S-3589               _______________________________________________

                                                   SENATE BILL NO. 6175

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                               51st Legislature                              1990 Regular Session

By Senators Craswell, Smitherman, Lee, Anderson and Johnson

Prefiled with Secretary of the Senate 12/28/89.  Read first time 1/8/90 and referred to Committee on Economic Development & Labor.

AN ACT Relating to centralization of information on agency bid requests; amending RCW 43.19.1908; adding a new section to chapter 43.31 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 82.32 RCW; creating a new section; and making an appropriation.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.     The legislature finds that there is currently no mechanism by which businesses may obtain information from a single source on all state agencies' requests for bids.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 43.31 RCW to read as follows:

          The business assistance center of the department of trade and economic development shall make available on its electronic bulletin board a listing of all open bids issued by state agencies.  The business assistance center shall develop and implement a marketing plan for this service to businesses in the state.

          The information made available on each bid shall include:

          (1) A summary of the goods or services being requested;

          (2) The start or delivery date specified in the bid request;

          (3) The name, address, and telephone number of an individual from whom a business can obtain a complete bid package and further information; and

          (4) When the bid is due.

          The bid information may also be made available on a subscription basis through the mail.  The business assistance center may charge a fee for bid information provided either electronically or through the mail to offset its costs.

        Sec. 3.  Section 43.19.1908, chapter 8, Laws of 1965 and RCW 43.19.1908 are each amended to read as follows:

          Competitive bidding required by RCW 43.19.190 through 43.19.1939 shall be solicited by public notice, and through the sending of notices by mail to bidders on the appropriate list of bidders who shall have qualified by application to the division of purchasing.

All state institutions, colleges, community colleges, and universities, the offices of the elective state officers, the supreme court, the court of appeals, the administrative and other departments of state government, and the offices of all appointive officers of the state shall, when soliciting bids, notify the business assistance center of the department of trade and economic development of the bid solicitation so that the information may be made available on the center's electronic bulletin board.  The notification to the business assistance center shall include:

(1) A summary of the goods or services being requested;

(2) The start or delivery date specified in the bid request;

(3) The name, address, and telephone number of an individual from whom a business can obtain a complete bid package and further information; and

(4) When the bid is due.

          Bids may be solicited by the purchasing division from any source thought to be of advantage to the state.  All bids shall be in writing and conform to rules of the division of purchasing.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4.  A new section is added to chapter 82.32 RCW to read as follows:

          The department of revenue shall send out a notice on the availability of bid information provided by the business assistance center under section 2 of this act twice during fiscal year 1991 and once yearly thereafter to all businesses paying taxes in this state.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5.     The sum of fifty thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated from the general fund to the department of trade and economic development for the biennium ending June 30, 1991, to carry out the purposes of this act.