(1) When, pursuant to rules, the chief procurement officer or a procurement official determines in writing that the use of an invitation for best value bids is advantageous to the state, a contract may be solicited by invitation for best value bids.
(2) An invitation for best value bids shall be made in the same manner as provided in section 24-103-202(2), (3), and (4).
(3)(a) The chief procurement officer or procurement official may allow a bidder to submit prices for enhancements, options, or alternatives to the base bid for a commodity or service that will result in a product or service to the state having the best value at the lowest cost. The invitation for best value bids must clearly state the purchase description of the commodity or service being solicited and the types of enhancements, options, or alternatives that may be bid; except that the functional specifications integral to the commodity or service may not be reduced.
(b) Prices for enhancements, options, or alternatives to the bid may be evaluated by the chief procurement officer or procurement official to determine whether the total of the bid price and the prices for enhancements, options, or alternatives provide a contract with the best value at the lowest cost to the state. This evaluation shall be made utilizing the rules of the executive director of the department of personnel promulgated pursuant to subsection (3)(d) of this section.
(c) A contract may be awarded to a bidder where the total amount of a bid price and the prices for enhancements, options, or alternatives of the bidder exceed the total amount of the bid price and the prices for enhancements, options, or alternatives of another bidder if it is determined pursuant to subsection (3)(b) of this section that the higher total amount provides a contract with the best value at the lowest cost to the state.
(d) The executive director of the department of personnel shall promulgate rules to be utilized by the chief procurement officer or procurement official in making the evaluation pursuant to subsection (3)(b) of this section. The rules shall provide:
(I) Criteria for objectively measuring prices for enhancements, options, or alternatives to a bid, including relevant formulas or guidelines;
(II) Criteria for objectively determining whether the prices for enhancements, options, or alternatives provide the best value at the lowest cost to the state.
(4) The contract shall be awarded with reasonable promptness by written notice to the bidder whose bid provides for a contract with the best value at the lowest cost to the state.

(a) An aggrieved party may file a written protest at any phase of solicitation or award concerning a material issue(s), including but not limited to specifications, award, or disclosure of information marked confidential in the bid or proposal.
(b) The written protest shall include, at a minimum, the following:
(i) name and address of the aggrieved party;
(ii) appropriate identification of the procurement by solicitation or award number;
(iii) a statement of the material issue(s) giving rise to the protest; and
(iv) any available exhibits, evidence, or documents substantiating the protest.
(c) A written protest shall be submitted to the procurement official by mail, hand delivery, electronic submission or other means as approved by the state.
(d) A written protest must be received by the procurement official by the deadline set forth in section 24-109-102, C.R.S., and rule R-24-109-108.
(e) If an action concerning the protest has been commenced in district court, the procurement official shall not act on the protest but shall refer it to the attorney general.

(39) “Responsive” means a bid or proposal that meets the specifications, acceptability requirements, and terms and conditions of the solicitation and that uses the form prescribed by the purchasing agency.

…(38) “Responsible” means the capability in all respects to perform fully the contract requirements and the integrity and reliability that will assure good faith performance….

(1) The procurement official or his or her designee is authorized to settle and resolve any questions regarding:
(a) Any protest concerning the solicitation or award of a contract;
(b) Debarment or suspension from consideration for award of contracts; and
(c) Any controversy arising between the state and a contractor by virtue of a contract between them, including, without limitation, controversies based upon breach of contract, mistake, misrepresentation, or any other cause for contract modification or rescission.
(2) Any decision of the procurement official or his or her designee with respect to a material issue raised in a protest is subject to appeal pursuant to part 2 of this article 109.
(3) Except for appeals referred to the office of administrative courts pursuant to section 24-109-201, the provisions of section 24-4-105 shall not apply to the administrative procedures established pursuant to this article 109.

(1) The procurement official or his or her designee shall issue a written decision within the periods specified in this article 109 regarding any protest, debarment or suspension, or contract controversy if it is not settled by mutual agreement. The decision shall state the reasons for the action taken and give notice to the aggrieved party of his or her right to administrative review of any material issue and judicial review as provided for in this article 109.
(2) A decision shall be effective unless reversed on appeal. A copy of the decision rendered under subsection (1) of this section shall be mailed or otherwise furnished immediately to the aggrieved party. The decision shall be final and conclusive unless the aggrieved party appeals the decision to the executive director or commences an action in court pursuant to this article 109. Except for appeals referred to the office of administrative courts pursuant to section 24-109-201, an appeal from a decision under this section shall not be subject to the provisions of section 24-4-105.
(3) If the procurement official or his or her designee does not issue a written decision regarding a contract controversy within twenty business days after written request for a final decision, or within such longer period as may be agreed upon by the procurement official or his or her designee and the contractor, then the contractor may proceed as if a decision against him or her had been rendered.

For the RFP process in general, Agencies/IHEs’ Purchasing offices will perform the following tasks and the following procedures apply:
vi) Establish an evaluation of SMEs in the area(s) detailed in the SOW and Specifications.
vii) Meet and review the evaluation process, including conflict of interest disqualifications, with committee members.

