BILL REQ. #:  S-1425.1 

READ FIRST TIME 02/18/11.   

     AN ACT Relating to public contracting authority; amending RCW 28B.10.029, 39.29.011, 39.29.018, and 43.19.1906; and reenacting and amending RCW 39.29.040.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 28B.10.029 and 2010 c 61 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1)(a) An institution of higher education may exercise independently those powers otherwise granted to the director of general administration in chapter 43.19 RCW in connection with the purchase and disposition of all material, supplies, services, and equipment needed for the support, maintenance, and use of the respective institution of higher education.
     (b) Property disposition policies followed by institutions of higher education shall be consistent with policies followed by the department of general administration.
     (c) Purchasing policies and procedures followed by institutions of higher education shall be in compliance with chapters 39.19, 39.29, and 43.03 RCW, and RCW 43.19.1901, 43.19.1906, 43.19.1911, 43.19.1917, 43.19.1937, ((43.19.534,)) 43.19.685, 43.19.700 through 43.19.704, and 43.19.560 through 43.19.637.
     (d) Purchases under chapter 39.29, 43.19, or 43.105 RCW by institutions of higher education may be made by using contracts for materials, supplies, services, or equipment negotiated or entered into by, for, or through group purchasing organizations.
     (e) The community and technical colleges shall comply with RCW 43.19.450.
     (f) Except for the University of Washington, institutions of higher education shall comply with RCW 43.41.310, 43.41.290, and 43.41.350.
     (g) If an institution of higher education can satisfactorily demonstrate to the director of the office of financial management that the cost of compliance is greater than the value of benefits from any of the following statutes, then it shall be exempt from them: RCW 43.19.685((, 43.19.534,)) and 43.19.637.
     (h) Any institution of higher education that chooses to exercise independent purchasing authority for a commodity or group of commodities shall notify the director of general administration. Thereafter the director of general administration shall not be required to provide those services for that institution for the duration of the general administration contract term for that commodity or group of commodities.
     (2) The council of presidents and the state board for community and technical colleges shall convene its correctional industries business development advisory committee, and work collaboratively with correctional industries, to:
     (a) Reaffirm purchasing criteria and ensure that quality, service, and timely delivery result in the best value for expenditure of state dollars;
     (b) Update the approved list of correctional industries products from which higher education shall purchase; and
     (c) Develop recommendations on ways to continue to build correctional industries' business with institutions of higher education.
     (3) Higher education and correctional industries shall develop a plan to build higher education business with correctional industries to increase higher education purchases of correctional industries products, based upon the criteria established in subsection (2) of this section. The plan shall include the correctional industries' production and sales goals for higher education and an approved list of products from which higher education institutions shall purchase, based on the criteria established in subsection (2) of this section. Higher education and correctional industries shall report to the legislature regarding the plan and its implementation no later than January 30, 2005.
     (4) Institutions of higher education shall set as a target to contract, beginning not later than June 30, 2006, to purchase one percent of the total goods and services required by the institutions each year produced or provided in whole or in part from class II inmate work programs operated by the department of corrections. Institutions of higher education shall set as a target to contract, beginning not later than June 30, 2008, to purchase two percent of the total goods and services required by the institutions each year produced or provided in whole or in part from class II inmate work programs operated by the department of corrections.
     (5) An institution of higher education may exercise independently those powers otherwise granted to the public printer in chapter 43.78 RCW in connection with the production or purchase of any printing and binding needed by the respective institution of higher education. Purchasing policies and procedures followed by institutions of higher education shall be in compliance with chapter 39.19 RCW. Any institution of higher education that chooses to exercise independent printing production or purchasing authority shall notify the public printer. Thereafter the public printer shall not be required to provide those services for that institution.

Sec. 2   RCW 39.29.011 and 2009 c 486 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:
     All personal service contracts shall be entered into pursuant to competitive solicitation, except for:
     (1) Emergency contracts;
     (2) Sole source contracts;
     (3) Contract amendments;
     (4) Contracts between a consultant and an agency of less than twenty thousand dollars. ((However, contracts of five thousand dollars or greater but less than twenty thousand dollars shall have documented evidence of competition, which must include agency posting of the contract opportunity on the state's common vendor registration and bid notification system.)) For institutions of higher education, this limit shall be one hundred thousand dollars, however, for contracts of ten thousand dollars or greater but less than one hundred thousand dollars, the institutions of higher education shall have documented evidence of competition. Agencies shall not structure contracts to evade these requirements; and
     (5) Other specific contracts or classes or groups of contracts exempted from the competitive solicitation process by the director of the office of financial management when it has been determined that a competitive solicitation process is not appropriate or cost-effective.

Sec. 3   RCW 39.29.018 and 2009 c 486 s 8 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Sole source contracts shall be filed with the office of financial management and made available for public inspection at least ten working days prior to the proposed starting date of the contract. Documented justification for sole source contracts shall be provided to the office of financial management when the contract is filed, and for contracts over twenty thousand dollars must include evidence that the agency posted the contract opportunity on the state's common vendor registration and bid notification system. For sole source contracts of twenty thousand dollars or more, documented justification shall also include evidence that the agency attempted to identify potential consultants by advertising through statewide or regional newspapers.
     (2) The office of financial management shall approve sole source contracts of twenty thousand dollars or more before any such contract becomes binding and before any services may be performed under the contract. These requirements shall also apply to sole source contracts of less than twenty thousand dollars if the total amount of such contracts between an agency and the same consultant is twenty thousand dollars or more within a fiscal year. Agencies shall ensure that the costs, fees, or rates negotiated in filed sole source contracts of twenty thousand dollars or more are reasonable.

