(a) Contracts by counties, cities, metropolitan governments, towns, utility districts and other municipal and public corporations of the state, for legal services, fiscal agent, financial advisor or advisory services, educational consultant services, and similar services by professional persons or groups of high ethical standards, shall not be based upon competitive solicitations, but shall be awarded on the basis of recognized competence and integrity. The prohibition against competitive soliciting in this section shall not prohibit any entity enumerated from interviewing eligible persons or entities to determine the capabilities of such persons or entities.

(b) Any person providing fiscal agent, financial advisor or advisory services to any county, city, metropolitan government, town, utility district or other municipal or public corporation shall perform such services only pursuant to a written contract, specifying the services to be rendered, the costs therefore, and the expenses to be covered under such contract.

(c) Any person providing fiscal agent, financial advisor or advisory services to any county, city, metropolitan government, town, utility district or other municipal or public corporation of this state who desires to bid, directly or indirectly, on any bonds, notes or other obligations of such entity sold pursuant to public, competitive sale shall receive in writing prior to the sale the permission of such entity to respond either directly or indirectly on the obligations.

(d) For the purposes of this section, “providing fiscal agent, financial advisor or advisory services” means a relationship that exists when a person renders or enters into an agreement to render financial advisory or consultant services to or on behalf of an issuer with respect to a new issue or issues of municipal securities, including advice with respect to the structure, timing, terms and other similar matters concerning such issue or issues, for a fee or other compensation or in expectation of such compensation for the rendering of such services. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this subsection (d), a financial advisory relationship shall not be deemed to exist when, in the course of acting as an underwriter, a municipal securities dealer renders advice to an issuer, including advice with respect to the structure, timing, terms and other similar matters concerning a new issue of municipal securities.

(e)

(1) Contracts by counties, cities, metropolitan governments, towns, utility districts and other municipal and public corporations of the state for information management services, including, but not limited to, computer program analyst services shall, upon approval by a two-thirds (⅔) vote of the governing body, be procured through a request for proposals process. The request for proposals process will invite prospective respondents to participate and will indicate the service requirements and the factors used for evaluating the proposals. Such factors shall include cost, the vendor's qualifications and any additional factor or factors deemed relevant by the procuring entity for the procurement of the service. Cost shall not be the sole criterion for evaluation. The contract for such services will be awarded to the best evaluated, responsive respondent.

(2) This subsection (e) shall only apply in counties having a population of not less than four hundred seventy thousand (470,000) nor more than four hundred eighty thousand (480,000), according to the 1980 federal census or any subsequent federal census.