The Effects of Bid Preference Laws: A Review of the Research

The Colorado General Assembly is currently considering legislation (SB12-001 and HB12-1113) to provide a preference to companies that are bidding on state contracts if 90 percent or more of their employees on the contract are Colorado residents.

The Bell Policy Center reviewed research on bid preferences to answer two questions relating to how bid preferences affect the contracting process:

1. Do bid preferences increase the cost paid by state and local governments on the contracts subject to bid preferences?
2. Do bid preference laws have a positive economic impact on the states or localities that use them?

Click here to read the report.