(a) When agricultural products are purchased by the state or by a school district that receives state money, a preference not less than seven percent nor more than 15 percent shall be applied to the price of products harvested in the state.
(b) When fisheries products are purchased by the state or by a school district that receives state money, a preference not less than seven percent nor more than 15 percent shall be applied to the price of products harvested or processed within the jurisdiction of the state.
(c) A solicitation for the purchase of agricultural or fisheries products must include written notice of the preferences under (a) and (b) of this section and specify that agricultural products harvested in the state and fisheries products harvested or processed within the jurisdiction of the state will be used where possible. If the state or a school district that receives state money purchases agricultural products harvested outside the state or fisheries products harvested or processed outside the jurisdiction of the state, the officer responsible for the purchase shall certify in writing the reasons that agricultural products harvested in the state or fisheries products harvested or processed within the jurisdiction of the state were not purchased.
(d) If a contractor fails to comply with this section, the purchasing agency shall withhold payment until the contractor complies. If a school district fails to comply with this section, the department responsible for disbursing state money to the school district shall withhold the money until the school district complies.
(e) An interested party, as defined in AS 36.30.699, may seek administrative or judicial review of the award of a contract in violation of this section.
(f) Compliance with this section is not required if an exception to this section is mandated for participation in a federal program.
(g) A bidder receiving a preference under this section may not receive a preference under AS 36.30.322.
(h) In this section,
(1) “agricultural products” includes dairy products, timber and lumber, and products manufactured in the state from timber and lumber;
(2) “school district” includes a regional educational attendance area established under AS 14.08;
(3) “state money” includes state reimbursement to school districts for school or related construction, foundation funding for education, municipal assistance, community assistance, revenue sharing, and state funds for capital projects.