Ohio Revised Code Title I. State Government § 125.11

(A) Subject to division (B) of this section, contracts awarded pursuant to a reverse auction under section 125.072 of the Revised Code or pursuant to competitive sealed bidding, including contracts awarded under section 125.081 of the Revised Code, shall be awarded to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder in accordance with section 9.312 of the Revised Code, and contracts awarded pursuant to a competitive sealed proposal shall be awarded to the offeror determined to be the most advantageous to this state.

(B) Prior to awarding a contract under division (A) of this section, the department of administrative services or the state agency responsible for evaluating a contract for the purchase of products or services shall evaluate the bids and offers received according to the criteria and procedures established pursuant to division (B) of section 125.09 of the Revised Code for determining if a product is mined, excavated, produced, manufactured, raised, or grown in the United States, in this state, or in a state bordering Ohio, whether the bid or offer was received from a Buy Ohio supplier, and whether the bid or offer was received from a certified veteran-friendly business enterprise.  These requirements shall be applied where sufficient competition can be generated to ensure that compliance with these requirements will be in the best interest of the state unless otherwise prohibited.

(C) In order to ensure fair and impartial evaluation, materials relating to a solicitation through competitive selection shall not be considered public records under section 149.43 of the Revised Code until after the award of the contract based on the competitive selection.  If all bids or proposals received in response to a solicitation through competitive selection are rejected, and notice is provided of an intent to reissue the solicitation through competitive selection, the materials relating to the original solicitation and the materials relating to the reissued solicitation shall not be considered public records under section 149.43 of the Revised Code until after the award of the contract based on the reissued solicitation through competitive selection.

(D) Division (B) of this section applies to contracts for which competitive selection is waived by the controlling board.

(E) Division (B) of this section does not apply to the purchase by the division of liquor control of spirituous liquor.