How to bid ODOT work: prequalify 10 days ahead, register in OregonBuys, and self-perform at least 30%

The Oregon Department of Transportation awards highway and bridge construction contracts through competitive bids opened at its offices in Salem. Two large projects are on its current schedule: a bridge on I-84 in Hood River opening Nov. 5, and a safety corridor on OR 99W near Dayton opening Nov. 19. Here is how a contractor gets on the bidders list, based on ODOT's bid and award page and its notices to contractors.

Step 1: Register in OregonBuys

ODOT requires prime contractors and subcontractors doing business in Oregon to be registered in OregonBuys, the state's eProcurement system. ODOT says it cannot approve a prequalification application or addendum until the company is registered. Its instructions say to check "Doing Work with ODOT" during registration.

Step 2: Prequalify

Prime bidders must be prequalified. ODOT's page says an approved prequalification lasts two years, and a complete application must be received at least 10 calendar days before the bid opening the firm wants to participate in, under OAR 731-007-0530. Applications can be emailed to ODOT's construction procurement office.

Prequalification is by class of work, and each notice says which classes a project requires. The Hood River bridge requires Bridges and Structures. The OR 99W corridor accepts either Earthwork and Drainage, or the combination of Asphalt Concrete Paving and Oiling and Miscellaneous Highway Appurtenances. ODOT also runs special prequalifications for some work; its 2026 cathodic protection projects, for example, are open only to firms that passed a separate review.

ODOT's prequalification application says firms that have never been prequalified, or whose prequalification lapsed more than six months ago, must include three reference forms for each class of work. ODOT posts its prequalified contractor list on the same page.

Step 3: Get the documents

ODOT's Electronic Bidding Information System, eBIDS, gives free access to plans, specifications, bid booklets, addenda and clarification letters. Project-specific technical questions go by email to the project manager named in each notice.

Step 4: Bid

Bid closing is 9:00:00 a.m. on bid day. Bids can be submitted electronically through Bid Express, where ODOT says it now uses a new application, AASHTOWare Project Bids, or on paper, by mail to ODOT Procurement in Salem or hand-stamped and placed in the bid box in the first-floor lobby at 355 Capitol Street NE. Bids, modifications and withdrawals are not accepted at or after 9 a.m.

Rules on every ODOT project

• The contractor's own organization must perform at least 30% of the awarded contract amount.
• Every project includes a steel escalation clause and minimum wage rate requirements.
• Federally funded projects carry Buy America requirements.
• ODOT publishes preliminary bid results by close of business on bid day.
• Award is not final until three working days after the notice of intent to award is posted, or until ODOT answers any timely protest, whichever is later.

ODOT's award page also posts first-tier subcontractor disclosure forms, DBE commitment forms and bid tabulations. Each notice also says ODOT may reject any bid that does not comply with its bidding procedures, and may reject any or all bids for good cause when it finds that doing so is in the public interest.

For subcontractors

Subcontractors do not bid ODOT directly, but they still need an OregonBuys registration and a CCB license, and primes must file first-tier subcontractor disclosures and DBE commitment forms. On public improvement contracts, ORS 279C.580 requires primes to pay first-tier subs within 10 days of being paid, so subs should track when ODOT pays the prime.

Licensing

Every contractor that bids in Oregon must hold a Construction Contractors Board license with the right endorsement. Our directory lists CCB-licensed firms by county, including the Marion County hub. See our ODOT bidding guide and OregonBuys guide.