How to Find Broward County (Fort Lauderdale) Government Contracts for Small Businesses

Broward County is one of the most populous counties in the United States, anchored by Fort Lauderdale and home to major aviation, seaport, and transit infrastructure. The county’s Purchasing Division publishes solicitations daily through the BPRO portal — and because Broward County runs its own system entirely separate from Florida’s state-level MyFloridaMarketPlace portal, county opportunities are easy to miss if you’re only watching the state. Here’s how Broward County government contracting works, who can bid, and how to track the right opportunities.

How Broward County procurement works

Broward County manages competitive procurement through the Purchasing Division, which publishes solicitations on the Broward County BPRO (Bonfire) portal, a Bonfire/Euna platform. Departments post Invitations for Bid (IFB), Requests for Proposals (RFP), and Requests for Qualifications (RFQ) covering construction, professional services, goods, and technology.

The portal is publicly accessible — no account is required to browse active solicitations. Each listing shows the solicitation title, number, type, closing date, and the issuing department. To download full bid documents or submit a response electronically, you must register as a vendor on the BPRO portal. Registration is free.

A critical distinction: Broward County’s BPRO portal is entirely separate from Florida’s statewide MyFloridaMarketPlace (MFMP) portal. A state agency solicitation posted on MFMP will not appear on BPRO, and a Broward County solicitation will not appear on MFMP. If you want coverage of both, you need to monitor both — or let ContractRadar do it for you.

Who can bid on Broward County contracts

Any registered business can bid on Broward County contracts. The county has meaningful programs supporting small and local businesses:

• County Business Enterprise (CBE) program — Broward County’s CBE program certifies small, locally-owned businesses to compete for county contracts. CBE-certified firms are often given preference or participation goals on county solicitations, making certification valuable both for direct bids and subcontracting opportunities with prime contractors.
• Small Business Enterprise (SBE) program — The SBE program supports smaller firms across a range of contract categories. SBE participation goals may be set on individual solicitations, particularly for construction and professional services contracts.
• Open competition — Non-certified businesses can still win prime contracts. Participation goals apply to how primes structure their subcontracting, not to eligibility to bid directly.

Federal certifications like 8(a), HUBZone, or SDVOSB don’t automatically transfer to Broward County programs, but the underlying documentation supports your CBE or SBE application.

Common contract categories in Broward County

• Aviation — Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport (FLL) — FLL is a major commercial airport operated by Broward County. Aviation-related solicitations cover terminal improvements, airfield maintenance, concessions, janitorial services, and infrastructure upgrades. Airport contracts represent some of the largest and most recurring opportunities in the county’s procurement portfolio.
• Port Everglades — One of the busiest seaports in the United States, Port Everglades is operated by Broward County and generates regular solicitations for marine construction, dredging, cargo handling equipment, security, and port facility maintenance.
• Transit — Broward County Transit (BCT) — BCT procures bus maintenance, fleet services, bus stop infrastructure, technology systems, and professional services for the county’s public transit system. Federal transit funding means many BCT contracts follow federal DBE requirements alongside county programs.
• Facilities maintenance & construction — The county maintains a large portfolio of public buildings including courthouses, libraries, parks facilities, and government offices. Janitorial, HVAC, electrical, plumbing, roofing, and construction solicitations appear regularly throughout the year.
• Parks & recreation — Broward County Parks procures landscaping, grounds maintenance, recreation equipment, and capital improvements for the county’s extensive park system. Multi-year term contracts for grounds maintenance recur on predictable cycles.
• Professional services — Engineering, architecture, environmental consulting, IT, and planning solicitations appear across county departments throughout the year. The county’s infrastructure-heavy portfolio means engineering and construction management services are particularly active categories.

Tips for winning Broward County contracts

Get CBE- or SBE-certified. Broward County’s CBE and SBE participation goals mean prime contractors on major county contracts actively seek certified subcontractors. Certification makes your firm visible to primes who must document participation, opening subcontracting conversations that would not otherwise happen.

Target FLL and Port Everglades subcontracting. Large aviation and port infrastructure primes need local subcontractors to meet participation goals. Even if you’re too small to prime a major airport or port contract, you may be well-positioned to sub on one.

Register on BPRO before you need it. Vendor registration on the Bonfire/BPRO portal is required before you can download bid documents or submit responses. The process is free but takes a few days — complete it before a solicitation you want closes.

Watch for multi-year term contracts. Broward County frequently awards term contracts with base periods and optional renewals for maintenance, grounds, and janitorial services. Winning a term contract builds a performance record with the county and makes renewals far more likely.

Layer county and state monitoring. Broward County contracts and Florida state contracts are entirely separate systems. Businesses targeting the South Florida market should monitor both the BPRO portal and the Florida state MFMP portal for full coverage.

How ContractRadar monitors Broward County

ContractRadar syncs the Broward County BPRO portal daily. When a Broward County solicitation matches your business profile, it appears in your opportunities dashboard and your daily email alert — alongside federal and Florida state results, so you see everything in one place without checking a separate portal.

Because Broward County and Florida state procurement are entirely separate systems, our Florida state contracts guide is a useful complement to this one if you also pursue state-level work through MyFloridaMarketPlace. See our full coverage map for all monitored sources.

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