18-4-127. Procurement of food products -- rulemaking -- reporting. (1) Food products produced in the state may be procured either by standard procedures or by direct purchase. Montana-produced food products may be procured by direct purchase when:

(a) the quality of available Montana-produced food products is substantially equivalent to the quality of similar food products produced outside the state;

(b) a vender is able to supply Montana-produced food products in sufficient quantity; and

(c) a bid for Montana-produced food products either does not exceed or reasonably exceeds the lowest bid or price quoted for similar products produced outside the state. A bid reasonably exceeds the lowest bid or price quoted when, in the discretion of the person charged by law with the duty to purchase food products for a governmental body, the higher bid is reasonable and capable of being paid out of that governmental body's existing budget without any further supplemental or additional appropriation.

(2) The department shall adopt any rules necessary to administer the optional procurement exception and reporting requirement established in this section.

(3) Except as provided in subsection (5), all contracts for the procurement of food products by a governmental body with a total contract value of $100,000 or more that are entered into or renewed after June 30, 2025, must include a provision that requires the vendor to provide the report described in subsection (4). A vendor shall submit its report annually to the governmental body by the date prescribed by the department.

(4) For the purpose of complying with subsection (3), for the year preceding the date set by the department, a vendor shall report:

(a) the total dollar value of food products purchased by the governmental body;

(b) the total dollar value of Montana-produced food products purchased by the governmental body; and

(c) to the extent the vendor can provide this type of information, the total dollar value of Montana-produced food products purchased by the governmental body in each of the following categories:

(i) meat, including but not limited to beef, poultry, pork, fish, sheep, and goat;

(ii) produce as defined in 80-3-302;

(iii) alcoholic beverages, as defined in 16-1-106;

(iv) nonalcoholic beverages and drinks;

(v) dairy products and eggs;

(vi) pulse crops as defined in 15-6-220; and

(vii) grain as defined in 80-4-402.

(5) (a) Contracts for alcoholic beverage purchases made by the department of revenue pursuant to Title 16 are not subject to the contractual provision requirement in subsection (3).

(b) The vendors of alcoholic beverages purchased by the department of revenue pursuant to Title 16 are not subject to the reporting requirements in subsections (3) and (4).

(6) As used in this section, the following definitions apply:

(a) "Food" means articles normally used by humans as food or drink, including alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages and articles used for components of articles normally used by humans as food or drink.

(b) "Produced" means planted, cultivated, grown, harvested, raised, collected, processed, or manufactured.