Frequently Asked Questions

1. Are Invitations to Bid available on Purchasing’s web site? There is no place on our web site where you can view upcoming bids. The State of Alabama Division of Purchasing mails Invitations to Bid to registered vendors - per the commodity class/subclass codes the vendor indicates on their vendor registration form. Also, bids are posted (at the same time they are mailed out) on a bulletin board located in our office reception area. The Division of Purchasing office is located in the RSA Union Building. The RSA Union Building is located in the Capitol Complex area of downtown Montgomery. Office hours are 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, except State Holidays. Our address is 100 North Union Street, Suite 192, Montgomery, Alabama 36104. Suite 192, is located on the first floor, first office to the left when entering from the Union Street entrance.
   The State of Alabama Division of Purchasing does not have any plans at this time to place Invitations to Bid on our Internet web site.
    
2. How do I become a registered vendor with the State of Alabama? Visit our vendor registration web page which has all the information you need to become a registered vendor.
    
3. How do I find out if the Vendor application we mailed was accepted or rejected? Will I receive an acceptance notification? We do not mail out acceptance notifications. You can contact Ms. Tamara Norman at (334)242-4284 and inquire if Purchasing has received your application.
    
4. I am a registered vendor with the State of Alabama, how can I get my company’s web site listed on Purchasing’s "Links to Company Web Sites" page? Send your company web site address and information by email to Terri Cole at terri.cole@purchasing.alabama.gov.
    
5. Can you tell me who to contact in the Alabama State government concerning the sale of machinery or equipment the State no longer needs? Contact the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA). They handle surplus property. ADECA's phone number is: (334)242-5525. Also, the Department of Transportation and the Department of Public Safety dispose of their own property now. Contact: Department of Transportation at (334)242-6063 and Department of Public Safety at (334)242-4137.
    
6. When printing out a contract from the Internet, why doesn’t all of the contract information fit on the paper? When printing a contract from the Internet use Landscape Page Setup. Landscape will print the entire horizontal contract page. Most Internet web browsers support the landscape printing option generally found in Page Setup under "File". For additional information view Alabama Statewide Contracts Internet Instructions.
    
7. When printing a contract from the Internet, why does the number of pages that actually prints out not match the number of pages the contract says it contains (example: This Contract Contains 48 Pages)? Contracts are originally created in Purchasing’s State Network of Automated Procurement (SNAP) system. The contract that SNAP creates has different size fonts, headers for each page, page numbers and page breaks. To publish contracts on the Internet, they are exported from Purchasing’s SNAP system as a .txt file. The .txt file is an all text file with no page breaks and all fonts are the same size and type. The .txt file contains all the information that is on the original copy of the contract (including the headers and original page numbers). By utilizing one smaller font and no page breaks, more information is printed on each page and the actual number of pages printed will be less than stated on the contract.

Submit Additional Questions: terri.cole@purchasing.alabama.gov.