State and Local Procurement Law

With clients throughout the country, Wiley is well-positioned to identify and react to national trends in state and local procurement.  We advise clients on every step of state procurement processes, including identification of legal risks in solicitations, pre- and post-award bid protests, contract compliance, and contract claims and disputes (including negotiation of change orders).  In addition to state and local procurements, we also advise clients on multi-state consortium and cooperative purchases, including multi-state contracts and “piggy-backing” arrangements.

Representative state procurement experience includes:

• Litigating a bid protest of an award of a major design-build construction project in Illinois.
• Representing state health insurance exchange and Medicaid Management Information System contractors in various states.
• Counseling on intellectual property ownership terms under Mississippi procurement regulations.
• Advising on equal opportunity employment reporting requirements in Connecticut.
• Assisting in navigating small business qualifications in California.
• Analyzing risks in a solicitation for a Texas multiple award schedule contract.
• Counseling on “Pay to Play” laws in New Jersey.
• Researching ethics regulations applicable to Philadelphia municipal procurements.

The influence of federal law on state procurements has expanded in recent years.  Countless state and local contracts incorporate federal statutory and regulatory obligations, primarily as the result of the procuring entity using federal funds. 

Given the numerous ways that state and local procurements may be impacted by federal requirements, Wiley’s recognized federal contracting expertise significantly benefits those contractors operating in the state and local procurement markets.

A rapidly growing intersection between federal and state procurement law is in health care, as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act has introduced numerous new contracting opportunities and risks. With our Health Care Practice, we advise companies pursuing contracting opportunities related to the Affordable Care Act, such as state-based health insurance exchanges.  In addition to the Affordable Care Act, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) also increased the influence of federal law on state and local procurements.  ARRA funding reaches a wide variety of state and local contracts, including education and public works initiatives. 

Another significant intersection between federal and state procurement law is in cooperative purchasing arrangements, as numerous states and municipalities have the authority to purchase goods and services from the federal government-wide General Services Administration (GSA) Schedule contracts.  Wiley’s expertise in GSA Schedules can assist clients new to GSA contracting and experienced GSA Schedule holders facing compliance issues.