La. Admin. Code tit. 34 § I-5505

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, September 20, 2024

Section I-5505 - Procedures for the Procurement of Information Technology Software

A. This Section will describe the procedures that all agencies in the executive branch must follow when seeking to acquire information technology software.

B. Information technology software, for the purpose of this Section is defined as any program or series of programs offered commercially to computer installations.

C. If the cost of the information technology software including modifications, installation integration, training for the total project plus maintenance and support services, for a 12 month period to be acquired is under $100,000, it is deemed to have the advance approval of the Office of State Purchasing and shall not be for a price greater than the vendor's published price.

1. The agency must include in the procurement file a list of all known information technology software packages investigated which claim to accomplish the required task. Name each investigated, its total cost, and the rationale for selection or rejection.

2. The Office of State Purchasing will assist any agency in the negotiation of contract agreements and any other procurement related functions.

D. It is the state's intent to compete information technology software (including modifications, installation integration, training, etc.), with a total cost greater than $100,000 whenever possible.

1. Any agency or entity that does not use the competitive process or an established standard or statewide agreement for procurement of information technology software with a total cost in excess of $100,000 must fully justify its request to the Office of Information Technology and obtain concurrence prior to submission to the Office of State Purchasing for further processing.

2. Information technology software procurements of $100,000 or greater will be competitively obtained through and ITB, RFP or through an OIT pricing agreement administered by the Office of State Purchasing.

3. Information technology software procurements of $100,000 or greater must have been included in an approved IT-10 from the Office of Information Technology.

4. Procurements shall not be artificially divided to circumvent the $100,000 threshold.

E. For the purposes of this Section, software includes software as a service (SaaS). Software as a service means access to a computer software program that is owned, delivered, and managed remotely by an external service provider on a pay-per-use basis whereby the software is a business application based on a single set of common code and data definitions and the application data is owned and updated by the state or state entity. A formally signed service level agreement (SLA) is required as part of every SaaS engagement with use of pre-printed external service provider SLA's being prohibited.

La. Admin. Code tit. 34, § I-5505

Promulgated by the Office of the Governor, Division of Administration, LR 10:77 (February 1984), amended by the Office of the Governor, Division of Administration, Office of State Purchasing, LR 21:566 (June 1995), LR 29:2378 (November 2003), LR 39:32710 (December 2013).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 39:199(C) and (D).