New Hampshire public works bidding requirements
Summary of record
- Competitive bidding threshold (public work)
- No general state mandate
- Governing statute
- RSA 21-I:80 (state agencies)
- Award standard
- Lowest responsible bidder
- Multiple-prime required?
- No statewide mandate
- Prevailing wage
- None (repealed 1985)
- Addenda distribution
- To all bidders (when bid)
Competitive bidding threshold
New Hampshire has no general state law requiring competitive bidding for municipal contracts — local governments set their own policies. State-agency purchasing is governed by RSA 21-I:80, which requires competitive bidding for state agency contracts.1
Award standard
Where a public body does bid a project, it awards to the lowest responsible bidder.
Multiple-prime contracts
New Hampshire has no statewide multiple-prime mandate. Unlike New York's Wicks Law or Pennsylvania's Separations Act, a single general contract is permitted.
Prevailing wage
New Hampshire repealed its state prevailing-wage law in 1985. Federal Davis-Bacon rates apply only to federally funded work.
Document distribution & addenda
New Hampshire doesn't mandate competitive bidding, but when a public body does put a project out to bid it relies on the process in the NHDOT Standard Specifications: the owner issues addenda to change or clarify the bidding documents, and each bidder must acknowledge every addendum electronically as part of the bid — so no one bids on information the others lack.3
Record of change
New Hampshire is unusually permissive: there is no general state competitive-bidding requirement for municipal contracts, and the state repealed its prevailing-wage law in 1985.
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Verified
Verified against RSA 21-I:80 (state-agency competitive bidding) and the 1985 prevailing-wage repeal; corrected prior citation from RSA 95:1. Added NHDOT Standard Specifications addenda source.
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Law
State prevailing-wage law repealed.
Sources
- 1. New Hampshire General Court — RSA 21-I:80 (state-agency competitive bidding). gencourt.state.nh.us
- 2. NH Municipal Association — Contracting 101. nhmunicipal.org
- 3. New Hampshire DOT (NHDOT) — Standard Specifications for Road and Bridge Construction (addenda issued to bidders; acknowledged electronically in the bid). dot.nh.gov
Frequently asked
- Does New Hampshire require competitive bidding for public works?
- Not generally. New Hampshire has no statewide competitive-bidding mandate for municipal contracts; local governments set their own policies, while state-agency contracts are competitively bid under RSA 21-I:80.
- Does New Hampshire require prevailing wages on public works?
- No. New Hampshire repealed its state prevailing-wage law in 1985; federal Davis-Bacon applies only to federally funded work.
- Does New Hampshire require multiple-prime contracts?
- No. New Hampshire has no statewide multiple-prime mandate, unlike New York (Wicks Law) or Pennsylvania (Separations Act).
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