Sec. 4   RCW 39.29.040 and 2002 c 260 s 11 and 2002 c 200 s 2 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
     This chapter does not apply to:
     (1) Contracts specifying a fee of less than ((five)) twenty thousand dollars if the total of the contracts from that agency with the contractor within a fiscal year does not exceed ((five)) twenty thousand dollars, however, for institutions of higher education, the limit shall be a fee less than one hundred thousand dollars;
     (2) Contracts awarded to companies that furnish a service where the tariff is established by the utilities and transportation commission or other public entity;
     (3) Intergovernmental agreements awarded to any governmental entity, whether federal, state, or local and any department, division, or subdivision thereof;
     (4) Contracts awarded for services to be performed for a standard fee, when the standard fee is established by the contracting agency or any other governmental entity and a like contract is available to all qualified applicants;
     (5) Contracts for services that are necessary to the conduct of collaborative research if prior approval is granted by the funding source;
     (6) Contracts for client services except as otherwise indicated in this chapter;
     (7) Contracts for architectural and engineering services as defined in RCW 39.80.020, which shall be entered into under chapter 39.80 RCW;
     (8) Contracts for the employment of expert witnesses for the purposes of litigation;
     (9) Contracts for bank supervision authorized under RCW 30.38.040; and
     (10) Contracts for interpreter services and interpreter brokerage services on behalf of limited-English speaking or sensory-impaired applicants and recipients of public assistance.

Sec. 5   RCW 43.19.1906 and 2008 c 215 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:
     Insofar as practicable, all purchases and sales shall be based on competitive bids, and a formal sealed, electronic, or web-based bid procedure, subject to RCW 43.19.1911, 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. 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 or under RCW 28B.10.029. However, formal sealed, electronic, or web-based competitive 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 thirty-five thousand dollars, or subsequent limits as calculated by the office of financial management: 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 thirty-five thousand dollar bid limitation, or subsequent bid limitations as calculated by the office of financial management: PROVIDED FURTHER, That the state purchasing and material control director is authorized to reduce the formal sealed bid limits of thirty-five thousand dollars, or subsequent limits as calculated by the office of financial management, to a lower dollar amount for purchases by individual state agencies 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 three thousand dollars to thirty-five thousand dollars, or subsequent limits as calculated by the office of financial management, shall be secured from at least three vendors to assure establishment of a competitive price and may be obtained by telephone or written quotations, or both. The agency shall invite at least one quotation each from a certified minority and a certified women-owned vendor who shall otherwise qualify to perform such work. Immediately after the award is made, the bid quotations obtained shall be recorded and open to public inspection and shall be available by telephone inquiry. A record of competition for all such purchases from three thousand dollars to thirty-five thousand dollars, or subsequent limits as calculated by the office of financial management, shall be documented for audit purposes. Purchases up to three thousand dollars may be made without competitive bids based on buyer experience and knowledge of the market in achieving maximum quality at minimum cost;
     (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 division under RCW 43.41.310;
     (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;
     (6) Purchases by universities for hospital operation or biomedical teaching or research purposes and by the state purchasing and material control director, as the agent for state hospitals as defined in RCW 72.23.010, and for health care programs provided in state correctional institutions as defined in RCW 72.65.010(3) and veterans' institutions as defined in RCW 72.36.010 and 72.36.070, made by participating in contracts for materials, supplies, and equipment entered into by nonprofit cooperative hospital group purchasing organizations;
     (7) Purchases for resale by institutions of higher education to other than public agencies when such purchases are for the express purpose of supporting instructional programs and may best be executed through direct negotiation with one or more suppliers in order to meet the special needs of the institution;
     (8) Purchases by institutions of higher education not exceeding ((thirty-five)) one hundred thousand dollars: PROVIDED, That for purchases between ((three)) ten thousand dollars and ((thirty-five)) one hundred thousand dollars quotations shall be secured from at least three vendors to assure establishment of a competitive price and may be obtained by telephone or written quotations, or both. For purchases between ((three)) ten thousand dollars and ((thirty-five)) one hundred thousand dollars, each institution of higher education shall invite at least one quotation each from a certified minority and a certified women-owned vendor who shall otherwise qualify to perform such work. A record of competition for all such purchases made from ((three)) ten thousand to ((thirty-five)) one hundred thousand dollars shall be documented for audit purposes;
     (9) Off-contract purchases of Washington grown food when such food is not available from Washington sources through an existing contract. However, Washington grown food purchased under this subsection must be of an equivalent or better quality than similar food available through the contract and be able to be paid from the agency's existing budget. This requirement also applies to purchases and contracts for purchases executed by state agencies, including institutions of higher education, under delegated authority granted in accordance with RCW 43.19.190 or under RCW 28B.10.029; and
     (10) Negotiation of a contract by the department of transportation, valid until June 30, 2001, with registered tow truck operators to provide roving service patrols in one or more Washington state patrol tow zones whereby those registered tow truck operators wishing to participate would cooperatively, with the department of transportation, develop a demonstration project upon terms and conditions negotiated by the parties.
     ((Beginning on July 1, 1995, and on July 1st of each succeeding odd-numbered year, the dollar limits specified in this section shall be adjusted as follows: The office of financial management shall calculate such limits by adjusting the previous biennium's limits by the appropriate federal inflationary index reflecting the rate of inflation for the previous biennium. Such amounts shall be rounded to the nearest one hundred dollars. However,)) The three thousand dollar figure in subsections (2) and (8) of this section may not be adjusted to exceed five thousand dollars.
     As used in this section, "Washington grown" has the definition in RCW 15.64.060.