(a) Contracts exceeding the amount provided by § 37-2-22 shall be awarded by competitive sealed bidding unless it is determined in writing that this method is not practicable or that the best value for the state may be obtained by using an electronic reverse auction as set forth in § 37-2-18.1. Factors to be considered in determining whether competitive sealed bidding is practicable shall include whether

A. “Bid protest” means a protest, complaint or challenge by an aggrieved actual or prospective bidder or offeror (hereinafter “protestor”) in connection with the solicitation or selection for award of a contract for the purchase of goods, services, and or public works projects by a state agency and or the division of purchases. For the purpose of these regulations the term “aggrieved” shall mean that the protestor has an economic interest which will be adversely impacted by the solicitation or award of a contract.
B. For the purpose of these regulations notice of a bid protest pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-52 must be filed with the chief purchasing officer by the protestor, addressed as follows:
Chief Purchasing Officer (BID PROTEST)
c/o Office of the Director
Department of Administration One Capitol Hill
Providence, RI 02908
1. In addition, a true and accurate copy thereof must be filed with:
Division of Legal Services (BID PROTEST)
Department of Administration
One Capitol Hill Providence, RI 02908.
2. A bid protest may be filed by U.S. Mail, hand-delivery, courier service or facsimile, but may not be filed by electronic mail (“e-mail”). For the purposes of these regulations the date of “filing” shall be the date that a protest is actually received by the chief purchasing officer.
C. The protester’s notice to the chief purchasing officer shall clearly state that it is a bid protest, and at a minimum shall include the following information:
1. the name, street address, e-mail address, telephone and facsimile numbers of the protester (or its representative, if any);
2. original signature of the protestor or its representative;
3. identity of the contract, solicitation or award at issue;
4. a detailed statement of facts and circumstances that gave rise to the protest, together with copies of any available relevant documents;
5. all information establishing that the protestor is an aggrieved party for the purpose of filing a protest;
6. citations to any relevant statutes or regulations; and,
7. a brief statement as to the form of relief requested; and,
8. a statement of whether the protestor has submitted a request for the disclosure of public records that are pertinent to the bid protest, and if such a request has been submitted, a copy thereof. A protest that fails to contain the required information may be denied.
D. Timeliness of Bid Protest.
1. A bid protest must be filed in accordance with § 1.6.2 of this Part and within the following time limits:
a. Bid protests regarding the form or content of solicitation documents must be received by the chief purchasing officer not later than fourteen (14) calendar days before the date set in the solicitation for receipt of bids. If grounds for a bid protest did not exist at the initial solicitation, but arose as the result of an amendment to the solicitation, then the bid protest must be received by the chief purchasing officer no later than fourteen (14) calendar days before the next closing time established for receipt of bids. If the date set in the solicitation for receipt of bids is less than fourteen (14) calendar days from issuance, a bid protest concerning the form or content of the solicitation documents must be received by the chief purchasing officer not less than forty-eight (48) hours before the date set for receipt of bids.
b. In all other cases, protests must be received by the chief purchasing officer not later than fourteen (14) calendar days after the protester knew or should have known, whichever is earlier, the facts giving rise to a protest.
c. For bid protests regarding the form or content of the solicitation documents, the facts giving rise to the protest shall be presumed to be known to the protester on the date the solicitation, or an amendment thereto, was posted to the division of purchases’ procurement web site. For bid protests arising from bid opening procedures and or award of the contract, the facts giving rise to the protest shall be presumed to be known to the protester on either the date of bid opening or the date the contract award was posted to the division of purchases’ procurement web site.
d. New factual allegations made after the initial protest without a new and separate showing of timeliness shall be deemed to be untimely.
e. The fourteen (14) day period in which to file a protest does not include the day on which the alleged basis for protest arises. If the last calendar day within which a protest is to be filed falls on a Saturday, Sunday, state holiday or a day when the state or division of purchases is closed, the period in which to file a protest is extended to the next day not a Saturday, Sunday, state holiday or when the state or division of purchases is not closed.
E. Protests of different contract solicitations or awards must be filed separately.
F. Upon receipt of a bid protest timely filed neither the contracting agency, nor the division of purchases shall proceed further with the solicitation or award of a contract, until the chief purchasing officer issues a written determination that authorizes the contracting agency or the division of purchases to proceed with the solicitation or award as being necessary to protect a substantial interest of the state.
G. The chief purchasing officer shall issue a written determination in response to a bid protest within thirty (30) calendar days of the receipt thereof. The chief purchasing officer reserves the right to waive or extend the time requirements for such written determination when, in his/her sole judgment, circumstances so warrant.
H. The chief purchasing officer’s written determination shall state whether the protest is granted or denied, the reasons therefore and any action(s) to be taken in response thereto. A copy of the chief purchasing officer’s written determination shall be mailed to the protestor.
I. In the event that the protestor requests access to documents relating to the solicitation or award pursuant to the “Access to Public Records Act,” R.I. Gen. Laws § 38-2-1, et seq. in conjunction with the bid protest, then the chief purchasing officer may defer issuing his written determination until thirty (30) days after the response(s) to the APRA request has been issued.

U. “Responsive bidder” means a person who has submitted a bid under R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-20 which conforms in all material respects to the invitation for bids, so that all bidders may stand on equal footing with respect to the method and timeliness of submission and as to the substance of any resulting contract. For the purposes of establishing rules and regulations pursuant the R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 37-2, a “responsive bidder” shall also mean a bid which conforms in all material respect to the terms and conditions, specifications and any other requirements of the Bid Invitation. (R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-2-15(7))

(6) “Responsible bidder or offeror” shall mean a qualified bidder or offeror who has the capability in all respects, including financial responsibility, to perform fully the contract requirements, and the integrity and reliability which will assure good faith performance.

