HB239 Alabama 2020 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Danny GarrettRepresentative

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2020

Title

State government, Office of Chief Procurement Officer, established, Division of Purchasing within the Dept. of Finance, eliminated, Secs. 41-4-110 to 41-4-161, inclusive, repealed; Secs. 41-4-110A to 41-4-116A, incl., 41-4-120A to 41-4-151A, incl., 41-4-155A, 41-4-160A to 41-4-168A, incl., 41-4-170 to 41-4-178A, incl., added; Sec. 41-4-66 am'd.

Summary

HB239 would dissolve the Division of Purchasing and create the Office of the Chief Procurement Officer to centralize and oversee Alabama's state procurement.

What This Bill Does

It replaces the Division of Purchasing with the Office of the Chief Procurement Officer (OCPO) and sets up the Chief Procurement Officer's appointment, duties, and authority. The OCPO would procure or supervise the state's purchases of most supplies and services, establish procurement rules, oversee compliance, maintain a public database of bids and proposals, and require reporting. It also establishes vendor registration and potential fees, a credit card purchasing program, and new processes for bids, proposals, protests, debarment, and cooperation with local governments.

Who It Affects

• State and local government procurement units (state agencies, boards, commissions, educational institutions, and many counties and municipalities) would be governed by the OCPO's rules and would shift procurement oversight to a centralized office with additional reporting requirements.
• Vendors, suppliers, and contracting entities that do business with the state would face new registration and bidding requirements, potential biannual registration fees, price data and recordkeeping requirements, contract transparency rules, and enforcement tools such as debarment and protest rights.

Key Provisions

• Abolishes the Division of Purchasing and creates the Office of the Chief Procurement Officer to manage state procurement.
• Requires appointment of the Chief Procurement Officer by the Director of Finance with the Governor's approval; the officer must have recent public procurement experience.
• Designates the OCPO as the central procurement authority for the state and allows delegation of authority to designees or other agencies; except for alcoholic beverages, the OCPO would procure or supervise all state supplies and services.
• Establishes a statewide public database of every request for proposal (RFP) for contracts, to be accessible on the state website without charge and maintained by the OCPO.
• Creates and regulates procurement methods (bids, proposals, small purchases, sole source, emergencies, and special procurements) with rules for fair competition, price evaluation, and dispute resolution, including debarment and protest procedures.
• Allows a credit card procurement program for state use under OCPO rules, with reporting requirements and a dedicated State Procurement Fund; may impose a biannual vendor registration fee.
• Enables cooperative purchasing and intergovernmental cooperation with local public procurement units, while ensuring compliance with the article’s rules and accountability.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 22, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

State Government