(a) Local Business Preference. In determining the low bid for supplies, commodities, materials, equipment, furnishings or general services, and the construction, repair or renovation of public buildings or improvements, the Board of Control shall exercise a preference for local bidders as provided herein.
(1) Bidders having established their principal place of business, defined as a business with a significant economic and physical presence in Summit County for two successive calendar years prior to the bid opening date, shall be preferred as lowest if their bid does not exceed by more than three percent (3%), with an upper limit of thirty thousand dollars ($30,000.00), the apparent lowest bid.
(2) Bidders having established their principal place of business in the State for two successive calendar years prior to the bid opening date may be preferred as lowest if their bid does not exceed by more than two percent (2%) the apparent lowest bid, with an upper limit of twenty thousand dollars ($20,000.00).
(3) To qualify for local preference, bidders shall state on the bid documents their principal place of business, the business address where work will be administered (post office boxes will not be accepted in lieu of a street address) and the date of establishment. Each bidder shall have only one principal place of business.
(4) Local preferences shall not be applied as provided herein for any bids where prohibited by federal or state laws or regulations.
(b) Disadvantaged Business Preference. In determining the low bid for supplies, commodities, materials, equipment, furnishings or general services, and the construction, repair or renovation of public buildings or improvements, the Board of Control shall exercise a preference for bids from disadvantaged businesses as provided herein.
(1) Bids from disadvantaged businesses may be preferred as lowest if their bid does not exceed by more than three percent (3%) the apparent lowest bid, or thirty thousand dollars ($30,000.00), whichever is less.
(2) Preference shall not apply as provided in this section where prohibited by State or Federal law or regulation.
(3) Definitions. For the purposes of this section, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
A. "Disadvantaged business" means either a small business (including a sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation or joint venture of any kind) that is owned and controlled by the United States citizens and residents of Ohio who are members of an economically disadvantaged group (which includes minorities, females and persons with disabilities), a veteran or any governmentally owned and operated sheltered workshop for the intellectually disabled and developmentally disabled located within the State of Ohio.
B. "Owned and controlled" means that at least fifty-one percent (51%) of the business is owned by persons who belong to an economically disadvantaged group as provided in subsection (b)(3)A. hereof, and that such owners have control over the management and day-to-day operations of the business and an interest in the capital, assets, and profits and losses of the business proportionate to their percentage of ownership. If the business is a corporation, at least fifty-one percent (51%) of each of the following must be members of an economically disadvantaged group: the board of directors; the principal executive officers; and ownership in shares of every class of stock. If the business is a limited liability company, at least fifty-one percent (51%) of each of the following must be members of an economically disadvantaged group: the members and the principal executive officers. If the business is a partnership, at least fifty-one percent (51%) of each class of partnership interest must be owned by partners belonging to an economically disadvantaged group. If the business is a sole proprietorship, the proprietor must be a member of an economically disadvantaged group and own the entire interest in the capital, assets, profits and losses of the business, not including mortgages and other types of financial arrangements secured by assets or bonds secured by revenues. If the business is a joint venture, at least fifty-one percent (51%) of the joint venture must be controlled by economically disadvantaged persons, one (1) or more of such persons being designated as the joint venture manager, and such persons have an interest in the capital, assets, profits and losses of the joint venture proportionate to their percentage of ownership.
C. "Minority" means an individual who is a member of one of the economically disadvantaged groups identified in Section 122.71 of the Ohio Revised Code.
D. "Persons with disabilities" means individuals with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of such individuals, individuals with a record of such an impairment, or individuals regarded as having such an impairment.
E. "Small business" means any business having twenty-five (25) or fewer employees or less than one million dollars ($1,000,000) in annual gross sales.
F. “Veteran” means any person who has completed service in the armed force, including the national guard of any state or a reserve component of the armed forces, who has been honorably discharged or who has been transferred to the reserve with evidence of satisfactory service.
(4) Procedure. In order to qualify for preference, bidders must be certified as a disadvantaged business prior to the advertisement for bids or other announcement for quotes by the County, and must actually perform the work or supply the goods or services themselves without the use of subcontractors other than certified disadvantaged businesses. Bidders shall provide in their response to any bid or quote written evidence of their certification by the State of Ohio or appropriate agency of the Federal government that the bidder is currently recognized as a business owned and operated by a minority, female or person with a disability. If no State or Federal agency exists for such certification, then the bidder shall submit, prior to bidding, an affidavit containing such information as the Executive deems necessary to determine if the business is owned and operated by a minority, female or person with a disability, and such affidavit shall be certification thereof.
(5) Prohibition; Deceptive Bidding. No person, with purpose to obtain a bid preference as a disadvantaged business, shall knowingly misrepresent that he owns, controls, operates or participates in the operation of a disadvantaged business.
(6) Penalty. Whoever violates subsection (b)(5) hereof, is guilty of deceptive bidding, a misdemeanor of the first degree. In addition to the penalty provided by this section or any other penalty provided by law, any person convicted of a violation of subsection (b)(5) hereof, shall forfeit to the County a sum not less than the amount of their bid and shall be debarred from contracting with the County for eight (8) years.
(c) All preferences applied under this Section shall only be applied in considering the lowest bid and shall not waive or nullify evaluation of which bidders are responsive and responsible. In no event shall all preference granted under this Section cumulatively exceed a maximum of thirty thousand dollars ($30,000.00).
(Ord. 2000-202. Adopted 5-22-00; Ord. 2015-436. Adopted 10-26-15; Ord. 2017-448. Adopted 10-30-17; Ord. 2023-350. Adopted 11-27-23.)