Last updated: August 24, 2026
Quick answer
NASPO ValuePoint runs on two separate contracts. A lead state signs a Master Agreement with you. Then each state signs its own Participating Addendum before its agencies can buy.
- NASPO calls itself a cooperative alliance pooling demand from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the US Territories.
- Civic IQ read 60 cooperative purchase records across 22 states, dated May 26 to August 18, 2026.
- Of those, 22 named a Participating Addendum outright. The addendum is the step vendors forget.
- The 24 records with a clean dollar figure total at least $25,342,049. The middle one was $236,752.
- Saline County, Illinois joined a NASPO contract on May 26, 2026. Huntsville, Alabama joined a different one on June 11.
What is NASPO ValuePoint?
It is the buying arm of the state purchasing chiefs. NASPO stands for the National Association of State Procurement Officials. ValuePoint is the part that holds contracts.
NASPO describes it as a cooperative alliance. It pools the demand of all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the US Territories. That language comes from its own supplier FAQ.
The pitch to vendors is simple. Win once, then sell in many states without bidding again. The pitch is broadly true. The part that trips people up is what “win once” actually buys you.
How does NASPO ValuePoint work?
One state does the bid for everyone. NASPO calls it the lead state. A sourcing team scores the offers and recommends who wins.
NASPO puts it plainly. Its sourcing teams write the request for proposals, review responses, and recommend awards to an executive council. Once awarded, the agreements are open to states, their subdivisions, and other eligible bodies.
Note step four. That is where most vendors lose a year. You can hold a valid award and still have no way to sell in a given state. The lead state and sourcing team page lists who runs which category.
What is the difference between a Master Agreement and a Participating Addendum?
One sets your terms. The other opens a market. Vendors who miss this run their whole plan on the wrong document.
| Question | Master Agreement | Participating Addendum |
|---|---|---|
| Who signs it with you | The lead state that ran the bid | Each state or public body that wants to use it |
| How many you get | One per award | As many as you can get states to sign |
| What it decides | Your products, prices, and terms | Whether that state’s agencies may buy at all |
| Can it add local rules | It is the base document | Yes. States add their own terms here |
| Where your revenue comes from | None on its own | All of it |
NASPO defines the addendum as a two way agreement between the awarded supplier and a participating entity. So it is a real contract, signed one at a time. That is why the count of your addenda matters more than the award itself.
Does one award give you all 50 states?
No. The award only makes you available for selection. Each state still has to opt in on its own.
Think of the award as a licence to be chosen. Each state still decides whether to join, and many never join a given contract. So your map after year one may hold six states rather than fifty.
This is the same trap we flag in our guide to getting on a cooperative purchasing contract. The seat is where the selling starts. NASPO sets out the entry route on its how to become a supplier page.
Both of those buyers have their own page. Agency profiles: Saline County, IL and City of Huntsville, AL.
Who can buy from a NASPO ValuePoint contract?
States first, then the bodies under them. NASPO says awarded agreements are open to states, to the political subdivisions beneath them, and to other eligible bodies. Groups like NIGP train the officials who run those purchases.
In practice that means counties and cities, plus school districts. Access is not automatic though. Washington makes every city, county, and school district sign a contract usage agreement first. Our 2026 sample shows each of them. Saline County in Illinois joined a security and fire services contract on May 26, 2026. Huntsville, Alabama moved on a wireless contract on June 11, 2026.
School districts were the most common buyer of all in the sample. One California district approved Chromebooks on June 22, 2026. Another approved copiers on June 24. Both cited NASPO by name in the board record.
Where are agencies using these contracts right now?
Across 22 states, in board packets, weeks before the money moves. Civic IQ read 60 cooperative purchase records dated May 26 to August 18, 2026.
Twenty four of those carried a clean dollar figure. They total at least $25,342,049. The middle value was $236,752, so this is a market of steady six figure buys with a few large ones on top.
Two records in the raw pull were duplicates of other records, so we removed them before adding anything up. The uncleaned total would have read $41,181,847, which would have overstated the sample by more than half.
The named deals are ordinary tech. Laptops, desktops, phone systems. Network gear, copiers, security tools. NASPO groups these into categories on its contract portfolio. One California board approved 300 laptops through a state addendum on June 10, 2026, according to Civic IQ records pulled August 22, 2026.
Texas runs its own version of this idea for technology. We cover it in DIR contracts explained, and the wider landscape sits in cooperative purchasing explained.
Open RFPs related to this topic
Live opportunities surfaced by Civic IQ as of August 22, 2026. Status changes daily.
- City of Valdosta Notice of Intent to Utilize Cooperative Purchasing Agreement For Purchase of Pumps, City of Valdosta, GA (due 2026-08-25)
- GoodBuy Cooperative Purchasing Program Outdoor Furniture Bid 2026, TX (due 2026-09-22)
- GoodBuy Cooperative Purchasing Program Calculators-Math Bid 2026, TX (due 2026-09-03)
Frequently asked questions
How does NASPO ValuePoint work?
One state runs the bid for everyone. That lead state scores the offers and signs a Master Agreement with the winners. Other states then sign their own Participating Addendum against that agreement. Local agencies buy under their own state’s addendum, so no one repeats the bid.
What is the difference between a Master Agreement and a Participating Addendum?
The Master Agreement is signed between the supplier and the lead state that ran the solicitation. A Participating Addendum is a separate deal between that supplier and one state or public body that wants to use it. The first sets the terms. The second opens a market.
Does a NASPO ValuePoint award give you all 50 states?
No. The award makes you available to every member. It does not sign anyone up. Each state has to execute its own Participating Addendum first, and many never do for a given contract. Selling state by state after the award is the real work.
Who can buy from a NASPO ValuePoint contract?
States, their political subdivisions, and other eligible public bodies, once their state has an addendum in place. In our 2026 sample that included counties, cities, and school districts. A county in Illinois and a city in Alabama both joined contracts in the same 12 week window.
Who is NASPO ValuePoint?
It is the contracting arm of the National Association of State Procurement Officials. NASPO describes it as a cooperative alliance that pools the demand of all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the US Territories. Its awards are made through competitive state led solicitations.
