On 1 December 2005 the new wording of the Law on Public Procurement was proposed. The draft law implements Directive 2004/17/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 coordinating the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors, Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts, as well as other relevant EU legal instruments. The draft law aims at promoting competition and market development, implementing the principles of equality, non-discrimination and transparency and ensuring rational use of funds for public procurement. Adoption of the law would legitimate the application of the Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPC). The law would also provide an opportunity for contracting entities to apply new procurement procedures: dynamic purchasing system, electronic auction or competitive dialog. A ‘dynamic purchasing system’ is a completely electronic process for making commonly used purchases, the characteristics of which, as generally available on the market, meet the requirements of the contracting entity, which is limited in duration and open throughout its validity to any economic operator which satisfies the selection criteria and has submitted an indicative tender that complies with the specification. An ‘electronic auction’ is a repetitive process involving an electronic device for the presentation of new prices, revised downwards, and/or new values concerning certain elements of tenders, which occurs after an initial full evaluation of the tenders, enabling them to be ranked using automatic evaluation methods. Consequently, certain service contracts and certain works contracts having as their subject-matter intellectual performances, such as the design of works, may not be the object of electronic auctions. ‘Competitive dialogue’ is a procedure in which any economic operator may request to participate and whereby the contracting authority conducts a dialogue with the candidates admitted to that procedure, with the aim of developing one or more suitable alternatives capable of meeting its requirements, and on the basis of which the candidates chosen are invited to tender. Competitive dialog would be of great benefit in extraordinary complex procurements, e.g., in cases where large scale computer networks are being introduced or important projects of transport infrastructure are being implemented. The draft law also creates preconditions to use the new information technologies in the public procurements, e.g., to submit tenders and conclude agreements by electronic means. As procedures and rules of public procurement require high degree of safety and confidentiality, obligatory requirements for electronic device intended for the transfer and receipt of applications and offers are laid down. In addition to other provisions, the draft law provides for a possibility of establishing central purchasing bodies, specifies methods for calculation of the purchase price, establishes more explicit examination of the suppliers’ qualification, etc. The law is intended to enter into force on 1 January 2006.
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