(a) Except as otherwise provided in this Code section, contracts exceeding $100,000.00 shall be awarded by competitive sealed bidding. If the total requirement of any given commodity will involve an expenditure in excess of $250,000.00, sealed bids shall be solicited by advertisement in the Georgia Procurement Registry established under subsection (b) of Code Section 50-5-69 and in addition may be solicited by advertisement in a newspaper of state-wide circulation at least once and at least 15 calendar days, except for construction projects which shall have 30 calendar days allowed, prior to the date fixed for opening of the bids and awarding of the contract. Other methods of advertisement, however, may be adopted by the Department of Administrative Services when such other methods are deemed more advantageous for the particular item to be purchased. In any event, it shall be the duty of the Department of Administrative Services to solicit sealed bids from reputable owners of supplies in all cases where the total requirement will exceed $100,000.00. When it appears that the use of competitive sealed bidding is either not practicable or not advantageous to the state, a contract may be entered into by competitive sealed proposals, subject to the following conditions:

(1) This method of solicitation shall only be used after a written determination by the Department of Administrative Services that the use of competitive sealed bidding is not practicable or is not advantageous to the state;

(2) Proposals shall be solicited through a request for proposals;

(3) Adequate public notice of the request for proposals shall be given in the same manner as provided for competitive sealed bidding;

(4) A register of proposals shall be prepared and made available for public inspection;

(5) The request for proposals shall state the relative importance of price and other evaluation factors;

(6) As provided in the request for proposals and under regulations to be developed by the Department of Administrative Services, discussions may be conducted with reasonable offerors who submit proposals determined to be reasonably susceptible of being selected for award, for the purpose of clarification to assure full understanding of and responsiveness to the solicitation requirements. Offerors shall be accorded fair and equal treatment with respect to any opportunity for discussion and revision of proposals; and such revisions may be permitted after submissions and prior to award for the purpose of obtaining best and final offers. In conducting discussions there shall be no disclosure of any information derived from proposals submitted by competing offerors; and

(7) The award shall be made to the responsible offeror whose proposal is determined in writing to be the most advantageous to the state, taking into consideration price and the evaluation factors set forth in the request for proposals. No other factors or criteria shall be used in the evaluation. The contract file shall contain the basis on which the award is made. (b) Except as otherwise provided for in this part, all contracts for the purchases of supplies, materials, or equipment made under this part shall, wherever possible, be based upon competitive bids and shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder, taking into consideration the quality of the articles to be supplied and conformity with the standard specifications which have been established and prescribed, the purposes for which the articles are required, the discount allowed for prompt payment, the transportation charges, and the date or dates of delivery specified in the bid. Competitive bids on such contracts shall be received in accordance with rules and regulations to be adopted by the commissioner of administrative services, which rules and regulations shall prescribe, among other things, the manner, time, and places for proper advertisement for the bids, indicating the time and place when the bids will be received; the article for which the bid shall be submitted and the standard specification prescribed for the article; the amount or number of the articles desired and for which the bids are to be made; and the amount, if any, of bonds or certified checks to accompany the bids. Any and all bids so received may be rejected.

(c) When bids received pursuant to this part are unreasonable or unacceptable as to terms and conditions, are noncompetitive, or the low bid exceeds available funds and it is determined in writing by the Department of Administrative Services that time or other circumstances will not permit the delay required to resolicit competitive bids, a contract may be negotiated pursuant to this Code section, provided that each responsible bidder who submitted such a bid under the original solicitation is notified of the determination and is given a reasonable opportunity to negotiate. In cases where the bids received are noncompetitive or the low bid exceeds available funds, the negotiated price shall be lower than the lowest rejected bid of any responsible bidder under the original solicitation.

(d) Every bid conforming to the terms of the advertisement provided for in this Code section, together with the name of the bidder, shall be recorded, and all such records with the name of the successful bidder indicated thereon shall, after award or letting of the contract, be subject to public inspection upon request. The Department of Administrative Services shall also, within five days after the award or letting of the contract, publish the name of the successful bidder on public display in a conspicuous place in the department's office so that it may be easily seen by the public. The public notice on public display shall also show the price or the amount for which the contract was let and the commodities covered by the contract. The Department of Administrative Services shall also, within five days after the award or letting of the contract, publish on public display the names of all persons whose bids were rejected by it, together with a statement giving the reasons for such rejection. Bids shall be opened in public by the Department of Administrative Services, which shall canvass the bids and award the contract according to the terms of this part. A proper bond for the faithful performance of any contract shall be required of the successful bidder in the discretion of the Department of Administrative Services. After the contracts have been awarded, the Department of Administrative Services shall certify to the various departments, institutions, and agencies of the state government the sources of the supplies and the contract price of the various supplies, materials, and equipment so contracted for. (e) On all bids or proposals received or solicited by the Department of Administrative Services, by any department, agency, board, or bureau of the state, or by any person in behalf of any department, agency, board, or bureau of the state, except in cases provided for in Code Section 50-5-58, the following certificate of independent price determination shall be used:

"I certify that this bid is made without prior understanding, agreement, or connection with any corporation, firm, or person submitting a bid for the same materials, supplies, or equipment and is in all respects fair and without collusion or fraud. I understand collusive bidding is a violation of state and federal law and can result in fines, prison sentences, and civil damage awards. I agree to abide by all conditions of this bid and certify that I am authorized to sign this bid for the bidder."

(f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this article, the commissioner of administrative services is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations to govern auctions conducted by state agencies in which vendors' prices are made public during the bidding process to enable the state agency or agencies to seek a lower price. This auction bidding process will continue until the lowest price is obtained within the auction's time limit. This auction bidding process shall not be used to procure construction services or for any contract for goods or services valued at less than $100,000.00. This subsection shall stand repealed in its entirety on July 1, 2003.

(g) Any reference in this article to sealed bids or sealed proposals shall not preclude the Department of Administrative Services from receiving bids and proposals by way of the Internet or other electronic means or authorizing state agencies from receiving bids and proposals by way of the Internet or other electronic means; provided, however, any bids or proposals received by any state agency by way of any electronic means must comply with security standards established by the Georgia Technology Authority.