09 NCAC 06B .0314          ADVERTISEMENT and notice

(a)  Requirement to Advertise, Publish and Notify:

(1)           Solicitations:  To maintain transparency and encourage competition for award of business, the purchasing agency shall advertise and publish solicitations for purchases exceeding the general delegation as established by the State CIO for no less than 10 calendar days, unless the State CIO waives the requirement for advertising;

(2)           Addenda or Changes: Any changes or addenda to a solicitation must be advertised and published with enough time to allow for reasonable consideration and possible incorporation of any changes into potentially competing vendors' response offers.  Any changes or addenda to a solicitation must be advertised and published for no less than two business days from the scheduled offer due and opening date, unless the State CIO waives the requirement to advertise and publish changes or addenda to a solicitation;

(3)           Notices of Award:  To maintain transparency and promote future competitiveness, the notice of award shall be advertised for no less than 30 calendar days, unless the State CIO waives the requirement to advertise, publish, and issue a notice of award;

(4)           Waiver of requirement to advertise and notify must fall under one of the following conditions in order for the State CIO to waive the requirement:

(A)          Acquisition of commodities or services that are subject to rapid price fluctuations or immediate acceptance;

(B)          Emergency situations or pressing needs;

(C)          Acquisition of goods or services needed for any ongoing job, task, or project;

(D)          Acquisition of goods or services where performance or price competition is not available;

(E)           Any determination that no useful purpose would be served by requiring such; or

(F)           Exceptions identified under Rule .1303 of this Subchapter.

(b)  Required method for Advertising, Publishing, and Notifying:  To maintain transparency and promote competitiveness:

(1)           Solicitations:

(A)          The purchasing agency shall electronically advertise and continually publish solicitations via posting to the State's designated IT procurement website, unless a waiver of advertisement method is granted by the State CIO pursuant to waiver of competition under Rule .0901 of this Subchapter, for cooperative agreements under Rule .1006 of this Subchapter, or direct negotiation with vendors as permitted by Rule .0316 of this Subchapter;

(B)          This Rule does not preclude a purchasing agency from soliciting offers by additional direct mailings or additional advertisement;

(C)          Required advertisement and publication data shall include all relevant information pertaining to contacts and due dates, and the complete solicitation document and any attachments (i.e., specifications; requirements; terms and conditions; price model; etc.);

(D)          If a purchasing agency head (or his/her designee) determines that it is not feasible to electronically transmit (due to file size, etc.) a particular solicitation document or attachment(s) through the required method (e.g., a procurement library, architecture reference documents, price model forms, etc.), then the purchasing agency must still electronically transmit a summary notice or advertisement through the designated IT procurement website.  In such instance, the advertisement shall include the required information with the addition of a brief explanation for why the entire solicitation is not included, and shall instruct anyone inquiring about the solicitation to contact the purchasing agency for a copy of the actual solicitation document and any respective attachments.

(2)           The required advertisement information shall include:

(A)          Purchasing agency name and website reference, and designated IT procurement website reference;

(B)          Assigned purchasing agency contact's name, telephone number, and electronic mail address;

(C)          Location address for delivery/receipt of offers;

(D)          Solicitation identification number or reference;

(E)           Title (i.e., scope or short description of the good or service solicited);

(F)           Due date and time for solicitation clarifications or questions;

(G)          Date, time, and location for opening of offers received;

(H)          In addition to the specifications, offer terms and conditions, award terms and conditions, etc., the solicitation document must furnish the due date and time; method of request, e.g., regular mail, or electronically via e-mail or facsimile, etc.; and an address for receipt of requests for solicitation clarifications or questions; and

(I)            Conference or site visit date, time and location; assigned meeting contact person and that contact person's telephone number and electronic mail address; and other relevant information relating to attendance.  If no conference or site visit is scheduled, then this shall be stated in the advertisement and the solicitation document.

(3)           Addenda or Changes:  The same advertisement method that is approved and followed for publishing a solicitation document must also be followed for publishing any respective addenda or changes to the solicitation and resulting notice of award, unless an exception is permitted Subparagraph (5) of this Paragraph.

(4)           Notices of Award:

(A)          To the extent practicable, the purchasing agency shall simultaneously issue an individual notice of award to all offerors responding to the respective solicitation and shall publish the notice of award via the approved method of advertisement for that solicitation and addendum Paragraph (a) of this Rule;

(B)          Notice of Award shall summarize the resulting contract award information including identification of the advertised solicitation; the awardee name and location; scope, start and end dates; authorized value through original end date; and renewal options.

(5)           Exceptions to Required Method:

(A)          When the purchasing agency (or its designee) deems there is a valid reason not to publish via the State's designated IT procurement website, the purchasing agency may request from DIT a waiver of the required method for advertising, publishing, and notifying;

(B)          Valid reasons to request a waiver to the required method include computer failure and networking difficulties;

(C)          The purchasing agency's request for waiver of required method shall include the rationale for requesting, a description of a proposed alternate method, length of time proposed for advertising, and explanation if the solicitation document and any attachments or addenda will not be included or published with the advertisement;

(D)          The purchasing agency's proposed alternate method to the State's designated IT procurement website must be via other medium widely distributed or commonly available to the public, such as publishing in a newspaper, etc.;

(E)           The rationale for requesting waiver of required advertising method, requested alternate method, and respective DIT approval, shall be documented and become part of the procurement file, open for public inspection after award.

History Note:        Authority G.S. 143B-1322; 143B-1350;

Temporary Adoption Eff. January 1, 2000;

Eff. August 1, 2000;

Amended Eff. September 1, 2013;

Readopted Eff. March 1, 2016.