This week, Abby Souffrant of A&L Business Solutions is back in the saddle for a deep-dive pod companion to the This Week in Procurement broadcast and she's not holding back. From a surprising (and slightly controversial) vending machine contract in Oxford, Mississippi, to a brand-new $1.2M family support pilot program out of Washington State, Abby walks through five hand-selected government contracting opportunities across the SLED market (State, Local, Education, and beyond).

Abby also gets on her soapbox (in the best way) about why agencies are starting to charge for bid documents, how ChatGPT is creating a wave of copy-paste proposals that get everyone disqualified, and why "proof of concept" will always matter more than passion alone in the government contracting arena.

Contracts Covered This Week:

1. 📣 Vending Machine Contract - Oxford, Mississippi | Due: March 19, 2026 | $50 bid doc purchase required
2. 📣 Basic Needs Support Pilot Program - Washington State | Up to $240K/vendor | Max $1.2M total | Due: TBD (May 2025–June 2027 term)
3. 📣 Beach Safety & Ocean Conditions Dashboard - California | Tech/data play | Proposals due March 20, 2026
4. 📣 Public Art Master Plan - New Jersey | Budget: $7,500 | Due: February 28, 2026
5. 📣 Life Skills Education Trainer - Ohio | 46-page RFP | Due: March 3, 2026

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