Sole Source:AGR-EP-USA Acclaim-AG Enterprise Implementation

The Illinois Department of Agriculture is seeking sole-source contract award to Acclaim Systems for USA Plant software implementation and maintenance, with a public hearing scheduled July 17, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. via WebEx and an anticipated award date of July 22, 2026 (bid number 26-406AGR-NATRE-B-52983). The State's Chief Procurement Officer has denied approval of the sole-source justification; the hearing will determine whether the procurement method is appropriate under the Illinois Procurement Code.

The scope covers AgEnterprise Framework implementation with account management, security, logging, and data management; plant industry modules including licensing, product registration, workshop and CEU processing, inspection management, enforcement, and complaint management; data migration from the existing USA Plants system; configuration for pesticide program and structural pesticide licensing; virtual power user training; and yearly support and maintenance services. The project supports Public Act 104-0363, which mandates Continuing Education Units (CEUs) for pesticide certification and licensing.

The contract value is $256,800 for a one-year term beginning August 3, 2026 and ending August 2, 2027, with no renewal options. The Department projects future annual maintenance and support costs below $100,000. The Department's sole-source justification rests on proprietary rights to the USA Plants software, which Acclaim Systems created and customized extensively for the Department's pesticide licensing requirements; the Department asserts that alternative vendors cannot migrate existing data without significant risk of corruption or loss and would require complete system redesign at substantially higher costs. Prior purchase history with Acclaim Systems includes three contracts valued at $79,592 (January 2020–December 2022), $86,972.82 (January 2023–December 2025), and $41,187.51 (January 2026–December 2026).

Interested parties must submit written comments or request a hearing by July 17, 2026 at 4:00 p.m. to Dianne Richman (Dianne.Richman@illinois.gov or 217-622-1857); absence of comments will cancel the hearing.