Emergency Procurement Notice – South Carolina Department of Education

The South Carolina Department of Education issued an emergency procurement to address an urgent shortage of maintenance technicians needed to keep its fleet of approximately 5,500 school buses operational and safe. The agency entered into a $4,000,000 contract with First Student, a private company, to provide the required staffing and related services under an emergency exception to standard procurement rules. • Purpose: Rapidly fill maintenance‑technician positions to sustain safe bus operations across the state. • Scope: Staffing services (technicians) and possibly related support for bus maintenance; no equipment or construction is indicated. • Value: Fixed‑price contract of $4 million, reflecting the anticipated cost to staff and manage the bus‑maintenance effort for the contract’s duration. • Procurement Method: Emergency sole‑source award under South Carolina Code §11‑35‑1570, bypassing competitive bidding. • Contact Points: Agency procurement manager Joshua Bedenbaugh (email [email protected], phone (803) 734‑4839); protest address 1333 Main St., Suite 700, Columbia, SC 29201.