                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

EXEMPTION FROM OPERATION OF CHAPTER FOR CERTAIN TRANSACTIONS (§ 2.2-4343)

A. The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to:

   1. The Virginia Port Authority in the exercise of any of its powers in
   accordance with Chapter 10 (&#xA7; 62.1-128 et seq.) of Title 62.1, provided
   that the Authority implements, by policy or regulation adopted by the Board of
   Commissioners, procedures to ensure fairness and competitiveness in the
   procurement of goods and services and in the administration of its capital
   outlay program. This exemption shall be applicable only so long as such
   policies and procedures meeting the requirements remain in effect.

   2. The Virginia Retirement System for selection of services related to the
   management, purchase or sale of authorized investments, actuarial services,
   and disability determination services. Selection of these services shall be
   governed by the standard set forth in &#xA7; 51.1-124.30.

   3. The State Treasurer in the selection of investment management services
   related to the external management of funds shall be governed by the standard
   set forth in &#xA7; 2.2-4514, and shall be subject to competitive guidelines
   and policies that are set by the Commonwealth Treasury Board and approved by
   the Department of General Services.

   4. The Department of Social Services or local departments of social services
   for the acquisition of motor vehicles for sale or transfer to Temporary
   Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) recipients.

   5. The College of William and Mary in Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth
   University, the University of Virginia, and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and
   State University in the selection of services related to the management and
   investment of their endowment funds, endowment income, gifts, all other
   nongeneral fund reserves and balances, or local funds of or held by the
   respective public institution of higher education pursuant to &#xA7;
   23.1-2210, 23.1-2306, 23.1-2604, or 23.1-2803. However, selection of these
   services shall be governed by the Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional
   Funds Act (&#xA7; 64.2-1100 et seq.) as required by &#xA7;&#xA7; 23.1-2210,
   23.1-2306, 23.1-2604, and 23.1-2803.

   6. The Board of the Commonwealth Savers Plan for the selection of services
   related to the operation and administration of the Plan, including, but not
   limited to, contracts or agreements for the management, purchase, or sale of
   authorized investments or actuarial, record keeping, or consulting services.
   However, such selection shall be governed by the standard set forth in &#xA7;
   23.1-706.

   7. Public institutions of higher education for the purchase of items for
   resale at retail bookstores and similar retail outlets operated by such
   institutions. However, such purchase procedures shall provide for competition
   where practicable.

   8. The purchase of goods and services by agencies of the legislative branch
   that may be specifically exempted therefrom by the Chairman of the Committee
   on Rules of either the House of Delegates or the Senate. Nor shall the
   contract review provisions of &#xA7; 2.2-2012 apply to such procurements. The
   exemption shall be in writing and kept on file with the agency&#8217;s
   disbursement records.

   9. Any town with a population of less than 3,500, except as stipulated in the
   provisions of &#xA7;&#xA7; 2.2-4305, 2.2-4311, 2.2-4315, 2.2-4330, 2.2-4333
   through 2.2-4338, 2.2-4343.1, and 2.2-4367 through 2.2-4377 and Chapter 43.1
   (&#xA7; 2.2-4378 et seq.).

   10. Any county, city or town whose governing body has adopted, by ordinance or
   resolution, alternative policies and procedures which are (i) based on
   competitive principles and (ii) generally applicable to procurement of goods
   and services by such governing body and its agencies, except as stipulated in
   subdivision 12.
   				This exemption shall be applicable only so long as such policies and
   procedures, or other policies and procedures meeting the requirements of
   &#xA7; 2.2-4300, remain in effect in such county, city or town. Such policies
   and standards may provide for incentive contracting that offers a contractor
   whose bid is accepted the opportunity to share in any cost savings realized by
   the locality when project costs are reduced by such contractor, without
   affecting project quality, during construction of the project. The fee, if
   any, charged by the project engineer or architect for determining such cost
   savings shall be paid as a separate cost and shall not be calculated as part
   of any cost savings.

   11. Any school division whose school board has adopted, by policy or
   regulation, alternative policies and procedures that are (i) based on
   competitive principles and (ii) generally applicable to procurement of goods
   and services by the school board, except as stipulated in subdivision 12.
   				This exemption shall be applicable only so long as such policies and
   procedures, or other policies or procedures meeting the requirements of &#xA7;
   2.2-4300, remain in effect in such school division. This provision shall not
   exempt any school division from any centralized purchasing ordinance duly
   adopted by a local governing body.

   12. Notwithstanding the exemptions set forth in subdivisions 9 through 11, the
   provisions of subsections B, C, and D of &#xA7; 2.2-4303, &#xA7;&#xA7;
   2.2-4305, 2.2-4311, 2.2-4315, 2.2-4317, 2.2-4330, 2.2-4333 through 2.2-4338,
   2.2-4342, 2.2-4343.1, and 2.2-4367 through 2.2-4377, Chapter 43.1 (&#xA7;
   2.2-4378 et seq.), and &#xA7; 58.1-1902 shall apply to all counties, cities,
   and school divisions and to all towns having a population greater than 3,500
   in the Commonwealth.
   				The method for procurement of professional services through competitive
   negotiation set forth in &#xA7;&#xA7; 2.2-4302.2, 2.2-4303.1, and 2.2-4303.2
   shall also apply to all counties, cities, and school divisions, and to all
   towns having a population greater than 3,500, where the cost of the
   professional service is expected to exceed $80,000 in the aggregate or for the
   sum of all phases of a contract or project. A school board that makes
   purchases through its public school foundation or purchases educational
   technology through its educational technology foundation, either as may be
   established pursuant to &#xA7; 22.1-212.2:2 shall be exempt from the
   provisions of this chapter, except, relative to such purchases, the school
   board shall comply with the provisions of &#xA7;&#xA7; 2.2-4311 and 2.2-4367
   through 2.2-4377.

