Hauling of Voting Machine for Pointe Coupee Parish - Advertisement Change of Link to view Drayage Bid Packets

The Louisiana Secretary of State has issued an invitation to bid for a drayage contract in Pointe Coupee Parish, seeking a qualified contractor to transport voting machines for the 2026 election cycle. The procurement involves hauling approximately 61 AVC "Advantage" voting machines between storage warehouses and 27 polling precincts, including demonstration and training sites. Specific drayage services include obtaining and delivering precinct registers and "Vote Here" signs, loading machines in enclosed trucks, setting up equipment at polling locations, completing chain of custody documentation, and returning all equipment to warehouses within 48 hours of poll closing. Sealed bids are due on November 25, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. CST, with a public bid opening scheduled for the same date and time at the State Archives Building. The contract will be awarded to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder within ten days of opening, with an initial term from January 1, 2026, through December 31, 2026, and options to renew for two additional 12-month periods.

Bidders must submit a bid guaranty equal to 5 percent of their bid amount and meet extensive insurance requirements, including workers' compensation, public liability, bodily injury, property damage, and auto liability coverage. A performance bond of 1.5 times the contract price is mandatory, and contractors must provide a notarized Contractor Disclosure of Ownership Form and a No Felony Conviction Employee Certification Affidavit. Contractors are limited to parishes with an aggregate total not exceeding 1,000 voting machines or four parishes. Compensation will be on a per-machine round-trip basis, with payments made within 30 days of invoice receipt, contingent on no machine damage resulting from contractor negligence. If the Secretary of State cancels a contract for cause, the contractor becomes ineligible to bid on future drayage contracts in that parish for three years. While no specific set-aside designations are mentioned, the comprehensive insurance and bonding requirements suggest a need for financially stable and operationally robust contractors with experience in logistics and election equipment transportation.