New Mexico Administrative Code
Title 1 - GENERAL GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION
Chapter 4 - STATE PROCUREMENT
Part 1 - PROCUREMENT CODE REGULATIONS
Section 1.4.1.51 - SMALL PURCHASES OF ITEMS OF TANGIBLE PERSONAL PROPERTY, CONSTRUCTION AND NONPROFESSIONAL SERVICES

A. Quotation to be obtained: Insofar as it is practical for small purchases of nonprofessional services, construction or items of tangible personal property having a value exceeding twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) but not exceeding the value set forth in statute for small purchases, and in accordance with any procedures or processes set forth by the state purchasing agent and the state controller, no fewer than three businesses shall be solicited via written requests containing the specifications for the procurement to submit written quotations that are recorded and placed in the procurement file. Such notations as "does not carry" or "did not return my phone call" do not qualify as a valid quotation. The central nonprofit agency's declining to offer to perform a particular service does not qualify as a valid quotation; it is, in fact, the refusal to provide a quotation. If the lowest quotation is not acceptable, the central purchasing office must issue a written determination as to the reasons for such a decision. These reasons must not be arbitrary or capricious. The written determination becomes a part of the procurement file.

B. Disclosure: Prior to award, the contents of any response to a quotation shall not be disclosed to any other business from which the same request for quotation is also being solicited. Award in this context means the final required state agency signature on the contract(s) or purchase order resulting from the procurement.

C. Award: Award shall be made to the responsible and responsive business offering the lowest acceptable quotation.

D. Records: The names of the businesses submitting quotations and the date and the amount of each quotation shall be recorded and maintained as a public record.