(1) Capital construction and controlled maintenance, as defined and delegated to a procurement official by part 13 of article 30 of this title 24, shall be procured by such procurement official as the appropriate purchasing agency.
(2) If the executive director or his or her designee is of the opinion and so certifies in writing that the needs of any governmental body are of such specialized nature and sufficient volume to warrant a purchasing agency for such governmental body, he or she shall authorize the creation of the same. All such purchasing agencies shall operate under the provisions of this code and the rules promulgated pursuant thereto and shall be subject to the supervision and control of the executive director. All such purchasing agencies shall operate under the provisions of section 17-24-111 requiring the purchase of goods and services from the division of correctional industries, and failure of any such purchasing agency to comply with such requirement shall be cause for the executive director to suspend for a period of up to one year at the discretion of the executive director the authority of a purchasing agency created pursuant to this subsection (2) to purchase goods and services. The authority of a purchasing agency to purchase goods and services may also be suspended at the discretion of the executive director. The financial and staff resources dedicated to the purchasing function in the affected agency shall be under the authority of the department of personnel during the period of suspension, and purchases made for the affected agency shall be in accordance with the requirements of section 17-24-111(1).
(3) The procurement officials responsible for procuring the supplies, services, or construction delegated to them by subsections (1) and (2) of this section shall conduct procurements in accordance with the provisions of this code and its implementing rules. The executive director may establish a standard supplier’s form and a standard set of procedures that each purchasing agency shall use in accepting the form and evaluating the supplier.

A contract may be awarded by a multi-step invitation for bids. Unless otherwise specified, the general rules under rule R-24-103-201 shall apply to multi-step invitations for bids.
(a) A multi-step invitation for bids is a two-phase process consisting of a technical first phase of one or more steps in which bidders submit un-priced technical bids to be evaluated by the state. Those bidders whose technical bids are determined to be acceptable during the first phase will be eligible to participate in the pricing second phase. The price bids of eligible bidders will be opened and considered during the second phase.
(b) The solicitation for a multi-step invitation for bids may require all bidders to submit both the technical bid and the price bid prior to the solicitation closing date. In the alternative, the solicitation may require all bidders to submit the technical bid prior to the solicitation pricing date. Only those bidders whose technical bids are determined to be acceptable will be asked to submit price bids.
(c) The multi-step invitation for bids method may be used when it is not practical to prepare a definitive description of the items being purchased, which would be sufficient to permit an award based on price.

a) An aggrieved party may file a written appeal of any decision. Appeals of decisions of the procurement official shall be submitted in writing to the executive director within ten (10) business days of the date a decision is mailed or within twenty (20) business days of a decision regarding a suspension, debarment or contract controversy, in accordance with section 24-109-203, C.R.S.
Appeals received after the prescribed time periods shall not be considered
(b) The written appeal shall include, at a minimum, the following:
(i) name and address of the aggrieved party;
(ii) appropriate identification of the procurement by solicitation or award number;
(iii) a statement of the material issue(s) or controversy giving rise to the appeal;
(iv) copies of all documents and evidence previously submitted to the procurement official or his or her designee;
(v) the decision rendered by the procurement official or his or her designee or, in the absence of a timely decision under subsection 3 of section 24-109-102, C.R.S., a statement of this fact; and
(vi) any additional relevant information.
(c) The written appeal shall be limited to the material issues raised in the original protest.
(d) A written appeal shall be submitted to the executive director or his or her designee in a manner such as mail, hand delivery, or electronic submission such as email. The means of delivery must be commonly used to reasonably allow for receipt by the executive director or his or designee.
(e) A written appeal must be received by the executive director or his or her designee by the deadline computed in accordance with rule R-24-109-108.

(c) Solicitation Time. Except as provided under emergency procedures, the minimum time for the bid opening date shall be not less than 14 calendar days after posting the solicitation on BIDS. When special requirements or conditions exist, the head of a purchasing agency may lengthen or shorten the bid time, but in no case shall the time cycle be shortened to reduce competition. Solicitation periods of less than 14 calendar days shall be documented by the head of the purchasing agency as to why a reduced bid period was required.
Proposal preparation time for formal RFPs shall be set to provide offerors a minimum of 30 calendar days to prepare and submit their proposals. However, when special requirements or conditions exist, the State Purchasing Director or head of a purchasing agency may shorten this time, but in no case shall the time be shortened in order to reduce competition. The State Purchasing Director or head of a purchasing agency shall document why the reduced time period was necessary.

§ 24-103-208. Other procurement methods
The executive director may establish, by rule, other competitive procurement methods that are deemed to be in the best interest of the state and that are consistent with the provisions of section 24-101-102, including, but not limited to, reverse auctions. For the 2004-05 fiscal year and every other fiscal year thereafter, the state auditor shall review the competitive procurement methods established pursuant to this section.
Procedure under 1 CO ADC 101-9:R-24-103-208-01
Contracts for goods and services may be awarded by competitive reverse auctions if the procurement official determines that adequate competition, as defined in rule R-24-103-403-01, can be achieved and that the process is likely to result in better pricing. Unless otherwise specified, the general rules under rule R-24-103-201 shall apply to competitive reverse auctions. Competitive reverse auction means a bidding process through which a pre-established group of vendors may post bids for a defined period of time and change their bids as desired during the bidding period.
(a) An electronic procurement system notice shall include all terms, conditions, and specifications and provide instruction for participating in the process. If the procurement official believes that an electronic procurement system is not likely to yield adequate competition, the purchasing agency may notify potential vendors through additional methods.
(b) All responsible vendors willing to accept the terms and conditions of the procurement and to meet the specifications of the bid shall be eligible to participate. The purchasing agency may conduct a preliminary evaluation to determine vendor responsibility and to ensure the vendor’s responsiveness to terms and specifications.
(c) During the bidding process, the participating vendors shall be identified only by a letter, number, or other symbol to protect their identities. Each bid price and the letter, number, or symbol designation of the vendor shall be made available to all bidding vendors immediately upon receipt by the purchasing agency.
(d) The contract shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder whose bid meets the requirements and specifications.