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OLR Bill Analysis
sSB 473 (File 474, as amended by Senate "A")*
AN ACT CONCERNING THE STATE CONTRACTING STANDARDS
BOARD.
SUMMARY
This bill makes several changes affecting the State Contracting
Standards Board (SCSB) and state contracting. It grants the board certain
protections from having its budget request modified or allotments
reduced. It also requires agency procurement officers to advise bidders,
proposers, and contractors about certain rights enforced by SCSB (e.g.,
the right to contest a contract solicitation or award).
Separately, the bill adds to the requirements that apply to state
agencies seeking to enter into privatization contracts. It also (1) requires
contracting agencies to post information on their websites about certain
emergency procurements they enter into and (2) limits to emergency
situations the Department of Administrative Services’ (DAS) use of on-
call construction services consultants.
Lastly, the bill makes technical changes (§ 3).
*Senate Amendment “A” removes provisions from the original bill
that, among other things, (1) appropriated $467,055 to SCSB in FY 23 to
hire five full-time employees and (2) subjected quasi-public agencies to
the board’s full authority, including the law on privatization contracts.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2022, except the provision on budget
request modifications and allotment reductions is effective upon
passage.
§ 1 — SCSB BUDGET
The bill requires the Office of Policy and Management (OPM)
secretary to include in the proposed budget documents that OPM
submits to the legislature the estimates of expenditure requirements, 2022SB-00473-R01-BA.DOCX
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together with any recommended adjustments and revisions, that the
office receives from SCSB’s executive director. It also prohibits the
governor from reducing SCSB’s allotment requisitions or allotments in
force.
Existing law grants these same protections to the (1) Office of State
Ethics (CGS § 1-81a), (2) Freedom of Information Commission (CGS § 1-
205a), and (3) State Elections Enforcement Commission (CGS § 9-7c).
§ 2 — AGENCY PROCUREMENT OFFICERS
Existing law requires the head of each state contracting agency to
appoint an agency procurement officer who must, among other things,
(1) assure that contractors are properly screened before a contract award
and (2) evaluate contractor performance during and at the conclusion of
a contract.
The bill additionally requires procurement officers to advise bidders,
proposers, and contractors of certain rights enforced by SCSB. These are
(1) bidders’ and proposers’ right to contest a contract solicitation or
award and (2) SCSB’s authority to determine that a solicitation,
proposed award, or actual award violated the law.
Under the bill, the procurement officers must ensure that (1) each bid,
RFP (request for proposals), or other solicitation for goods and services
contains a notice of these rights; (2) contractors are advised of these
rights before entering a contract; and (3) unsuccessful bidders,
proposers, and respondents are advised of these rights when the
contract is awarded.
§ 4 — PRIVATIZATION LAW
By law, if a contracting agency seeks to enter into a contract that
privatizes services performed by state employees, then it generally must
conduct a cost-benefit analysis and submit a business case to SCSB for
its approval. Under current law, the business case must include, among
other things, the cost-benefit analysis and 11 other analyses (the bill
adds one more, see below) relating to the privatized service, such as its
goals, their rationale, and options for achieving them (CGS § 4e-16(d)).
An agency may publish notice soliciting bids for a privatization contract 2022SB-00473-R01-BA.DOCX
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only after the board approves the business case (CGS § 4e-16(i)).The bill
requires that the business case additionally include an analysis of a
proposed contract’s potential impact on workers of color or workers
who are women, including whether it will lessen or increase historical
patterns that produce inequities between these workers and other
workers.
The bill also expands the definition of “core governmental function”
under the privatization statute to include the provision of essential
human services to state residents who would otherwise lack the support
necessary to assure basic human needs. The privatization statute
includes a rebuttable presumption that core governmental functions
should not be privatized.
§§ 5-9 — EMERGENCY PROCUREMENTS
Purchases of $10,000 or Less (§ 5)
The law allows SCSB, in consultation with the DAS commissioner, to
waive competitive bidding or negotiation requirements for minor,
nonrecurring, or emergency purchases of $10,000 or less. The bill allows
it to do so upon application by a state contracting agency. It requires
contracting agencies that obtain this waiver to post notice of the
emergency purchase on their websites before making the purchase.
(Existing law also allows the DAS commissioner to waive these
requirements for similar reasons without consulting the board (CGS §
4a-57(b)).)
Threats to Public Health, Welfare, or Safety (§ 6)
Current law requires SCSB to adop t regulations permitting
emergency procurements when there exists a threat to public health,
welfare, or safety. (In practice, the board has not done so.) The bill
instead directly allows contracting agencies to enter into these
procurements and makes the board’s adoption of regulations
permissive.
The bill requires contracting agencies to (1) notify SCSB about the
need for the procurement and (2) post on their websites their written
determination of the basis for the emergency and selection of the 2022SB-00473-R01-BA.DOCX
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particular contractor. As under existing law, this determination must
also be in the contract file and transmitted to the governor and
legislative leaders.
Existing law allows the DAS commissioner or the state’s chief
information officer to permit emergency procurements, subject to the
Standardization Committee's approval, if the cost is $50,000 or more
(CGS § 4a-58).
On-Call Construction Consultant Contracts (§§ 7 & 8)
The law allows the DAS commissioner to establish a list of “on call”
construction services consultants (e.g., architects, professional
engineers, accountants, and others; see BACKGROUND ). Under the
bill, DAS may enter into contracts with on-call consultants, without
inviting responses from the consultants, only for an emergency
procurement due to a threat to public health, welfare, or safety. It makes
a conforming change to a statute governing on-call consultants
specifically for Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
and Military Department projects.
"Fast-Track" Projects (§ 9)
The bill limits to emergency procurements DAS’s ability to use
existing law’s “fast-track authority” for five specified capital projects.
Under the fast-track process, the DAS commissioner submits three or
more qualified general contractors who are prequalified to an award
panel, which then makes a recommendation to the commissioner. The
law establishes five fast-track projects: a community court project, the
downtown Hartford higher education center project, a correctional
facility project, a juvenile detention center project, and Connecticut State
University System student dormitories.
BACKGROUND
On-Call Contracts
An on-call contract defines a broad range of consultant services and
is generally valid for two to three years. An on-call contract is generally
not connected to a specific project; rather, DAS subsequently issues task
letters to firms with on-call contracts that identify a specific scope of 2022SB-00473-R01-BA.DOCX
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services to be performed and the fee for those services.
DAS must establish selection panels for evaluating consultant
services proposals (including those for on-call contracts) if the value of
the services exceeds $500,000. The panels must submit a list of the most
qualified firms to the DAS commissioner for his consideration.
Related Bills
sHB 5432 (File 635), reported favorably by the Appropriations
Committee, includes the same provisions on modifying SCSB’s budget
request and reducing allotments.
sHB 5453 (File 497), reported favorably by the Government
Administration and Elections Committee, requires the DAS
commissioner to post on the department’s website certain goods and
services contracts entered into without using competitive bidding.
COMMITTEE ACTION
Government Administration and Elections Committee
Joint Favorable Substitute
Yea 18 Nay 0 (03/28/2022)