purchasing

Arkansas Resident Bidder Preference

Revised May 29, 2026

Arkansas Code
Title 19. Public Finance
Subtitle 4. Purchasing and Contracts
Chapter 62. Bidding - State Industry Priority
Subchapter 1. General Provisions

§ 19-62-102 . Definitions.

(2) “Correctional institution” means a penitentiary, jail, prison, reformatory, or other such establishment owned, operated, or funded by a state or local government in which incarcerated criminals are kept;

(3) “Private industry” means a manufacturer, maker of products, company, corporation, or firm that is not a department, division, or arm of the federal, state, or local governments;

(4) “Private industry located within the State of Arkansas” means private industry that is located in Arkansas, employing Arkansas citizens and taxpayers as laborers in the process of manufacturing goods and products within this state; and

Arkansas Code
Title 19. Public Finance
Subtitle 4. Purchasing and Contracts
Chapter 62. Bidding - State Industry Priority
Subchapter 2. Bidding Priority

§ 19-62-202. Award to lowest state bidder — Exceptions

Subject to any applicable bonding requirements, in all bidding procedures involving a bid by one (1) or more out-of-state correctional institutions and a bid by one (1) or more private industries located within the State of Arkansas, the contract shall be awarded to the sole Arkansas bidder or lowest Arkansas bidder if the Arkansas bidder is not underbid by more than five percent (5%), as provided in § 19-61-515, by another representative of private industry located outside the State of Arkansas or by more than fifteen percent (15%) by an out-of-state correctional institution.

§ 19-62-203. Underbid by nonresident industry or correctional institution.

Subject to any applicable bonding requirements, if a private Arkansas bidder is underbid by more than five percent (5%), as provided in § 19-61-515, by another representative of private industry located outside the State of Arkansas or is underbid by more than fifteen percent (15%) by an out-of-state correctional institution, the state contract shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder, whether that bidder is a correctional institution or is a representative of private industry.

Arkansas Code
Title 19. Public Finance
Subtitle 4. Purchasing and Contracts
Chapter 61. Arkansas Procurement Law
Subchapter 5. Source Selection and Contract Formation

§ 19-61-515. Preferences among bidders - Conflicts with federal law - Definitions.

(a) Definitions.

(1) The definitions in this subsection do not apply to other sections of this chapter.

(2) As used in this section:

(A) “Commodities” means materials and equipment used in the construction of public works projects;

(B) “Firm resident in Arkansas” means any individual, partnership, association, or corporation, whether domestic or foreign, that:

(i) Maintains at least one (1) staffed office in this state;

(ii) For not fewer than two (2) successive years immediately before submitting a bid, has paid taxes under the Division of Workforce Services Law, § 11-10-101 et seq., unless exempt, and either the Arkansas Gross Receipts Act of 1941, § 26-52-101 et seq., or the Arkansas Compensating Tax Act of 1949, § 26-53-101 et seq., on property used or intended to be used for or in connection with the firm's business; and

(iii) Within the two-year period, has paid taxes to one (1) or more counties, school districts, or municipalities of the State of Arkansas on either real or personal property used or intended to be used or in connection with the firm's business;

(C) “Lowest qualified bid” means the lowest bid that conforms to the specifications and request for bids;

(D) “Nonresident firm” means a firm that is not included in the definition of a “firm resident in Arkansas”; and

(E) “Public agency” means all counties, municipalities, and political subdivisions of the state.

(b)

(1)

(A) In the purchase of commodities by competitive bidding, a public agency shall accept the lowest qualified bid from a firm resident in Arkansas.

(B) This bid shall be accepted only if the bid does not exceed the lowest qualified bid from a nonresident firm by more than five percent (5%) and if one (1) or more firms resident in Arkansas made written claim for a preference at the time the bids were submitted.

(C)

(i) In calculating the preference to be allowed, the appropriate procurement officials, pursuant to this section and §§ 19-61-101 — 19-61-111, 19-61-117, 19-61-201 — 19-61-209, 19-61-301 — 19-61-303, 19-61-401 — 19-61-403, 19-61-501 — 19-61-508, 19-61-511 — 19-61-514, 19-61-601 — 19-61-603, 19-61-701 — 19-61-705, and 19-61-801 — 19-61-811, shall take the amount of each bid of the Arkansas dealers who claimed the preference and deduct five percent (5%) from its total.

(ii) If after making the deduction under subdivision (b)(1)(C)(i) of this section, the bid of an Arkansas bidder claiming the preference is lower than the bid of the nonresident firm, then the award shall be made to the Arkansas firm that submitted the lowest bid, whether or not that particular Arkansas firm claimed the preference.

(2)

(A) The preference provided for in this section applies only in comparing bids when one (1) or more bids are by a firm resident in Arkansas and the other bid or bids are by a nonresident firm.

(B) The preference provided for under this section does not apply to competing bids if both bidders are firms resident in Arkansas, as defined in this section.

(i) If a provision or condition of this chapter conflicts with a provision of federal law or a rule or regulation made under federal law pertaining to federal grants-in-aid programs or other federal aid programs, the provision or condition does not apply to the federal-supported contracts for the purchase of commodities to the extent that the conflict exists.

(ii) However, all provisions or conditions of this chapter with which there is no conflict apply to contracts to purchase commodities to be paid, in whole or in part, from federal funds.

(c)

(1)

(A) This section applies only to projects designed to provide utility needs of a county or municipality.

(B) Projects under subdivision (c)(1)(A) of this section include without limitation pipeline installation, sanitary projects, and waterline, sewage, and water works.

(2) To the extent that federal purchasing laws or bidding preferences conflict, this chapter does not apply to projects related to supplying water or wastewater utility services, operations, or maintenance to a federal military installation by a municipality of the state.