South Carolina § 11-35-1560 - Sole source procurement; public notice.

§ 11-35-1560. Sole source procurement; public notice.

(A) A contract may be awarded for a supply, service, information technology, or construction item without competition if, under regulations promulgated by the board, the chief procurement officer, the head of a purchasing agency, or a designee of either officer, above the level of the procurement officer, determines in writing that there is only one source for the required supply, service, information technology, or construction item. Except for contracts with a total potential value of fifty thousand dollars or less, adequate public notice of the intent to award without competition must be posted in South Carolina Business Opportunities, except that public notice is not required if the appropriate chief procurement officer, after consultation with the head of the purchasing agency, determines in writing that award without such notice is in the interest of the State. Notice must contain a statement of the right to protest under Section 11-35-4210(1) and must be posted at least five business days before entering a contract. For contracts with a total potential value greater than two hundred fifty thousand dollars, such notice must be posted at least ten business days before entering a contract.

(B) Written documentation must include the determination and basis for the proposed sole source procurement. A delegation of authority by either the chief procurement officer or the head of a governmental body with respect to sole source determinations must be submitted in writing to the Materials Management Officer. In cases of reasonable doubt, competition must be solicited. Any decision by a governmental body that a procurement be restricted to one potential vendor must be accompanied by a thorough, detailed explanation as to why no other will be suitable or acceptable to meet the need.

(C) A violation of these regulations by a purchasing agency, upon recommendation of the Division of Procurement Services with approval of the majority of the board, must result in the temporary suspension, not to exceed one year, of the violating governmental body's ability to procure supplies, services, information technology, or construction items pursuant to this section.

HISTORY: 1981 Act No. 148, SECTION 1; 1986 Act No. 510, SECTION 1; 1997 Act No. 153, SECTION 1; 2006 Act No. 376, SECTION 30; 2019 Act No. 41 (S.530), SECTION 26, eff May 13, 2019.

Code Commissioner's Note

At the direction of the Code Commissioner, references in this section to the "Budget and Control Board", the "State Budget and Control Board" or the "board" were changed to the "State Fiscal Accountability Authority", the "authority", or the "Division of Procurement Services" of the "State Fiscal Accountability Authority", pursuant to the directive of the South Carolina Restructuring Act, 2014 Act No. 121, SECTION 5(B), effective July 1, 2015.

Editor's Note

2019 Act No. 41, SECTION 80, provides as follows:

"SECTION 80. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor and applies to solicitations issued after that date."

Effect of Amendment

2019 Act No. 41, SECTION 26, in (A), added the second through fourth sentences, creating a notice requirement; in (B), deleted the first sentence, which required the regulations to include the requirements included in this paragraph, and in the fourth sentence, substituted "a thorough, detailed explanation" for "an explanation"; and in (C), substituted "Division of Procurement Services" for "designated board office" and "board" for "State Fiscal Accountability Authority".