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Committee releases bill letting DelDOT use electronic-only bidding, members raise equity and contingency concerns
Summary
HB 390 would let DelDOT choose electronic-only bid submission and drop newspaper-advertisement requirements; DelDOT officials said the agency already uses an electronic platform, while lawmakers pressed for protections for small contractors and contingency language for paper submissions on select projects.
Representative Morrison introduced HB 390, a DelDOT-request bill that would allow the department discretion to specify electronic-only bid submissions for projects and remove the requirement to advertise bid openings in newspapers.
Deputy Secretary Lenny Clymer told the committee DelDOT already accepts electronic bids and has used an online platform for several years; the agency must currently offer a manual option by code but finds few people attend in-person openings. "We've been using it, I wanna say, 4 or 5 years," Clymer said, adding the platform prevents incomplete submissions by requiring all required documents before upload.
Committee members raised equity concerns for smaller contractors who might lack resources or face technical problems near deadlines. One member asked whether DelDOT intended to use electronic auctioning; Clymer said no and that bid documents remain sealed until the deadline. Clymer said DelDOT would permit paper submissions in limited circumstances such as facility or building projects where those procurements are customary, and that staff and a customer-service desk are available to help bidders who call ahead, but deadlines must be enforced for validation reasons.
Secretary Hastings emphasized online safeguards that reduce missing forms and signature errors common in paper submissions and said the platform can be a help to newer bidders; she and DelDOT officials offered to work with lawmakers to craft language addressing small-project exceptions.
Representative Spiegelman moved to release HB 390 and Representative Ozinski seconded. The committee recorded affirmative roll-call votes and released the bill from committee. Lawmakers asked staff to follow up on specific language to protect small contractors and to clarify when paper bids would still be accepted.
Next steps: HB 390 was released from committee; DelDOT and the sponsor will work with committee members on language to address small-procurement concerns.
