Louisiana Revised Statutes 38:2212.9 – A. In awarding contracts, any public entity is authorized to reject the lowest bid from, or not award the contract to, a business in which any individual with an ownership interest o
Terms Used In Louisiana Revised Statutes 38:2212.9
- Allegation: something that someone says happened.
- contract: means any contract awarded by any public entity for the making of any public works or for the purchase of any materials or supplies. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 38:2211
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
- person: includes a body of persons, whether incorporated or not. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 1:10
- Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
- Public entity: means and includes the state of Louisiana, or any agency, board, commission, department, or public corporation of the state, created by the constitution or statute or pursuant thereto, or any political subdivision of the state, including but not limited to any political subdivision as defined in Article VI Section 44 of the Constitution of Louisiana, and any public housing authority, public school board, or any public officer whether or not an officer of a public corporation or political subdivision. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 38:2211
A. In awarding contracts, any public entity is authorized to reject the lowest bid from, or not award the contract to, a business in which any individual with an ownership interest of five percent or more has been convicted of, or has entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere to any state felony crime or equivalent federal felony crime committed in the solicitation or execution of a contract or bid awarded under the laws governing public contracts under the provisions of Chapter 10 of this Title, professional, personal, consulting, and social services procurement under the provisions of Chapter 17 of Title 39 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950.
B. Nothing in this Section shall impose a duty, responsibility, or requirement on a public entity to perform criminal background checks on contractors, vendors, or subcontractors. It shall be the responsibility of any person, company, or entity making an allegation of prior convictions on the part of any individual with an ownership interest of five percent or more in any bidder to present prima facie evidence to the public entity supporting their claim.
C. If evidence is submitted substantiating that any individual with an ownership interest of five percent or more in the lowest bidder has been convicted of, or has entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere to any state felony crime or equivalent federal felony crime committed in the solicitation or execution of a contract or bid awarded under the laws listed in Subsection A of this Section and the public entity rejects the lowest bid, the company whose bid is rejected shall be responsible to the public entity for the costs of rebidding, the increased costs of awarding to the second low bidder, or forfeiture of the bid bond, whichever is higher.
Acts 2010, No. 864, §1; Acts 2014, No. 864, §§4 and 5.