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Senate committee advances bill to raise county competitive-bid threshold to $35,000
Summary
The Senate City, County & Local Affairs Committee gave a 'do pass' recommendation to SB 456, which would raise the county competitive-bid threshold from $20,000 to $35,000. Supporters cited inflation, material and labor shortages; transparency advocates warned the change could reduce competitive bidding and vendor access.
Senator Stubblefield told the committee that Senate Bill 456 would raise the county competitive-bidding threshold from $20,000 to $35,000, a change he said was needed because the threshold has not been updated since 2007. "All 4 of my county judges in my district ... said that the price of goods and other things have went up so much," Stubblefield said, citing higher costs and delays in getting multiple bids.
The bill drew support from county officials. Doug Irwin, Lonoke County Judge and legislative chair for the…
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