   13. A public body that is also a utility operator may purchase services
   through or participate in contracts awarded by one or more utility operators
   that are not public bodies for utility marking services as required by the
   Underground Utility Damage Prevention Act (&#xA7; 56-265.14 et seq.). A
   purchase of services under this subdivision may deviate from the procurement
   procedures set forth in this chapter upon a determination made in advance by
   the public body and set forth in writing that competitive sealed bidding is
   either not practicable or not fiscally advantageous to the public, and the
   contract is awarded based on competitive principles.

   14. Procurement of any construction or planning and design services for
   construction by a Virginia nonprofit corporation or organization not otherwise
   specifically exempted when (i) the planning, design or construction is funded
   by state appropriations of $10,000 or less or (ii) the Virginia nonprofit
   corporation or organization is obligated to conform to procurement procedures
   that are established by federal statutes or regulations, whether those federal
   procedures are in conformance with the provisions of this chapter.

   15. Purchases, exchanges, gifts or sales by the Citizens&#8217; Advisory
   Council on Furnishing and Interpreting the Executive Mansion.

   16. The Department of Corrections in the selection of pre-release and
   post-incarceration services and the Department of Juvenile Justice in the
   selection of pre-release and post-commitment services.

   17. The University of Virginia Medical Center to the extent provided by
   subdivision A 3 of &#xA7; 23.1-2213.

   18. The purchase of goods and services by a local governing body or any
   authority, board, department, instrumentality, institution, agency or other
   unit of state government when such purchases are made under a remedial plan
   established by the Governor pursuant to subsection C of &#xA7; 2.2-4310 or by
   a chief administrative officer of a county, city or town pursuant to &#xA7;
   15.2-965.1.

   19. The contract by community services boards or behavioral health authorities
   with an administrator or management body pursuant to a joint agreement
   authorized by &#xA7; 37.2-512 or 37.2-615.

   20. The purchase of Virginia-grown food products for use by a public body
   where the annual cost of the product is not expected to exceed $100,000,
   provided that the procurement is accomplished by (i) obtaining written
   informal solicitation of a minimum of three bidders or offerors if practicable
   and (ii) including a written statement regarding the basis for awarding the
   contract.

   21. The Virginia Industries for the Blind when procuring components,
   materials, supplies, or services for use in commodities and services furnished
   to the federal government in connection with its operation as an AbilityOne
   Program-qualified nonprofit agency for the blind under the
   Javits-Wagner-O&#8217;Day Act, 41 U.S.C. &#xA7;&#xA7; 8501-8506, provided that
   the procurement is accomplished using procedures that ensure that funds are
   used as efficiently as practicable. Such procedures shall require
   documentation of the basis for awarding contracts. Notwithstanding the
   provisions of &#xA7; 2.2-1117, no public body shall be required to purchase
   such components, materials, supplies, services, or commodities.

   22. The purchase of personal protective equipment for private, nongovernmental
   entities by the Governor pursuant to subdivision (11) of &#xA7; 44-146.17
   during a disaster caused by a communicable disease of public health threat for
   which a state of emergency has been declared. However, such purchase shall
   provide for competition where practicable and include a written statement
   regarding the basis for awarding any contract. As used in this subdivision,
   &#8220;personal protective equipment&#8221; means equipment or supplies worn
   or employed to minimize exposure to hazards that cause serious workplace
   injuries and illnesses and may include items such as gloves, safety glasses
   and shoes, earplugs or earmuffs, hard hats, respirators, coveralls, vests,
   full body suits, hand sanitizer, plastic shields, or testing kits for the
   communicable disease of public health threat.

B. Where a procurement transaction involves the expenditure of federal
assistance or contract funds, the receipt of which is conditioned upon
compliance with mandatory requirements in federal laws or regulations not in
conformance with the provisions of this chapter, a public body may comply with
such federal requirements, notwithstanding the provisions of this chapter, only
upon the written determination of the Governor, in the case of state agencies,
or the governing body, in the case of political subdivisions, that acceptance of
the grant or contract funds under the applicable conditions is in the public
interest. Such determination shall state the specific provision of this chapter
in conflict with the conditions of the grant or contract.

HISTORY: 1982, c. 647, §§ 11-35, 11-39, 11-40; 1983, c. 593; 1984, cc. 159,
330, 764, § 11-40.2; 1985, c. 74; 1986, cc. 149, 212, 559; 1987, c. 583; 1991,
c. 645; 1994, cc. 661, 918; 1995, c. 18; 1996, cc. 261, 280, 683, 1019; 1997,
cc. 85, 488, 785, 861, 863; 1998, cc. 121, 132; 1999, cc. 230, 248, 735, 910, §
11-40.4; 2000, cc. 29, 382, 400, 642, 644, 666, 703; 2001, cc. 392, 409, 736,
753, 774, 844; 2002, cc. 87, 478, 491, 582, 595; 2003, cc. 226, 1008; 2004, cc.
145, 865, 891; 2006, c. 656; 2007, cc. 434, 697; 2008, c. 184; 2009, cc. 737,
767; 2010, c. 694; 2011, c. 23; 2012, cc. 803, 805, 835, 836; 2013, cc. 583,
762, 794; 2015, cc. 760, 776; 2016, cc. 296, 465; 2017, cc. 87, 625, 699, 704;
2018, cc. 31, 463; 2019, c. 427; 2020, cc. 681, 682; 2020, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 17,
38; 2023, cc. 756, 778; 2024, c. 217; 2025, c. 518.