Duties and powers of the department.

(1) It shall be the duty of the department to determine the market price of all products and services offered for sale to the various agencies of the state by any qualified nonprofit agency for the blind or other severely handicapped. The price shall recover for the nonprofit agency the cost of raw materials, labor, overhead, and delivery, but without profit, and shall be revised from time to time in accordance with changing cost factors. The department shall make such rules and regulations regarding specifications, time of delivery, and assignment of products and services to be supplied by nonprofit agencies for the blind or by agencies for the other severely handicapped, with priority for assignment of products to agencies for the blind, authorization of a central nonprofit agency to facilitate the allocation of orders among qualified nonprofit agencies for the blind, authorization of a central nonprofit agency to facilitate the allocation of orders among qualified nonprofit agencies for other severely handicapped, and other relevant matters of procedure as shall be necessary to carry out the purposes of this act. The department shall authorize the purchase of products and services elsewhere when requisitions cannot reasonably be complied with through the nonprofit agencies for the blind and other severely handicapped.

(2) The department shall establish and publish a list of products and services provided by any qualified nonprofit agency for the blind and any nonprofit agency for the other severely handicapped, which the department determines are suitable for procurement by agencies of the state pursuant to this act. This procurement list and revision thereof shall be distributed to all purchasing officers of the state and its political subdivisions. All products offered for purchase to a state agency by a qualified nonprofit agency shall have significant value added by blind or severely handicapped persons, as determined by the department.