(a) Conditions for use.--The services of accountants, clergy, physicians, lawyers, dentists and other professional services which are not performed by other Commonwealth employees shall be procured in accordance with this section except as authorized under section 514 (relating to small procurements), 515 (relating to sole source procurement) or 516 (relating to emergency procurement).

(b) Statement of qualifications.--Persons engaged in providing the types of services specified in subsection (a) may submit statements of qualifications and expressions of interest in providing these services. The contracting officer may specify a uniform format for statements of qualifications. Persons may amend these statements at any time by filing a new statement.

(c) Request for proposals.--Adequate notice of the need for the services specified in subsection (a) shall be given by the purchasing agency through a request for proposals. The request for proposals shall describe the services required, list the type of information required of each offeror and state the relative importance of the particular information.

(d) Discussions.--The contracting officer may conduct discussions with any responsible offeror to determine the offeror's qualifications for further consideration. Discussions shall not disclose any information derived from proposals submitted by other offerors.

(e) Award.--Award shall be made to the responsible offeror determined in writing by the contracting officer to be best qualified based on the evaluation factors set forth in the request for proposals. Fair and reasonable compensation shall be determined through negotiation. If compensation cannot be agreed upon with the best qualified responsible offeror, then negotiations will be formally terminated with the offeror. If proposals were submitted by one or more other responsible offerors, negotiations may be conducted with the other responsible offeror or responsible offerors in the order of their respective qualification ranking. The contract may be awarded to the responsible offeror then ranked as best qualified if the amount of compensation is determined to be fair and reasonable.