NIGP 80016: Boots, Rubber

NIGP 80016 Boots, Rubber is an Item code that captures state and local procurement of protective footwear, including safety boots, work boots, and specialized footwear meeting ANSI and OSHA standards for hazard protection. Issuing bodies span municipal water utilities, city departments, and state agencies. The City of Fort Worth's RFP for protective footwear shows the scope in concrete terms: asphalt, electrical hazard, orthopedic, restaurant-type, static dissipative, and waterproof footwear supplied on an as-needed basis to multiple city departments, with vendors required to maintain local inventory, provide fitting sessions, and operate mobile repair and polishing services. The Eastern Municipal Water District (EMWD) is separately soliciting a safety boot program provider to supply protective footwear to eligible employees. Contract values are modest but recurring — Fort Worth's historical annual spend on safety footwear averages $145,000. Vendors typically compete on best-value criteria weighing cost, company experience, ability to meet delivery timelines, and service capabilities including mobile fitting and repair.

Recent activity concentrates in Texas, where the City of Fort Worth issued RFP 260305 with proposals due October 8, 2026, and the Eastern Municipal Water District in Riverside County, California issued RFP 3971 with proposals due November 14, 2026. The Fort Worth RFP imposes a 30% small business participation goal and requires vendors to maintain a permanent business address within 25 miles of City Hall, with one-week standard delivery, two-week special order, and two-day expedited fulfillment. EMWD's solicitation does not enumerate specific performance standards in available excerpts. Both opportunities are non-exclusive, with initial terms of one year (Fort Worth) or unspecified (EMWD) and renewal options upon mutual agreement.