Chapter 10 - General IT Procurement Policies

Confidentiality of all information utilized in the procurement process is very important to ensure fair and open competition for suppliers competing for Commonwealth contracts. All information and documentation relative to the development of a solicitation or contractual document for a proposed procurement is confidential. These records will not be open to public inspection until completion of the procurement process. All information and documentation relative to the development of a specification or requirements document is confidential until the procurement process is completed. Pursuant to § 2.2-4342 and § 2.2-4343 of the Code of Virginia, trade secrets or proprietary information that a supplier wishes to exempt from FOIA disclosure must be specifically identified by bidder with a statement of the reason(s) the protection is necessary. A supplier shall not improperly designate as trade secrets or proprietary information (i) an entire bid, proposal, or prequalification application; (ii) any portion of a bid, proposal, or prequalification application that does not contain trade secrets or proprietary information; or (iii) line-item prices or total bid, proposal, or prequalification application prices. Refer to Chapter 5, Ethics in Public Procurement, for more information and for a VITA- approved Confidentiality and Conflict of Interest Statement form.  

It is critical to ensure that no records or information are disclosed from a supplier’s proposal that are marked “Confidential” or “Proprietary,” are included in such supplier’s redacted proposal or are responses in the supplier’s ECOS/Security Assessment, including any security exceptions, if applicable.