SB103 Alabama 2025 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Greg Albritton Senator

Republican

Session

2025 Regular Session

Title

Public Works Contracts; authorize additional methods for advertising for sealed bids on public works contracts exceeding $100,000; authorize a safe harbor when using multiple methods and one method fails; authorize a safe harbor for the Department of Transportation under certain circumstances

Description

Under existing law, prior to awarding a public works contract that exceeds one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), a state or county awarding authority is required to advertise for sealed bids in a newspaper of general circulation once a week for at least three consecutive weeks in the county or counties in which the improvement will occur.

If a municipality is the awarding authority, it must advertise for sealed bids at least once in a newspaper of general circulation published in the municipality where the awarding authority is located.

However, if a newspaper is not available, the awarding authority shall advertise by posting notice on a bulletin board and also by sending notice by mail to all registered persons.

This bill authorizes the expansion of acceptable methods an awarding authority may use to advertise for sealed bids on a public works project that exceeds one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000).

This bill will provide a safe harbor for state, county, and municipal awarding authorities to have the advertisement requirement deemed satisfied if the awarding authority complies with more than one of the allowable methods but one of the methods of advertising SB103 INTRODUCED fails through no fault of the awarding authority.

This bill will further provide a safe harbor which deems the advertising requirement satisfied if the Department of Transportation complies with one of the approved advertising methods, the selected method of advertising fails through no fault of the department, and the department advertises on its publicly accessible website for the required number of weeks.

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Subjects

Buildings, Construction & Infrastructure; State Government