limited to, contracts for 948
repair and maintenance, for which the contract will require 949
insurance coverage in an amount of not less than One Million 950
Dollars ($1,000,000.00), bidders shall be permitted to either 951
submit proof of current insurance coverage in the specified amount 952
or demonstrate ability to obtain the required coverage amount of 953
insurance if the contract is awarded to the bidder. Proof of 954
insurance coverage shall be submitted within five (5) business 955
days from bid acceptance. 956
(w) Purchase authorization clarification. Nothing in 957
this section shall be construed as authorizing any purchase not 958
authorized by law. 959
(x) Mississippi Regional Pre-Need Disaster Clean Up 960
Act. (i) The Department of Finance and Administration shall 961
develop and implement a process that creates a preferred vendor 962
list for both disaster debris removal and monitoring. 963
(ii) Any board of supervisors of any county or any 964
governing authority of any municipality may opt in to the benefits 965
and services provided under the appropriate and relevant contract 966
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ST: Reverse auctions; require state agencies to
publish detailed specifications on.
established in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph at the time of a 967
disaster event in that county or municipality. At the time of opt 968
in, the county or municipality shall assume responsibility for 969
payment in full to the contractor for the disaster-related solid 970
waste collection, disposal or monitoring services provided. 971
Nothing in this subparagraph (ii) shall be construed as requiring 972
a county or municipality to opt in to any such contract 973
established in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph. 974
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from 975
and after July 1, 2026. 976