Establishes priorities and requirements for purchases by the state and participating local governments from certain providers including prison enterprises and nonprofits assisting persons with disabilities. (EG NO IMPACT See Note)

HB 773 amends Louisiana's procurement statutes to establish a comprehensive preference system for purchasing from prison enterprises and nonprofits serving individuals with disabilities, replacing the previous fragmented approach. The bill specifically amends R.S. 15:1157(A) governing prison enterprises sales, R.S. 38:2261 addressing public bid law preferences, and R.S. 39:1604.4 establishing the procurement code preferences. The core mechanism creates a tiered preference hierarchy effective January 1, 2027, where state agencies and participating political subdivisions must purchase supplies and services through noncompetitive contracts from preferred sources in the following order: first from the Department of Public Safety and Corrections prison enterprises, then from nonprofits for the blind, then from nonprofits for other severely disabled persons, and then from nonprofits or workshops for veterans. The bill establishes definitions, pricing limitations, and administrative requirements for implementing these preferences, and repeals the existing State Use Council for the Purchase of Goods and Services Provided by Individuals with Disabilities while consolidating procurement authority.

The bill affects state agencies, political subdivisions, prison enterprises, and nonprofit organizations serving targeted populations. State agencies operating prisons gain the ability to purchase from local vendors in their parish if prices are competitive with prison enterprises offerings and the vendor qualifies under the Hudson Initiative or Veteran Initiative. Prison enterprises become the first preferred source for most supplies and services, with pricing capped at the lowest cooperative purchasing contract price or fifteen percent of fair market value if no such contract exists. Nonprofit organizations serving the blind, disabled persons, and veterans obtain preferred vendor status with similar pricing protections, creating new market opportunities for these organizations. Using agencies must consult an official list maintained by the state chief procurement officer to identify available preferred sources and must give qualifying nonprofits ten days to indicate intent to provide required services before resorting to regular procurement procedures. The Louisiana Department of Health, Department of Public Safety and Corrections, and Louisiana Works assume new administrative duties to maintain and update the preferred sources list.

The legislation operates within Louisiana's existing procurement framework established by the Procurement Code in R.S. 39:1551 et seq. and the Public Bid Law in R.S. 38:2181 et seq., which govern how governmental bodies must acquire goods and services. The bill fundamentally alters the procurement process by exempting purchases from preferred sources from competitive bidding requirements that would normally apply, a significant departure justified by statutory language advancing social and economic goals of integrating incarcerated and disabled individuals into the workforce. The bill preserves existing provisions allowing agencies operating state prisons to purchase from parish vendors under specified conditions and maintains the established pricing methodology for prison enterprises sales based on raw material costs and cooperative purchasing benchmarks. The preference system interacts with existing Hudson Initiative and Veteran Initiative provisions in R.S. 39:2001 et seq. and R.S. 39:2171 et seq., which govern local hiring and veteran contracting preferences, and the bill authorizes political subdivisions to participate in state procurement contracts under the revised framework.