Procurement Technical Assistance Center

New Michigan Law Targets Vets and State Contracts

September 2005

 

Q&A with Michigan's Purchasing Director

Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm recently signed Public Act 91 into law. Sean Carlson, director of purchasing for the Michigan Department of Management and Budget, answered questions about this new law, which impacts qualified disabled veterans who bid on state contracts.

Sean Carlson is the Director of Purchasing for the State of Michigan. Sean has been serving for 18 years, both as an enlistee in the Army and currently as a Captain in the Air Force Reserves. Sean’s department acts as the buyer of goods & services for state agencies.

To learn about current opportunities to do business with Michigan, visit their website at www.michigan.gov/
doingbusiness.

Q: What is Public Act 91? When did it pass?

A: Public Act 91 affords an all-else-equal preference for businesses owned by qualified disabled veterans. It establishes a goal of awarding 3 percent of total state expenditures for goods, services and construction to qualified disabled veteran-owned companies. In addition, it outlines the reporting requirements for the Department of Management and Budget to inform the legislature of the progress of state agencies in reaching their goals.

Public Act 91 was signed by Gov. Granholm on July 20, 2005. The legislation went through both legislative chambers quickly, which highlights our elected officials’ commitment to and gratitude for Michigan veterans.

Q: What is Acquisition Services’ role in implementing this legislation?

A: Acquisition Services is the office in the Department of Management and Budget that buys goods and services on behalf of state agencies. In a nutshell, Acquisition Services handles contract awards for goods and services valued at more than $25,000.

Acquisition Services has already started reaching out to service-disabled veterans, and has received a warm welcome from groups that serve the veteran community. Many veterans have offered advice to us based on their experiences dealing with federal government procurement programs for veterans.

On a personal note — based on my own background as both an enlistee and a reservist — I am gratified to work with veterans to help them become Michigan’s business partners. I am committed to making our process open and fair for veterans.

Q: How does Acquisition Services handle solicitations?

A: In a word – competitively.

At Acquisition Services, we are working under a much different system than we did four years ago. Every solicitation is competitively bid. Gov. Granholm took bold action by issuing Executive Directive 2005-3, which effectively prohibits no-bid contracts. My team shares her commitment to competition – it makes the contract process fair and open. In fact, we’ve saved taxpayers more than $156 million in competitive bid savings since May 1, 2004.

Acquisition Services is also reaching out to traditionally under-represented groups of vendors to be more inclusive in state contracting.

Q: How will Public Act 91 impact the cost savings taxpayers have experienced since Gov. Granholm enacted the no-bid contract prohibition?

A: This question assumes that veteran-owned businesses aren’t competitive. My experiences contradict this assumption. I expect we’ll see an increase in participation by veteran-owned companies because of increased outreach and awareness. I also expect we’ll receive competitive bids and responsive proposals from veteran-owned businesses. And, we’ll continue to ask vendors to sharpen their pencils to give Michigan taxpayers the best value for state contracts.

Q: What should veteran-owned businesses do to bid on state awards?

A: I recommend that you visit our Doing Business with Michigan Web site as a starting point: www.michigan.gov/doingbusiness. The Web site has a wide range of information. Businesses can register as state vendors, which is typically the first step and should only take about 10 to 15 minutes.

To see current opportunities for bidding, select “Bids and Proposals” from the upper left corner of the site, and then select the area of proposals you’d like to see. Every opportunity is posted under “Commodities and Services.”

Q: Any final tips for those who want to win state contract awards?

A: Be Competitive – Be Complete – Be Timely.

I highly recommend that you take advantage of the resources that exist to assist with procurement. Michigan businesses can benefit from the free services of Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (PTACs). These regional offices provide expert advice regarding everything from vendor registration to proposal submission. To find the PTAC near you, visit www.michigantac.org.