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Selling to the State of Colorado

Purchasing portal, certifications and where to get help

How a company registers as a supplier with the State of Colorado, the state's certification programs and drone programs, and where to get help in Colorado, with the official sources. Federal registrations such as SAM.gov are in the federal guides.

Purchasing portal

Colorado Vendor Self Service (ColoradoVSS)

How to register

  1. Gather your W-9, your Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), business address, phone number and contact details. ColoradoVSS asks for these during registration, according to the ColoradoVSS Registration page.
  2. Go to colorado.gov/vss and click Sign Up.
  3. Read the ColoradoVSS Memorandum of Agreement and select Accept Terms.
  4. Create your user profile with a valid email address. Open the verification link that ColoradoVSS emails to you.
  5. Sign in. Click Send to get a one-time access code by email, enter it and click Verify (dual factor authentication).
  6. Search for your company by TIN. If a record already exists (for example from the old ColoradoBIDS system), activate it instead of registering again. If no record exists, select New Registration.
  7. Enter your TIN type and classification, business address and location, phone number and contact information. Type the TIN from your W-9 without dashes.
  8. Add commodity codes. ColoradoVSS emails you when a solicitation is published under a code saved in your account. ColoradoVSS says an asterisk before and after a search word returns more codes.
  9. Add business types (for example small or veteran-owned) if they apply. ColoradoVSS says this is optional and can be done later.
  10. Review your information and select Submit Registration.
  11. Foreign companies that have a U.S.-issued TIN (ITIN or EIN) follow the separate 'New Vendor Registration (For Foreign Vendors)' instructions on the ColoradoVSS help site.
  12. Registration is free, according to the Office of the State Controller. The Controller's office says registration 'is not required but is suggested,' and that it lets you sign up for commodity-code alerts on upcoming solicitations.
  13. Note: The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) runs its own solicitation system instead of ColoradoVSS (codot.gov/business), according to the Office of the State Controller.
  14. For help, email vsshelp@state.co.us (Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.).

State certifications

  • Colorado Supplier Diversity Directory (free verified listing)Colorado Department of Personnel & Administration, Statewide Equity Office (Statewide Supplier Diversity Program)Any business registered and in good standing with the Colorado Secretary of State can apply for a free listing. The state verifies HUBZone, small, diverse-owned (minority, woman, person with disabilities or LGBTQ+), veteran-owned and green businesses, using third-party certifications or, for size, tax returns or payroll records. Verifications last three years. The state's Business Certifications page says certification or verification is not required to sell goods or services to the State of Colorado.
  • Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), used for Colorado's 3% contracting goalU.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) certifies; State of Colorado sets the goalColorado has a 3% contracting goal for SDVOSBs (C.R.S. 24-103-905). To count toward it, the business must be verified as an SDVOSB by SBA, be located in Colorado (incorporated or organized in Colorado, or with an office or place of business there), and hold a direct contract with the State (subcontracts do not count). State agencies may give a preference in competitive bids; a response that claims it must include proof of SDVOSB status issued by SBA. The state's Business Certifications page says SDVOSB is the only business ownership type with a preference in State procurement.
  • Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE), Colorado Unified Certification ProgramColorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), with the City and County of DenverFirms seeking to count toward DBE goals on federally funded transportation contracts (FHWA, FTA and FAA). Under the U.S. Department of Transportation Interim Final Rule published October 3, 2025, every certified DBE must be reevaluated, and owners must submit a personal narrative and a personal net worth statement showing individual disadvantage without regard to race or sex. CDOT says it cannot set DBE goals on contracts effective on or after October 3, 2025 until that review is complete.
  • Emerging Small Business (ESB)Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT)For-profit firms in good standing with the Colorado Secretary of State whose main business is professional services, research or construction work that could relate to CDOT transportation contracts (including aeronautics, transit and highway), within SBA size standards. CDOT says the ESB program is race- and gender-neutral and is not affected by the DBE interim rule.
  • Certify Colorado (pays for a first certification; not a certification itself)Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT), Minority Business OfficePays up to $2,000 per business, sent directly to the certifier, toward a first-year third-party certification (WBENC, City and County of Denver M/WBE, SBE, EBE or SBEC, RTD SBE, or SBA 8(a), WOSB, SDVOSB or HUBZone). The business must be based, registered and in good standing with the Colorado Secretary of State, finish the Certifications 101 course (online, or in person through the Minority Business Office), submit a business plan for government or corporate contracting, and meet one-on-one with the Minority Business Office. Funds are first come, first served. OEDIT says the program runs until funds are used up, and then a wait list opens.

Drone programs

  • Center of Excellence for Advanced Technology Aerial Firefighting (CoE)Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control, Colorado Department of Public SafetyThe research and development arm of the Division, based in Rifle. It researches and tests technology for public safety, including robotics and drones, and has tested drone detection, tracking and identification equipment from companies. It also runs the Colorado Department of Public Safety drone pilot certification program for state personnel.

Where to get help in Colorado

The federal guides

  • Where to startThe order: the basics, codes and size, SAM.gov, certifications, drone rules, documents, where to sell, and free and low-cost help.
  • SAM.gov registrationThe federal government's free registration for companies that want federal contracts: the Unique Entity ID, the CAGE code and the yearly renewal.
  • Codes and profilesNAICS and PSC codes, SBA size standards, CAGE and NCAGE codes, and the SBA Small Business Search profile buyers search.
  • SBA certificationsThe SBA's 8(a), HUBZone, women-owned (WOSB and EDWOSB) and veteran-owned (VetCert) programs: who each is for and how to apply.
  • Drone complianceThe rules for selling drones to government and flying them: NDAA and the American Security Drone Act, Blue UAS, the FCC, FAA Part 107, ITAR, EAR and CMMC.
  • Documents to prepareWhat government buyers, SBA lenders, SBIR and STTR programs and investors ask to see.
  • Selling to federal buyersWhere federal contracts, subcontracts and research funding are posted: SAM.gov, primes, the GSA schedule, SBIR and STTR, DIU, AFWERX, the Army, the Navy, SOFWERX and DHS.
  • Utilities and public buyersUtilities, HUD-funded agencies, state transportation departments, cities and counties, and cooperative contracts such as Sourcewell and NASPO ValuePoint.
  • Free and low-cost helpAPEX Accelerators, SBDCs, SBA district offices, SCORE, veterans' and women's business centers, MEP centers and agency small business offices.

Official sources

Last checked September 25, 2026. Rules, fees and programs change; the official sources are where to confirm them before applying or spending money.

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Autonomy Runway is not a law firm, an accounting firm or a financial adviser, and nothing we publish is legal, tax or financial advice. The guides are general information with links to the official sources, and the tools organize your own facts and decisions. For advice about your situation, talk to a lawyer, an accountant or a financial adviser. See all our disclaimers.