Alabama 2023 Regular Session

Alabama Senate Bill SB36 Compare Versions

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1	1	SB36INTRODUCED
2	2	Page 0
3	3	SBKC58-1
4	4	By Senator Elliott
5	5	RFD: Finance and Taxation Education
6	6	First Read: 07-Mar-23
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11	11	5 SBKC58-1 02/24/2023 KMS (L)cr 2023-551
12	12	Page 1
13	13	SYNOPSIS:
14	14	Under existing law, the minimum amount for
15	15	contracts subject to competitive bid for city and
16	16	county boards of education is $15,000.
17	17	This bill would increase the minimum amount to
18	18	$25,000.
19	19	Section 111.05 of the Constitution of Alabama of
20	20	2022, prohibits a general law whose purpose or effect
21	21	would be to require a new or increased expenditure of
22	22	local funds from becoming effective with regard to a
23	23	local governmental entity without enactment by a 2/3
24	24	vote unless: it comes within one of a number of
25	25	specified exceptions; it is approved by the affected
26	26	entity; or the Legislature appropriates funds, or
27	27	provides a local source of revenue, to the entity for
28	28	the purpose.
29	29	The purpose or effect of this bill would be to
30	30	require a new or increased expenditure of local funds
31	31	within the meaning of the amendment. However, the bill
32	32	does not require approval of a local governmental
33	33	entity or enactment by a 2/3 vote to become effective
34	34	because it comes within one of the specified exceptions
35	35	contained in the amendment.
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65	65	A BILL
66	66	TO BE ENTITLED
67	67	AN ACT
68	68	To amend Sections 16-13B-1, Section 16-13B-4, and
69	69	16-13B-5, Code of Alabama 1975, relating to competitive
70	70	bidding on contracts of city and county boards of education;
71	71	to increase the minimum amount for contracts subject to
72	72	competitive bid from $15,000 to $25,000; and in connection
73	73	therewith would have as its purpose or effect the requirement
74	74	of a new or increased expenditure of local funds within the
75	75	meaning of Section 111.05 of the Constitution of Alabama of
76	76	2022.
77	77	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
78	78	Section 1. Sections 16-13B-1, 16-13B-4, and 16-13B-5 of
79	79	the Code of Alabama 1975, are amended to read as follows:
80	80	"§16-13B-1
81	81	(a) This chapter shall apply to county boards of
82	82	education and city boards of education, or any combination of
83	83	city and county boards of education as herein provided for the
84	84	competitive bidding of certain contracts. With the exception
85	85	of contracts for public works whose competitive bidding
86	86	requirements are governed exclusively by Title 39, all
87	87	expenditure of funds of whatever nature for labor, services,
88	88	work, or for the purchase of materials, equipment, supplies,
89	89	or other personal property involving fifteen thousand dollars
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120	120	the lease of materials, equipment, supplies, or other personal
121	121	property where the lessee is, or becomes legally and
122	122	contractually, bound under the terms of the lease, to pay a
123	123	total amount of fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) twenty-five
124	124	thousand dollars ($25,000) or more, made by or on behalf of
125	125	any city or county board of education, except as hereinafter
126	126	provided, shall be made under contractual agreement entered
127	127	into by free and open competitive bidding, on sealed bids, to
128	128	the lowest responsible bidder.
129	129	(b) Prior to advertising for bids for an item of
130	130	personal property, where a city or county board of education,
131	131	thereof is the awarding authority, the awarding authority may
132	132	establish a local preference zone consisting of either the
133	133	legal boundaries or jurisdiction of the awarding authority, or
134	134	the boundaries of the county in which the awarding authority
135	135	is located, or the boundaries of the core based statistical
136	136	area (CBSA) in which the awarding authority is located. If no
137	137	such action is taken by the awarding authority, the boundaries
138	138	of the local preference zone shall be deemed to be the same as
139	139	the legal boundaries or jurisdiction of the awarding
140	140	authority. In the event a bid is received for an item of
141	141	personal property to be purchased or contracted for from a
142	142	person, firm, or corporation deemed to be a responsible
143	143	bidder, having a place of business within the local preference
144	144	zone where a city or county board of education, thereof is the
145	145	awarding authority, and the bid is no more than three percent
146	146	greater than the bid of the lowest responsible bidder, the
147	147	awarding authority may award the contract to the resident
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177	177	responsible bidder. In the event only one bidder responds to
178	178	the invitation to bid, the awarding authority may reject the
179	179	bid and negotiate the purchase or contract, providing the
180	180	negotiated price is lower than the bid price.
181	181	(c) The governing bodies of two or more city or county
182	182	boards of education, or any combination of two or more city or
183	183	county boards of education, counties, municipalities, or
184	184	instrumentalities thereof, may provide, by joint agreement,
185	185	for the purchase of labor, services, or work, or for the
186	186	purchase or lease of materials, equipment, supplies, or other
187	187	personal property for use by their respective agencies. The
188	188	agreement shall be entered into by official actions of the
189	189	contracting agencies adopted by each of the participating
190	190	governing bodies which shall set forth the categories of
191	191	labor, services, or work, or for the purchase or lease of
192	192	materials, equipment, supplies, or other personal property to
193	193	be purchased, the manner of advertising for bids and the
194	194	awarding of contracts, the method of payment by each
195	195	participating contracting agency, and other matters deemed
196	196	necessary to carry out the purposes of the agreement. Each
197	197	contracting agency's share of expenditures for purchases under
198	198	any agreement shall be appropriated and paid in the manner set
199	199	forth in the agreement and in the same manner as for other
200	200	expenses of the contracting agency. The contracting agencies
201	201	entering into a joint agreement, as herein permitted, may
202	202	designate a joint purchasing or bidding agent, and the agent
203	203	shall comply with this chapter. Purchases, contracts, or
204	204	agreements made pursuant to a joint purchasing or bidding
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234	234	agreement shall be subject to all terms and conditions of this
235	235	chapter. Any participation by counties and municipalities
236	236	authorized in this section shall be subject to the provisions
237	237	of subsection (b) of Section 41-16-50. In the event that
238	238	utility services are no longer exempt from competitive bidding
239	239	under this chapter, non-adjoining boards of education may not
240	240	purchase utility services by joint agreement under authority
241	241	granted by this subsection.
