JULY 11, 2023

Modification of the General Bases and Conditions and the Procedure Manual of the Procurement Regime of the National Administration.

CIRCULARS

Public Law Department Report | Modification of the General Bases and Conditions and the Procedure Manual of the Procurement Regime of the National Administration

Provision No. 26/2023 of the National Procurement Office, published in the Official Gazette on July 7th, 2023, provides for the following amendments.

a. Substitutes Article 13, paragraph i) of Provision No. 63/2016 stating that:

a) The occupancy percentage by the successful tenderer of persons with disabilities in a proportion of not less than 4% of the total staff involved in the provision of the service shall be required when it is quantitatively possible to comply with it, in other words, such percentage represents at least one person.

b) If, due to the particularities of the service, it is not possible to hire persons with disabilities who meet the suitability conditions to perform the service, the bidder shall submit an affidavit stating the reasons at the time of submitting its bid.

b. Substitutes Article 27 of Provision No. 62/2016 introducing that:

a) If the bidder has stated that it is not possible to have persons with disabilities who meet the conditions of suitability and such statement is not shared, the bidder shall be requested to submit an affidavit stating that, if awarded the contract, it undertakes to employ persons with disabilities, in a proportion of not less than 4%. Upon expiration of the term granted, in the event of non-compliance, it shall be appropriate to recommend the rejection of the bid.

b) In case of an equal finish, if the purpose of the procedure is the purchase of supplies and provisions to enforce the preference established in Article 8 bis of Law No. 22.431 and Article 8 of Decree No. 312/2010, the tied parties shall be required to submit documentation proving the employment relationship with personnel with disabilities and the Certificate of Disability. Upon expiration of the term, it will be understood that whoever has not complied does not have such a labor relationship. If all the equalized bidders have personnel with disabilities, priority will be given to the one with the highest percentage. In case of equality, the tie-breaking procedure provided in Article 70 of Decree No. 1030/2016 shall be applied.

c) In case of an equal finish, if the purpose of the procedure is the purchase of supplies and provisions to enforce the preference established in Article 10 of Law No. 27.636 and Article 10 of Decree No. 659/2021, the tied parties shall be required to submit documentation proving employment relationship with personnel registered in the “Single Registry of Applicants Law 27.636”. Upon expiration of the term, it will be considered that whoever has not complied has no employment relationship with transvestite, transsexual, and transgender personnel. If several tied companies comply, priority will be given to the one with the highest percentage. In case of equality, the tie-breaking procedure provided in Article 70 of Decree No. 1030/2016 shall be applied.

d) In case of an equal finish, if the purpose of the procedure is the purchase of supplies and provisions, to enforce the preference established in Article 5 of Decree 728/2022, the tied parties shall be required to prove a minimum of 5% of workers linked to the “Puente al Empleo” Program. Documentation that proves that in AFIP’s SICOSS their workers are identified with the hiring modality codes from 601 to 614 must be accompanied. Upon expiration of the term, it will be considered that whoever has not complied does not have an employment relationship with personnel linked to the program. In case of equality, priority will be given to the highest percentage, and if they are equal, the tie-breaking procedure provided for in Article 70 of Decree No. 1030/2016 shall be applied.

e) If several companies are equal in conditions of access to the listed preferences, priority will be given to the one that has accredited the conditions for accessing the highest number of preferences. In case of equality, the tie-breaking procedure provided for in Article 70 of Decree No. 1030/2016 shall be applied.

c. Incorporates to Article 44 of Provision No. 63/2016 that in those cases in which the co-contractor had submitted the affidavit declaring its obligation to employ persons with disabilities, the co-contractor shall be required by Reception Commission to submit the documentation evidencing such employment relationship and the Single Certificate of Disability, under penalty of applying a fine of 0.5% of the value of the contract.

Please, do not hesitate to contact us should you require any further information on this matter.

Sincerely.

Oscar Aguilar Valdez
Juan A. Stupenengo
Santiago J. Barbarán