THE NEW LAW ON BIDDING AND CONTRACTS: IMPLEMENTATION CHALLENGES AND IMPACTS ON MUNICIPAL PUBLIC MANAGEMENT

Abstract

The new Public Procurement Law (Law nº. 14,133/2021) establishes rules for the Union, states, the Federal District, and municipalities and provides for five bidding modalities: competitive bidding, contest, auction, auction, and competitive dialogue. The latter modality allows negotiations with potential competitors previously selected based on objective criteria. Regarding the judging criteria, the regulation provides, in addition to the lowest price or largest discount, best technique or artistic content, technique and price, highest economic return, and highest bid. Given this scenario, this study aimed to analyze the impacts and challenges faced by municipalities in implementing Law No. 14,133/2021. It was based on a literature review, based on scientific articles, books, periodicals, and current legislation on the respective topic. Data collection was conducted using databases such as CAPES, Scielo, Google Scholar, and others, from 2020 to 2025. The results revealed that the implementation of the new law brings a set of requirements that represent a step forward in the modernization of public administration, but requires significant adaptation efforts from municipal managers. Without proper preparation, the above challenges can result in delays, inefficiencies, illegalities, and even sanctions from oversight bodies, such as audit courts. Investment in training, technology, regulation, and strategic planning is essential to ensure the correct application of the new law. It was also observed that the current law emphasizes principles such as planning, competency-based management, and governance, which requires a change in public management. Municipalities that fail to adapt may continue with poorly planned hiring processes, generating inefficiencies, overbilling, or unfinished projects.