(14) Protest. The Division of Purchasing shall provide a notice of intent to award of all contracts let by competitive bid by electronic posting to the Division of Purchasing website. Any bidder adversely affected by an intent to award a contract let by competitive bid shall file with the Director of Purchasing a notice of protest within five (5) calendar days after the notice of intent to award is electronically posted. The notice of protest may be filed by mail, by hand delivery, by email or by facsimile. The notice of protest must be filed with the Director of Purchasing by 5:00 PM, Central Time, on the fifth calendar day after the notice of intent to award is electronically posted. A formal written protest shall be filed within seven (7) days, excluding Saturday, Sunday, and State holidays, after the notice of protest is filed. The formal written protest may be filed by email in PDF format or by mail or hand delivery. The formal written protest must be filed with the Director of Purchasing by 5:00 PM, Central Time, on the seventh day after filing the notice of protest. The bidder or its legal representative must sign the formal written protest or it will not be accepted. Failure to file either the notice of protest or the formal written protest within the time limits prescribed herein shall constitute a waiver of any protest of the award of contract.
The formal written protest shall state with particularity the facts and law upon which the protest is based. Within 30 calendar days of receipt of the timely filed, formal written protest, the Director of Purchasing shall issue a written decision with respect to the protest. Should the decision by the Director of Purchasing be adverse to the bidder, the bidder may seek relief in accordance with section 41-16-31 of the Code of Alabama.

(8) Responsive bidder or offeror. A person who has submitted a bid or offer that conforms in all material respects to the invitation for bid or request for proposal.

a) The contract shall be awarded to the lowest responsible and responsive bidder, unless the awarding authority finds that all the bids are unreasonable or that it is not to the interest of the awarding authority to accept any of the bids. A responsible bidder is one who, among other qualities determined necessary for performance, is competent, experienced, and financially able to perform the contract…

The Division of Purchasing, Department of Finance is established by statute (Code of Alabama 1975, §41-4-110-115, as amended) and is under the direction of the State Purchasing Agent (State Purchasing Director). The Division purchases all personal property and nonprofessional services, except alcoholic beverages, for all State departments, boards, bureaus, commissions, agencies, offices and institutions. The Division is also responsible for making and supervising the execution of all contracts and leases for the use
and acquisition of any personal property and nonprofessional services. Education and eleemosynary institutions, State Port Authority, Department of Mental Health and the purchase of alcoholic beverages are exempt from the authority of the Division of Purchasing (Code of Alabama 1975, §41-16-21(b)) as amended.

A minimum of 21 days shall be provided unless a shorter time is deemed necessary for a particular procurement as determined in writing by the Chief Procurement Officer or the head of the Purchasing Agency.

(a)(1) All proposed purchases in excess of fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) shall be advertised by posting notice thereof on a bulletin board maintained outside the purchasing office and in any other manner and for any length of time as may be determined. Sealed bids or bids to be submitted by a reverse auction procedure shall also be solicited by sending notice by mail or other electronic means to all persons, firms, or corporations who have filed a request in writing that they be listed for solicitation on bids for the particular items that are set forth in the request. If any person, firm, or corporation whose name is listed fails to respond to any solicitation for bids after the receipt of three solicitations, the listing may be cancelled.