                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

PREQUALIFICATION GENERALLY; PREQUALIFICATION FOR CONSTRUCTION (§ 2.2-4317)

A. Prospective contractors may be prequalified for particular types of supplies,
services, insurance or construction, and consideration of bids or proposals
limited to prequalified contractors. Any prequalification procedure shall be
established in writing and sufficiently in advance of its implementation to
allow potential contractors a fair opportunity to complete the process.

B. Any prequalification of prospective contractors for construction by a public
body shall be pursuant to a prequalification process for construction projects
adopted by the public body. The process shall be consistent with the provisions
of this section.
			The application form used in such process shall set forth the criteria upon
which the qualifications of prospective contractors will be evaluated. The
application form shall request of prospective contractors only such information
as is appropriate for an objective evaluation of all prospective contractors
pursuant to such criteria. The form shall allow the prospective contractor
seeking prequalification to request, by checking the appropriate box, that all
information voluntarily submitted by the contractor pursuant to this subsection
shall be considered a trade secret or proprietary information subject to the
provisions of subsection D of &#xA7; 2.2-4342.
			In all instances in which the public body requires prequalification of
potential contractors for construction projects, advance notice shall be given
of the deadline for the submission of prequalification applications. The
deadline for submission shall be sufficiently in advance of the date set for the
submission of bids for such construction so as to allow the procedures set forth
in this subsection to be accomplished.
			At least 30 days prior to the date established for submission of bids or
proposals under the procurement of the contract for which the prequalification
applies, the public body shall advise in writing each contractor who submitted
an application whether that contractor has been prequalified. In the event that
a contractor is denied prequalification, the written notification to the
contractor shall state the reasons for the denial of prequalification and the
factual basis of such reasons.
			A decision by a public body denying prequalification under the provisions of
this subsection shall be final and conclusive unless the contractor appeals the
decision as provided in &#xA7; 2.2-4357.

C. A public body may deny prequalification to any contractor only if the public
body finds one of the following:

   1. The contractor does not have sufficient financial ability to perform the
   contract that would result from such procurement. If a bond is required to
   ensure performance of a contract, evidence that the contractor can acquire a
   surety bond from a corporation included on the United States Treasury list of
   acceptable surety corporations in the amount and type required by the public
   body shall be sufficient to establish the financial ability of the contractor
   to perform the contract resulting from such procurement;

   2. The contractor does not have appropriate experience to perform the
   construction project in question;

   3. The contractor or any officer, director or owner thereof has had judgments
   entered against him within the past ten years for the breach of contracts for
   governmental or nongovernmental construction, including, but not limited to,
   design-build or construction management;

   4. The contractor has been in substantial noncompliance with the terms and
   conditions of prior construction contracts with a public body without good
   cause. If the public body has not contracted with a contractor in any prior
   construction contracts, the public body may deny prequalification if the
   contractor has been in substantial noncompliance with the terms and conditions
   of comparable construction contracts with another public body without good
   cause. A public body may not utilize this provision to deny prequalification
   unless the facts underlying such substantial noncompliance were documented in
   writing in the prior construction project file and such information relating
   thereto given to the contractor at that time, with the opportunity to respond;

   5. The contractor or any officer, director, owner, project manager,
   procurement manager or chief financial official thereof has been convicted
   within the past ten years of a crime related to governmental or
   nongovernmental construction or contracting, including, but not limited to, a
   violation of (i) Article 6 (&#xA7; 2.2-4367 et seq.) of this chapter, (ii) the
   Virginia Governmental Frauds Act (&#xA7; 18.2-498.1 et seq.), (iii) Chapter
   4.2 (&#xA7; 59.1-68.6 et seq.) of Title 59.1, or (iv) any substantially
   similar law of the United States or another state;

   6. The contractor or any officer, director or owner thereof is currently
   debarred pursuant to an established debarment procedure from bidding or
   contracting by any public body, agency of another state or agency of the
   federal government; and

   7. The contractor failed to provide to the public body in a timely manner any
   information requested by the public body relevant to subdivisions 1 through 6
   of this subsection.

D. If a public body has a prequalification ordinance that provides for minority
participation in municipal construction contracts, that public body may also
deny prequalification based on minority participation criteria. However, nothing
herein shall authorize the adoption or enforcement of minority participation
criteria except to the extent that such criteria, and the adoption and
enforcement thereof, are in accordance with the Constitution and laws of the
United States and the Commonwealth.

E. A state public body shall deny prequalification to any contractor who fails
to register and participate in the E-Verify program as required by &#xA7;
2.2-4308.2.

F. The provisions of subsections B, C, and D shall not apply to prequalification
for contracts let under &#xA7; 33.2-209, 33.2-214, or 33.2-221.

HISTORY: 1982, c. 647, § 11-46; 1994, c. 918; 1995, c. 527; 2001, c. 844; 2007,
c. 154; 2011, cc. 573, 583.