House subcommittee advances SWAM codification, military-business protections, apprenticeship rules and tech-contract fixes; one bill tabled

The House General Laws Subcommittee on Procurement and Open Government considered a package of procurement bills and recorded votes on multiple measures during its session. Members voted to report several bills to the next stage, gently laid one bill on the table and struck another from the docket, while several measures were discussed but deferred or went by for the day.

House Bill 1922: codifying SWAM procurement goal

House Bill 1922, introduced by Delegate T. Ward, would codify the Small, Women- and Minority-owned (SWAM) Business Procurement Enhancement Program within the Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity and set a statewide utilization goal of 42 percent for discretionary spending with a 3 percent per year agency increase until the goal is reached. "House bill 1922 is a small woman, minority owned business, procurement enhancement program," Ward said. The bill allows a SWAM set-aside for purchases up to $100,000 and requires a disparity study every five years (the next due no later than Jan. 1, 2026). The subcommittee voted to report the bill (bill reports 52).

Why it matters: Codification would move an executive order into statute and formalize targets and data collection intended to increase contracting opportunities for certified small, women- and minority-owned businesses.

House Bill 2751: military-family businesses and procurement access

Delegate Fagan presented a bill aimed at reducing procurement…