A. Subject to the express provisions of the management agreement, each covered institution may be exempt from the provisions of the Virginia Public Procurement Act (§ 2.2-4300 et seq.), except for §§ 2.2-4340, 2.2-4340.1, 2.2-4340.2, 2.2-4342, and 2.2-4376.2, which shall not be construed to require compliance with the prequalification application procedures of subsection B of § 2.2-4317, provided, however, that (i) any deviations from the Virginia Public Procurement Act in the management agreement shall be uniform across all covered institutions and (ii) the governing board of the covered institution shall adopt, and the covered institution shall comply with, policies for the procurement of goods and services, including professional services, that shall (a) be based upon competitive principles; (b) in each instance seek competition to the maximum practical degree; (c) implement a system of competitive negotiation for professional services pursuant to §§ 2.2-4303.1 and 2.2-4302.2; (d) prohibit discrimination in the solicitation and award of contracts on the basis of the bidder’s or offeror’s race, religion, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, or disability or on any other basis prohibited by state or federal law; (e) incorporate the prompt payment principles of §§ 2.2-4350 and 2.2-4354; (f) consider the impact on correctional enterprises under § 53.1-47; and (g) provide that whenever solicitations are made seeking competitive procurement of goods or services, it shall be a priority of the institution to provide for fair and reasonable consideration of small, women-owned, and minority-owned businesses and to promote and encourage a diversity of suppliers.
B. Such policies may (i) provide for consideration of the dollar amount of the intended procurement, the term of the anticipated contract, and the likely extent of competition; (ii) implement a prequalification procedure for contractors or products; and (iii) include provisions for cooperative arrangements with other covered institutions, other public or private educational institutions, or other public or private organizations or entities, including public-private partnerships, public bodies, charitable organizations, health care provider alliances or purchasing organizations or entities, state agencies or institutions of the Commonwealth or the other states, the District of Columbia, the territories, or the United States, and any combination of such organizations and entities.
C. Nothing in this section shall preclude a covered institution from requesting and utilizing the assistance of the Virginia Information Technologies Agency for information technology procurements and covered institutions are encouraged to utilize such assistance.
D. Each covered institution shall post on the Department of General Services’ central electronic procurement website all Invitations to Bid, Requests for Proposal, sole source award notices, and emergency award notices to ensure visibility and access to the Commonwealth’s procurement opportunities on one website.
E. As part of any procurement provisions of the management agreement, the governing board of a covered institution shall identify the public, educational, and operational interests served by any procurement rule that deviates from procurement rules in the Virginia Public Procurement Act (§ 2.2-4300 et seq.).