La. Admin. Code tit. 34 § V-341

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

Section V-341 - Blackout Period

A. All competitive sealed bids conducted in accordance with R.S. 39:1594 and all competitive sealed proposals conducted in accordance with R.S. 39:1595 (for purposes of this Section together called competitive sealed procurements) shall:

1. provide for a defined blackout period relative to such procurement in which communication between the bidder or proposer and the state relative to the procurement itself is generally prohibited, with defined exceptions;

2. provide a summary of the application of the state of Louisiana's blackout period policy;

3. provide a reference to the full text of the state of Louisiana's blackout period policy; and

4. designate a contact person, and corresponding method of communication, to whom all communications by bidders or proposers should be addressed.

B. The blackout period is a period of time beginning with posting of the competitive sealed procurement and ending with the award or cancellation of the same. During a competitive sealed procurement, any proposer, bidder, or its agent or representative, is prohibited from communicating with any state employee or contractor of the state involved in any step in the procurement process about the affected procurement other than the designated contact person. Communications properly sent to the designated contact person regarding questions, clarifications, or complaints regarding procedures or status related to the competitive sealed procurement are allowed. Involvement in the procurement process includes but may not be limited to project management, design, development, implementation, procurement management, development of specifications, or evaluation of a particular procurement.

C. Upon notification of receipt of a timely protest to an award, and a resulting stay of award, the blackout period shall be reinstated until such time as the stay has been lifted by the chief procurement officer. All communications regarding the protested award shall be addressed to the chief procurement officer. In the case of an appeal, all communications shall be addressed to the Commissioner of Administration.

D. Any state employee or contractor who discovers any inappropriate contact shall immediately report such inappropriate contact to the chief procurement officer, whether the discovery occurs during or after the award of the contract.

E. The head of any agency conducting any competitive sealed procurement subject to a blackout period shall provide notice to staff regarding the affected procurement and instructions. An agency may choose to implement a blanket blackout period program in which employees acknowledge their responsibility to comply for all competitive sealed procurements rather than by the agency providing individual notices.

F. In any instance in which a prospective vendor is also an incumbent vendor for any contract, the state and the incumbent vendor may contact each other regarding the existing contract, but the incumbent vendor and/or its representative(s) may not discuss the procurement subject to the blackout period unless pursuant to an exception in this Section.

G. Notwithstanding any conflicting provision of this Section, the blackout period shall not apply to:

1. the submission of a protest to a solicitation pursuant to R.S. 39:1671;

2. duly noticed site visits and/or conferences for bidders or proposers;

3. oral presentations during the evaluation process;

4. communications regarding a particular solicitation between any person and staff of the procuring agency, provided the communication is limited strictly to matters of procedure. Procedural matters include deadlines for decisions or submission of proposals and the proper means of communicating regarding the procurement, but shall not include any substantive matter related to the particular procurement or requirements of the competitive sealed procurement. Any employee who receives such an inquiry shall report it and the response, if any, to the designated contact who shall keep a record of the inquiry in the agency's files regarding the procurement.

La. Admin. Code tit. 34, § V-341

Promulgated by the Office of the Governor, Division of Administration, Office of State Procurement, LR 47580 (5/1/2021).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 39:1581.