How to do Business with California State Government

Take these first steps to sell your business's products and services to the state of California.

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Register your business on Cal eProcure
- Go to www.caleprocure.ca.gov and register your business.
- Watch these video instructions or read this step-by-step guide.
- Make sure you are setup to receive notifications for solicitations and add the right codes to your profile with the UNSPSC video and guide.
Apply for certification
- Go to www.caleprocure.ca.govand log in to your account.
- Read the eligibility requirements for the Small Business (SB) and Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise (DVBE) certifications.
- Review the SB and DVBE required documents.
- Be prepared to add Keywords and UNSPSCs in the application with this video and guide (Guía en español).
- For application instructions, watch these video instructions or read this guide.

Steps

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Introduction to State Contracting

Overview of Contracting with the State

Commercially Useful Function

All California certified businesses (SB, SB-PW, DVBE) doing business with the state must perform a Commercially Useful Function (CUF). It is the law. Read more about Commercially Useful Function Contract Requirements and watch the CUF video below to make sure you are CUF compliant.

Research and Marketing

Next Steps after registration/certification

I'm Certified, Now What? – take next steps to contracting with the state (English)
Pasos a Seguir Despues de Recibir Certificacion (Español)

Improve your Cal eProcure Profile

Review Keywords and UNSPSCs

Keyword and UNSPSC Guide (Guía en español)

Update your notifications for bid solicitations

Update your Certification Profile

Research Past Purchases

Research which state departments and agencies purchase your business's products and services with the Statewide Procurement Data Dashboards.

The dashboards allow you to view the public record of state spend. You can see state spend by department, UNSPSC, top spends, and more.

Conduct more market research on www.caleprocure.ca.gov in the State Contract and Procurement Registration System (SCPRS).

Go to www.caleprocure.ca.gov and click "Quick Links" in the top navigation bar, then click on "Find Past Purchases (SCPRS)."
Search for the products and services you sell by using keywords in the Description field or by UNSPSC classifications in the advanced search options. You can also search by department to learn which products and services they procure.
Download the search results – a spreadsheet of all the results – and analyze it for the information you want. See if your product or service was purchased through a competitive bid solicitation or a statewide contract, the dollar amount of the contract, which department conducted the procurement, and more.

Contact an SB/DVBE Advocate

SB/DVBE Advocates are state employees who help SBs and DVBEs pursue contract opportunities with the department they work for. They also work closely with the buyers in their department to include SBs and DVBEs in state procurement. Almost every agency and department in the state of California has an advocate. When you contact an advocate, follow this guide.

Find an advocate

Advertise your business on Cal eProcure

Businesses can place free advertisements on bid solicitations to seek work as a subcontractor with a prime, or as a prime contractor looking for a subcontractor. Watch the video and follow the steps below.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Go to www.caleprocure.ca.gov and log into your Cal eProcure account.
Click "Start Search" to search the California State Contracts Register for bid solicitations.
Click on the one you are interested in.
Click the "Post Vendor Ads" button and fill out the advertisement. Make sure to list your certification ID.

Emergency Contracting

If you certified business is ready, able and willing to sell products or services to the state during an emergency, consider signing up in the SB/DVBE Emergency Registry. This portal is separate from Cal eProcure and only lists certified businesses that can deploy goods or services to state departments during the event of an emergency.

Learn more about the SB/DVBE Emergency Registry

Leverage your certification with our Reciprocity Partners

A Reciprocity Partner is a city, county, local agency, or special district that honors the state of California's Small Business (SB) and/or Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise (DVBE) certifications as acceptance into their individual business enterprise programs.

Learn more about Reciprocity Partners.

State Contracts – Bidding and Performing

How the State Contracts

Acquisitions Methods Flyer
Métodos de Adquisición (Folleto en español)

Using DVBE Subcontractors

The Department of General Services has implemented new requirements for Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise (DVBE) subcontracting and reporting, as well strengthened enforcement of the Commercially Useful Function (CUF) requirements for Small Businesses and DVBEs

Learn more about Using DVBE Subcontractors.

Contract Insurance Requirements

A guide to educate contractors about insurance requirements for state contracts.

Beyond The State of California

Get help from other departments and organizations to develop and grow your business.

Small Business Development Centers give free business counseling and training.
APEX Accelerators (formerly PTAC) help with government contracting.
SCORE offers mentoring and education to start or grow your business.
California Office of the Small Business Advocate (CalOSBA) gives grants and helps business navigate resources, programs, and regulations.
California Grants Portal includes grants and loans offered by California state agencies.
Diversity Partner Directory contains support and technical assistance partners.