A. In order to determine the responsibility of bidders, the awarding public agency may require prospective bidders, general contractors, subcontractors and material suppliers to prequalify as responsible bidders prior to submitting bids on a public construction contract. Prequalification to bid or perform work pursuant to this section does not constitute a license. Except as provided in subsection B of this section, prequalification shall not serve as a substitute for a license otherwise required by law. Notice of any such prequalification requirement shall be made equally and uniformly known by the awarding public agency to all prospective bidders and the public in the same manner as proposals to award public construction contracts as set forth in Section 104 of this title. Financial information including, but not limited to, audited financial statements required by the awarding public agency as part of prequalification shall remain confidential.

B. The Oklahoma Transportation Commission and the Oklahoma Transportation Authority may establish a system for prequalifying prospective bidders on construction and maintenance contracts to be awarded by the Commission or Authority. The Commission and the Authority shall be the sole judge of the qualifications of prospective bidders and shall ascertain, to their exclusive satisfaction, the qualifications of each prequalified bidder. Any contractor or subcontractor prequalified as of the effective date of this act performing signing, highway lighting, or traffic signal installation or maintenance for the Oklahoma Department of Transportation or the Oklahoma Transportation Authority shall be allowed to continue to bid and perform such work without obtaining any additional license from this state or any political subdivision of this state. However, no contractor or subcontractor may transfer, convey or assign this exemption to any other person or entity.

Added by Laws 1974, c. 298, § 18, operative Aug. 1, 1974. Amended by Laws 1992, c. 239, § 5, emerg. eff. May 19, 1992; Laws 1994, c. 203, § 2, eff. July 1, 1994; Laws 2000, c. 66, § 2, emerg. eff. April 14, 2000; Laws 2002, c. 294, § 20, eff. Nov. 1, 2002; Laws 2008, c. 212, § 3, emerg. eff. May 19, 2008.