(a) Section 37-2-48 shall apply only to contracts that are not arbitrable under the provisions of chapter 16 of this title.
(b) Any person, firm, or corporation having a lawfully authorized written contract with the state at the time of or after January 1, 1990 may bring an action against the state on the contract, including, but not limited to, actions either for breach of contract, enforcement of contract, or both. Any claim shall be commenced in superior court within three (3) years from the date of completion specified in the contract and shall be tried by the court sitting without a jury. The case shall receive a priority position on the calendar. All defenses in law or equity, except the defense of governmental immunity, shall be preserved to the state.
(c) The court shall enter its findings as a judgment of the court and the judgment shall have the same effect and be enforceable as any other judgment of the court in civil cases, subject to the provisions of this chapter.
(d) Appeals may be taken to the supreme court under the same conditions and under the same practice as appeals are taken from judgments in civil cases rendered by the superior court.
(e) If damages awarded on any contract claim under this section exceed the original amount of the contract, the excess shall be limited to an amount which is equal to the amount of the original contract.
(f) No person, firm, or corporation shall be permitted more than one money recovery upon a claim for the enforcement of or for breach of contract with the state.

3. Offers shall be evaluated by a committee comprised of a representative of the Division of Purchases, representative of the user agency, and other appropriate parties

(a) All rights, powers, duties, and authority relating to the procurement of supplies, services, and construction, and the management, control, warehousing, sale, and disposal of supplies, services, and construction now vested in or exercised by any state agency under the several statutes relating thereto are hereby transferred to the chief purchasing officer as provided in this chapter, subject to the provisions of § 37-2-54. A public agency does not have to utilize the centralized purchasing of the state but the public agency, through its existing internal purchasing function, shall adhere to the general principles, policies and practices set forth in this chapter.
(b) The chief purchasing officer, as defined in § 37-2-7(3)(i), may establish, charge, and collect from state contractors, listed on master-price agreements, a statewide contract administrative fee not to exceed one percent (1%) of the total value of the annual spend against a contract awarded to a state contractor. All statewide contract administrative fees collected pursuant to this subsection shall be deposited into a restricted-receipt account within the general fund designated as the “division of purchases administrative-fee account” and shall be used for the purposes of implementing technology for the submission and processing of bids, online vendor registration, bid notification, and other costs related to state procurement. On or before January 15, 2019, and annually thereafter on or before January 15, the chief purchasing officer or designee shall file a report with the governor, the speaker of the house, and the president of the senate detailing:
(i) The total amount of funds collected and deposited into the division of purchases administrative-fee account for the most recently completed fiscal year;
(ii) The account balance as of the date of the report;
(iii) An itemization of all expenditures and other uses of said funds from said account for the most recently completed fiscal year; and
(iv) An annual evaluation as to the appropriateness of the amount of the contract administrative fee on master-price agreements.
(c) Subject to the approval of the director of the department of administration, the state controller is authorized to offset any currently recorded outstanding liability on the part of developmental disability organizations (DDOs) to repay previously authorized startup capital advances against the proceeds from the sale of group homes within a fiscal year prior to any sale proceeds being deposited into the information technology investment fund.

**(c)** Unless the invitations for bid are accessible under the provisions as provided in § 37-2-17.1, public notice of the invitation for bids shall be given a sufficient time prior to the date set forth therein for the opening of bids. Public notice may include publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the state as determined by the purchasing agent not less than seven (7) days nor more than twenty-eight (28) days before the date set for the opening of the bids. The purchasing agent may make a written determination that the twenty-eight (28) day limitation needs to be waived.

(a) Contracts exceeding the amount provided by § 37-2-22 may be awarded by electronic reverse auctions when it is determined in writing by the chief purchasing officer that the state will obtain a better value with this method than with a competitive sealed bid process. Factors to be considered in determining whether electronic reverse auctions shall be utilized shall include:
(1) Whether specifications can be prepared that permit electronic posting of bid solicitations and secure receipt of electronic bids; and
(2) The cost for preparing and executing the auction; and
(3) Whether conditions are such that the commodities or services to be purchased are appropriately competitive.
(b) All reverse auctions shall be conducted electronically using real-time, on-line bidding procedures. These procedures shall include the following:
(1) Participation as a bidder shall be subject to a prequalification process conducted in accordance with the provisions of § 37-2-25.1.
(2) The solicitation shall designate both an opening date and time and a closing date and time. The closing date and time may be dependent on a variable or variables specified in the solicitation. At the opening date and time, the auctioneer shall begin accepting real-time, on-line bids. The solicitation shall remain open until the closing date and time.
(3) Following receipt of the first bid after the opening date and time, all bid prices shall be posted electronically to the internet and updated on a real-time basis. At any time before the closing date and time, a bidder may offer a lower bid than the lowest bid of any bidder, including his own. A bidder’s lowest bid shall supersede any prior higher bid offered by that bidder. Bid prices may not be increased at any time after the opening date and time. All bids shall be binding and may not be withdrawn. If a price entered by the bidder is in error, the bidder must correct the bid within the time period and manner specified in the solicitation.
(4) The invitation for bids shall state that the award shall be made on the basis of the lowest responsive bid price.
(c) The contract shall be awarded with reasonable promptness by written notice to the responsive and responsible bidder whose bid is either the lowest bid price, lowest evaluated, or responsive bid price.
(d) Subsequent to the awarding of the contract, all documents pertinent to the awarding of the contract shall be made available and open to the public inspection and retained in the bid file.