AN ACT Relating to state hospital purchasing authority; and amending RCW 43.19.190 and 43.19.1906.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1. Section 3, chapter 32, Laws of 1969 as last amended by section 1, chapter 103, Laws of 1980 and RCW 43.19.190 are each amended to read as follows:

The director of general administration, through the state purchasing and material control director, shall:

(1) Establish and staff such administrative organizational units within the division of purchasing as may be necessary for effective administration of the provisions of RCW 43.19.190 through 43.19.1939;

(2) Purchase all material, supplies, services, and equipment needed for the support, maintenance, and use of all state institutions, colleges, community colleges, and universities, the offices of the elective state officers, the supreme court, the court of appeals, the administrative and other departments of state government, and the offices of all appointive officers of the state: PROVIDED, That the provisions of RCW 43.19.190 through 43.19.1937 do not apply in any manner to the operation of the state legislature except as requested by said legislature: PROVIDED, That primary authority for the purchase of specialized equipment, instructional, and research material for their own use shall rest with the colleges, community colleges, and universities: PROVIDED FURTHER, That universities operating hospitals and state hospitals as defined in chapter 72.23 RCW may make purchases for hospital operation by participating in contracts for materials, supplies, and equipment entered into by cooperative hospital service organizations as defined in section 501(e) of the Internal Revenue Code, or its successor: PROVIDED FURTHER, That primary authority for the purchase of materials, supplies, and equipment for resale to other than public agencies shall rest with the state agency concerned: PROVIDED FURTHER, That authority to purchase services as included herein does not apply to personal services authorized for direct acquisition from vendors by state organizations and filed under the provisions of RCW 39.29.010 through 39.29.030, unless such organization specifically requests assistance from the division of purchasing in obtaining personal services and resources are available within the division to provide such assistance: PROVIDED FURTHER, That the authority for the purchase of insurance and bonds shall rest with the risk manager under RCW 43.19.1935 as now or hereafter amended;

(3) Provide the required staff assistance for the state supply management advisory board through the division of purchasing;

(4) Have authority to delegate to state agencies authorization to purchase or sell, which authorization shall specify restrictions as to dollar amount or to specific types of material, equipment, services, and supplies: PROVIDED, That acceptance of the purchasing authorization by a state agency does not relieve such agency from conformance with other sections of RCW 43.19.190 through 43.19.1939, as now or hereafter amended, or from policies established by the director after consultation with the state supply management advisory board: PROVIDED FURTHER, That delegation of such authorization to a state agency, including an educational institution, to purchase or sell material, equipment, services, and supplies shall not be granted, or otherwise continued under a previous authorization, if such agency is not in substantial compliance with overall state purchasing and material control policies as established herein;

(5) Contract for the testing of material, supplies, and equipment with public and private agencies as necessary and advisable to protect the interests of the state;

(6) Prescribe the manner of inspecting all deliveries of supplies, materials, and equipment purchased through the division;

(7) Prescribe the manner in which supplies, materials, and equipment purchased through the division shall be delivered, stored, and distributed;

(8) Provide for the maintenance of a catalogue library, manufacturers' and wholesalers' lists, and current market information;

(9) Provide for a commodity classification system and may, in addition, provide for the adoption of standard specifications after receiving the recommendation of the supply management advisory board;

(10) Provide for the maintenance of inventory records of supplies, materials, and other property;

(11) Prepare rules and regulations governing the relationship and procedures between the division of purchasing and state agencies and vendors;

(12) Publish procedures and guidelines for compliance by all state agencies, including educational institutions, which implement overall state purchasing and material control policies;

(13) Conduct periodic visits to state agencies, including educational institutions, to determine if statutory provisions and supporting purchasing and material control policies are being fully implemented, and based upon such visits, take corrective action to achieve compliance with established purchasing and material control policies under existing statutes when required.

Sec. 2. Section 43.19.1906, chapter 8, Laws of 1965 as last amended by section 1, chapter 342, Laws of 1985 and RCW 43.19.1906 are each amended to read as follows:

Insofar as practicable, all purchases and sales shall be based on competitive bids, and a formal sealed bid procedure shall be used as standard procedure for all purchases and contracts for purchases and sales executed by the state purchasing and material control director and under the powers granted by RCW 43.19.190 through 43.19.1939, as now or hereafter amended. This requirement also applies to purchases and contracts for purchases and sales executed by agencies, including educational institutions, under delegated authority granted in accordance with provisions of RCW 43.19.190 as now or hereafter amended. However, formal sealed bidding is not necessary for:

(1) Emergency purchases made pursuant to RCW 43.19.200 if the sealed bidding procedure would prevent or hinder the emergency from being met appropriately;

(2) Purchases not exceeding twenty-five hundred dollars, or purchases not exceeding five thousand dollars when the purchases are made by colleges and universities and are limited to the acquisition of equipment and materials to be used for research purposes: PROVIDED, That the state director of general administration shall establish procedures to assure that purchases made by or on behalf of the various state agencies shall not be made so as to avoid the twenty-five hundred dollar or the five thousand dollar bid limitation: PROVIDED FURTHER, That the state purchasing and material control director is authorized to reduce the formal sealed bid limits of twenty-five hundred dollars and five thousand dollars to a lower dollar amount for purchases by individual state agencies, including purchases of specialized equipment, instructional, and research equipment and materials by colleges and universities, if considered necessary to maintain full disclosure of competitive procurement or otherwise to achieve overall state efficiency and economy in purchasing and material control. Quotations from four hundred dollars to twenty-five hundred dollars or five thousand dollars, whichever is applicable, shall be secured from enough vendors to assure establishment of a competitive price. A record of competition for all such purchases from four hundred dollars to twenty-five hundred dollars or five thousand dollars, whichever is applicable, shall be documented for audit purposes on a standard state form approved by the forms management center under the provisions of RCW 43.19.510. Purchases up to four hundred dollars may be made without competitive bids based on buyer experience and knowledge of the market in achieving maximum quality at minimum cost: PROVIDED, That this four hundred dollar direct buy limit without competitive bids may be increased incrementally as required to a maximum of eight hundred dollars with the approval of at least ten of the members of the state supply management advisory board, if warranted by increases in purchasing costs due to inflationary trends;

(3) Purchases which are clearly and legitimately limited to a single source of supply and purchases involving special facilities, services, or market conditions, in which instances the purchase price may be best established by direct negotiation;

(4) Purchases of insurance and bonds by the risk management office under RCW 43.19.1935 as now or hereafter amended;

(5) Purchases and contracts for vocational rehabilitation clients of the department of social and health services: PROVIDED, That this exemption is effective only when the state purchasing and material control director, after consultation with the director of the division of vocational rehabilitation and appropriate department of social and health services procurement personnel, declares that such purchases may be best executed through direct negotiation with one or more suppliers in order to expeditiously meet the special needs of the state's vocational rehabilitation clients; and

(6) Purchases by universities for hospital operation and by state hospitals as defined in chapter 72.23 RCW made by participating in contracts for materials, supplies, and equipment entered into by cooperative hospital service organizations as defined in section 501(e) of the Internal Revenue Code, or its successor.