242	242	(d) The awarding authority may require bidders to
243	243	furnish a bid bond for a particular bid solicitation if the
244	244	bonding requirement applies to all bidders, is included in the
245	245	written bid specifications, and if bonding is available for
246	246	the services, equipment, or materials."
247	247	"§16-13B-4
248	248	(a) All proposed purchases in excess of fifteen
249	249	thousand dollars ($15,000) twenty-five thousand dollars
250	250	($25,000) shall be advertised by posting notice thereof on a
251	251	bulletin board maintained outside the purchasing office and in
252	252	any other manner and for any length of time as may be
253	253	determined. Sealed bids or bids to be submitted by a reverse
254	254	auction procedure shall also be solicited by sending notice by
255	255	mail or other electronic means to all persons, firms, or
256	256	corporations who have filed a request in writing that they be
257	257	listed for solicitation on bids for the particular items that
258	258	are set forth in the request. If any person, firm, or
259	259	corporation whose name is listed fails to respond to any
260	260	solicitation for bids after the receipt of three
261	261	solicitations, the listing may be cancelled.
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291	291	(b) Except as provided in subsection (c), all bids
292	292	shall be sealed when received and shall be opened in public at
293	293	the hour stated in the notice.
294	294	(c) The awarding authority may make purchases or
295	295	contracts through a reverse auction procedure; provided,
296	296	however, that a reverse auction shall only be allowed where
297	297	the item to be purchased at a reverse auction is either not at
298	298	the time available on the state purchasing program under the
299	299	same terms and conditions or, if available, the lowest price
300	300	offered in the reverse auction is equal to or less than the
301	301	price for which the item is available on the state purchasing
302	302	program under the same terms and conditions. All of the
303	303	purchases shall be subject to audit by the Department of
304	304	Examiners of Public Accounts. For purposes of this chapter, a
305	305	reverse auction procedure includes either of the following:
306	306	(1) A real-time bidding process usually lasting less
307	307	than one hour and taking place at a previously scheduled time
308	308	and Internet location, in which multiple anonymous suppliers
309	309	submit bids to provide the designated goods or services.
310	310	(2) a. A bidding process usually lasting less than two
311	311	weeks and taking place during a previously scheduled period
312	312	and at a previously scheduled Internet location, in which
313	313	multiple anonymous suppliers submit bids to provide the
314	314	designated goods or services.
315	315	b. The Department of Examiners of Public Accounts shall
316	316	establish procedures for the use of reverse auction, which
317	317	shall be distributed to all contracting agencies and shall be
318	318	used in conducting any audits of the purchasing agency.
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348	348	(d) All original bids together with all documents
349	349	pertaining to the award of the contract shall be retained in
350	350	accordance with a retention period of at least seven years
351	351	established by the Local Government Records Commission and
352	352	shall be open to public inspection.
353	353	(e) No purchase or contract involving professional
354	354	services shall be subject to the requirements of this chapter
355	355	and no purchase or contract involving an amount in excess of
356	356	fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) twenty-five thousand
357	357	dollars ($25,000) shall be divided into parts involving
358	358	amounts of fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) twenty-five
359	359	thousand dollars ($25,000) or less for the purpose of avoiding
360	360	the requirements of this chapter. All such partial contracts
361	361	involving fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) twenty-five
362	362	thousand dollars ($25,000) or less shall be void."
363	363	"§16-13B-5
364	364	(a) Any agreement or collusion among bidders or
365	365	prospective bidders in restraint of freedom of competition, by
366	366	agreement, to bid at a fixed price or to refrain from bidding
367	367	or otherwise shall render the bids of such bidders void and
368	368	shall cause such bidders to be disqualified from submitting
369	369	further bids to the awarding authority on future purchases.
370	370	(b) Whoever knowingly participates in a collusive
371	371	agreement in violation of this section involving a bid or bids
372	372	of fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) twenty-five thousand
373	373	dollars ($25,000) and under shall be guilty of a Class A
374	374	misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be punished as
375	375	prescribed by law.
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405	405	(c) Whoever knowingly and intentionally participates in
406	406	a collusive agreement in violation of this section involving a
407	407	bid or bids of over fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000)
408	408	twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) shall be guilty of a
409	409	Class C felony, and upon conviction shall be punished as
410	410	prescribed by law."
411	411	Section 2. Although this bill would have as its purpose
412	412	or effect the requirement of a new or increased expenditure of
413	413	local funds, the bill is excluded from further requirements
414	414	and application under Section 111.05 of the Constitution of
415	415	Alabama of 2022, because the bill defines a new crime or
416	416	amends the definition of an existing crime.
417	417	Section 3. This act shall become effective on the first
418	418	day of the third month following its passage and approval by
419	419	the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law.
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