Nebraska

Key Agency(ies): Nebraska’s central procurement authority is the Materiel Division within the Department of Administrative Services. The Materiel Division is led by the Materiel Administrator and contains the State Purchasing Bureau, which is responsible for all purchases of goods for state agencies.

Key Statute: Nebraska’s procurement is governed largely by statutes located in Chapter 73 of the Nebraska Revised Statutes (Neb. Rev. Stat.). Most important is the State Procurement Act (Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 73-801 to 73-818).

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Key Regulations: Nebraska’s procurement regulations are located in Title 9 of the Nebraska Administrative Code (Neb. Admin. Code).

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Procurement Types/Highlights: Nebraska primarily relies on IFBs and RFPs for procurement. Contracts exceeding $50,000 must be procured by formal competitive methods.

Invitation for Bids: IFBs are used when award can be made solely on lowest price. Bids are submitted in sealed form and opened publicly at a specified date and time, as determined by the State Procurement Act. Contract award is made to the lowest price responsive and responsible bidder, and no negotiations may occur after bid submission.

Requests for Proposals: RFPs are used when factors beyond price, including technical approach or qualifications, are necessary for award decision. Proposals are evaluated based on scoring criteria and agencies may hold discussions. Award goes to the highest scoring proposal, not necessarily the lowest cost proposal.

Bid Protests:

Regs Governing Bid Protests:

Nebraska’s bid protest procedures are administered by the Department of Administrative services through the State Purchasing Bureau, and governed by SPB Policy 23-07 rather than by statute. Protests may be filed either against the terms of a solicitation or against an intent to award decision.

Timeliness Rules:

To challenge solicitation terms, a vendor must file a protest within 10 business days of the solicitation’s posting. To challenge an award, the protest must be submitted within 10 business days of the public notice of intent to award. Acceptable grounds for protest are narrowly defined and include violations of law or procedure, mathematical or clerical errors, conflicts of interest, collusion, or a bidder’s failure to meet mandatory requirements.

Protests are conducted entirely within DAS. Protests must be submitted to the Materiel Administrator and may include a request for an informal meeting. The Administrator reviews the matter and must issue a written decision, typically within 5 to 10 business days. SBP policy also provides that protesters may appeal the Material Administrator’s decision to the DAS director. In addition, there is no statutory right to appeal to Nebraska courts.

Claims: In Nebraska, claims are governed by the State Miscellaneous Claims Act. Contractors must submit any claims to the State Risk Manager within the Department of Administrative Services. The claim must include relevant contract documents and a statement of the alleged breach and damages. Once submitted, the claim is referred to the State Claims Board, which is comprised of the DAS Director, State Treasurer, and Attorney General (or their designees).

After a claim is filed, both the contractor and the contracting agency are notified of the option to resolve the dispute through the State Claims Board. If both parties consent, the Board will evaluate the claim, hold informal hearings, and authorize payment if appropriate. However, if either party objects within 90 days after notice, the Board loses jurisdiction and the contractor may instead file a breach of contract claim in the District Court of Lancaster County. Claims must proceed through the administrative filing process before any court action is permitted.

Suspension & Debarment: Nebraska’s suspension and debarment process is administered by the State Purchasing Bureau and is governed by SPB Policy 23-08. If there is credible information that a contractor is ineligible for state business, the Materiel Administrator issues a written notice to the contractor identifying the grounds for exclusion and stating whether suspension is being imposed.

The contractor then has 30 business days to submit a written response with any mitigating information in their defense. The standard for debarment in Nebraska is preponderance of the evidence. If the Administrator determines that a debarment is warranted, formal notice is issued to the contractor specifying the duration of exclusion, which is typically up to three years.

If a contractor disagrees with the debarment, they may file an appeal with the Director of Administrative services within 10 business days of the notice. The Director will review the matter and issue a final determination, and there is no further administrative or judicial review provided. 

Interesting/Distinctions: Nebraska exempts certain professional services from the state’s traditional competitive bidding provisions. Pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 73-813, state acquisitions of services exceeding $50,000 for professional architecture, engineering, landscape architecture, and certain professional legal services are exempted from the Nebraska State Procurement Act.