New Updates. November 10, 2022

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) was signed into law by President Biden on November 15, 2021. This Act expands on the previous federal Buy America requirements and seeks to maximize the use of American-made products and materials in all federally funded infrastructure projects.

Caltrans will apply the new Buy America requirements to projects effective November 10, 2022. Most projects advertised on the Contractor's Corner as of November 10, 2022, will include Section 6-1.04, "Buy America," in the Special Provisions. We expect for projects being advertised at end November 2022 to contain SSP 6-1.04.

Below is a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) link to assist potential bidders with questions on these new "Buy America" requirements. Please submit a bidder inquiry through the Contractor's Corner web page for additional questions.

Click here for Buy America FAQ document

Contractor’s Corner

Note:

Caltrans electronic bidding provides flexibility to you. In case of an emergency due to natural circumstances causing electrical shut off or if you are simply away from your machine for any reason and need to submit your bid, the Digital ID for Project Bids can be distributed across several machines. You will be able to submit your project bids from the location of your choosing. Additionally, all projects are advertised for three to seven weeks and bids can be submitted and resubmitted at anytime prior to bid opening.
To submit your bids from any of these machines at any time, the Digital ID for Project Bids would need be imported into the AASHTOWare Project Bids Bid software by following below steps:
  • Open AASHTOWare Project Bids Bid
  • Navigate to Tools > Manage Digital IDs
  • Click the green + sign on the righthand side
  • Find the digital ID.cer file on the machine
  • Enter the Digital ID and password
  • The Digital ID should now be successfully imported
  • Check the Digital ID under Tools> Manage Digital IDs where it should be listed

Click Internet Bidding Set Up link for additional set up details.

New icon flashing   Under Govt Code 14835 et seq. and 2 CA Code of Regs 1896 et seq., the Department gives preference to certified small businesses and non-small businesses who commit to 25 percent certified small business participation. "Small Business Preference(s) apply" will be displayed on advertised projects when applicable.

If you have any questions, please contact the Office of Construction Contract Awards at 916-227-6299.

First time bidders click here