2024 New Mexico Statutes
Chapter 13 - Public Purchases and Property
Article 1 - Procurement
Section 13-1-126.1 - Sole source contracts; notice; protest.
A. At least thirty days before it awards a sole source contract, the state purchasing agent shall post notice of its intent to award the contract on its website. At least thirty days before it awards a sole source contract, a central purchasing office shall post notice of its intent to award the contract on its website, if it maintains one, and shall transmit the notice to the state purchasing agent for posting on the state purchasing agent's website. In each case, the notice shall identify, at a minimum:
(1) the parties to the proposed contract;
(2) the nature and quantity of the service, construction or item of tangible personal property being contracted for; and
(3) the contract amount.
B. Any qualified potential contractor that was not selected for a proposed sole source contract may protest the selection in writing, within fifteen calendar days after the notice of intent to award the contract was posted by the state purchasing agent or central purchasing office, by submitting the protest to the state purchasing agent or central purchasing office, as appropriate. The state purchasing agent or central purchasing office shall then reconsider its selection.
History: Laws 2013, ch. 40, § 6; 2019, ch. 153, § 4.
ANNOTATIONSThe 2019 amendment, effective July 1, 2019, required a central purchasing office to post on its website notice of its intent to award a sole source contract and to transmit the notice to the state purchasing agent for posting, and required the state purchasing agent or central purchasing office, following a written protest by a potential contractor, to reconsider an award for a sole source contract; in Subsection A, in the introductory paragraph, deleted " a central purchasing office or a designee of either", after "intent to award", deleted "a sole source" and added "the", deleted "web site. If a central purchasing office does not maintain a website, it shall post the notice" and added "website. At least thirty days before it awards a sole source contract, a central purchasing office shall post notice of its intent to award the contract on its website, if it maintains one, and shall transmit the notice to the state purchasing agent for posting"; in Subsection B, after "potential contractor", deleted "who" and added "that", after "awarded", added "selected for", after "a", added "proposed", after "may protest", deleted "to the state purchasing agent or a central purchasing office. The protest shall be submitted" and added "the selection", and after "central purchasing office", added "by submitting the protest to the state purchasing agent or central purchasing office, as appropriate. The state purchasing agent or central purchasing office shall then reconsider its selection".
Notice provisions also apply to amendments to sole source contracts. — The notice and availability of protest provisions of this section not only apply to sole source contracts, but also apply when a state agency amends a sole source contract, because the contract amendment might affect the applicability of the state purchasing agent's or central purchasing office's previously-issued determination that a sole source procurement is necessary, which provides the public and potential contractors the opportunity to scrutinize whether the state purchasing agent's or central purchasing office's sole source determination for the original contract remains applicable as to the amended contract, and notice for amended contracts prevents unfair gamesmanship in sole source procurement, maintaining a procurement system of quality and integrity. 2021 Op. Ethics Comm'n No. 2021-06.
