Alaska Bidder and Related Preferences: Status and What to Do

What it is

Alaska does not run its own MBE or WBE certification. Instead, the State Procurement Code (AS 36.30) gives price preferences when agencies evaluate bids and proposals. The main one is a 5% preference for an "Alaska bidder." Other preferences cover Alaska bidders that are veteran-owned, disability-owned or that run employment programs for people with disabilities, plus goods made in Alaska.

Who qualifies

• Alaska bidder: holds a current Alaska business license and bids under that licensed name.
• It must have kept a place of business in Alaska, staffed by the bidder or an employee, for the six months before the bid.
• It must also be incorporated or qualified to do business in Alaska, or be a sole proprietorship, Alaska LLC or partnership whose owners are all Alaska residents.
• Veteran preference: an Alaska bidder owned by Alaska veterans (state residents separated from service under conditions not dishonorable).
• Disability preference: an Alaska bidder owned by persons with disabilities who are on the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation's list when the bid opens.
• Alaska products: goods more than 25% produced or manufactured in Alaska, on lists the commissioner of commerce publishes each year.
• Out-of-state companies get the Alaska bidder preference only if they meet every part of this test.

What it means for your bids

• Alaska bidder: 5% preference applied to the price in your bid or proposal.
• Veteran-owned: a 5% preference, capped at $5,000. The statute text we read does not say how it combines with the Alaska bidder preference.
• Owned by persons with disabilities: 10%. Employment program for people with disabilities: 15%. You cannot get both of these on the same contract.
• Alaska products: 3% (Class I), 5% (Class II) or 7% (Class III), based on the share made in Alaska.
• On proposals scored with points, an Alaska offeror gets at least 10% of the total possible points (per NASPO's preference repository, citing 2 AAC 12.260(e)).
• The 2025 edition of the statute adds a 2% preference (max $5,000) for Alaska bidders employing someone in or recently out of a SkillBridge or Army career skills program. It is not in the 2024 edition, and we could not confirm its effective date.
• These preferences do not apply to lease space, small procurements (unless regulations allow) and some other purchase types.

How to get certified

Alaska has no ownership-based certification. To qualify for the preferences:

1. Get or renew your Alaska business license: https://www.commerce.alaska.gov/web/cbpl/BusinessLicensing.aspx. Fees are on a separate page we did not confirm.
2. Meet the six-month staffed office rule and, for the disability preference, get on the Vocational Rehabilitation list before bid opening.
3. To sell Alaska products, ask the commissioner of commerce to add your product to the annual lists.
4. Find bids on Alaska Online Public Notices (https://aws.state.ak.us/OnlinePublicNotices/), which links to Vendor Self Service, and claim each preference as the solicitation directs.

Watch out for

• Federal DBE certification is separate and applies to transportation work.
• For the veteran, disability and employment program preferences, you must perform and manage the services yourself, or have sold the same kind of supplies to others.
• We read the statutes in Justia's 2025 edition because the official Alaska statutes site did not load for us.
• City and borough purchasing rules, including Anchorage's, are separate. Check each one.

Programs in other states →

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Sources

• aws.state.ak.us/OnlinePublicNotices/
• www.commerce.alaska.gov/web/cbpl/BusinessLicensing.aspx
• law.justia.com/codes/alaska/title-36/chapter-30/article-5/section-36-30-321/
• law.justia.com/codes/alaska/2024/title-36/chapter-30/article-5/section-36-30-321/
• law.justia.com/codes/alaska/title-36/chapter-30/article-10/section-36-30-990/
• law.justia.com/codes/alaska/title-36/chapter-30/article-5/section-36-30-328/
• law.justia.com/codes/alaska/title-36/chapter-30/article-5/section-36-30-332/
• www.naspo.org/research-and-innovation/state-preference-repository/browse-by-state/a

FindMyBids isn't affiliated with any certifying agency, and this isn't legal advice. Status can change quickly with court orders and new laws, so confirm with the program office before you rely on it.