NEWS RELEASE
The Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) announces a local government "contracts exchange" on the Internet.
Accessible through abagOnline, the government access network for the San Francisco Bay Area, the ABAG Contracts Exchange will allow local governments to post their RFPs online.
"This online posting for RFPs holds the potential to save local governments thousands if not millions of dollars," said Terry Bursztynsky, ABAG's project manager for abagOnline.
The Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority calculates that, since 1992, they have saved 7% on over $2 billion worth of contracts due to the increased competition achieved by online exposure. Orange County placed one RFP on the LA bulletin board and received 50% more bids than usual.
With the Internet site just underway, the ABAG Contracts Exchange already has postings by the City and County of San Francisco, the City of Petaluma, the City of San Ramon, and most recently, the town of Windsor. Potential bidders will be able to review the postings for the entire Bay Area in one place as more and more cities and counties join the system. In the near future, contractors will be able to submit their bids online.
To review the RFPs online, use your Internet browser to click on "Contracts" under San Francisco Bay Area on the abagOnline homepage. abagOnline may be accessed on the World Wide Web at the URL http://www.abag.ca.gov; or by Gopher to gopher.abag.ca.gov. Contractors and bidders without Internet access but with a computer and modem can access the ABAG Contracts Exchange by dialing 510/464-8482 and logging in as "contract" (settings: N-8-1, terminal emulation: VT-100).