Florida Senate - 2022 CS for SB 398 By the Committee on Transportation; and Senator Hooper 596-01437-22 2022398c1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to transportation projects; amending 3 s. 206.46, F.S.; revising the requirement for the 4 annual commitment of State Transportation Trust Fund 5 revenues for public transportation projects by the 6 Department of Transportation; amending s. 337.025, 7 F.S.; providing that the departments program for 8 innovative transportation projects may include 9 progressive design-build contracts; revising contracts 10 exempt from a specified annual monetary cap on 11 contracts; amending s. 337.11, F.S.; revising the 12 departments authority relating to design-build 13 contracts; authorizing the department to enter into a 14 progressive design-build contract if it makes a 15 certain determination; providing procedures and 16 requirements for progressive design-build contracts; 17 exempting progressive design-build contracts from 18 certain requirements; requiring the department to 19 adopt rules; amending s. 337.14, F.S.; revising 20 procedures relating to certificates of qualification 21 issued by the department to construction contractors 22 seeking certification to bid on certain contracts; 23 amending s. 337.168, F.S.; deleting a public records 24 exemption for certain documents revealing the identity 25 of a potential bidder; providing an effective date. 26 27 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 28 29 Section 1.Subsection (3) of section 206.46, Florida 30 Statutes, is amended to read: 31 206.46State Transportation Trust Fund. 32 (3)Unless otherwise specified in the General 33 Appropriations Act, each fiscal year, at least a minimum of 15 34 percent but not more than 25 percent of all state revenues 35 deposited into the State Transportation Trust Fund, excluding 36 state revenues used for matching federal grants, shall be 37 committed annually by the department for public transportation 38 projects in accordance with chapter 311, ss. 332.003-332.007, 39 chapter 341, and chapter 343. 40 Section 2.Section 337.025, Florida Statutes, is amended to 41 read: 42 337.025Innovative transportation projects; department to 43 establish program. 44 (1)The department may establish a program for 45 transportation projects demonstrating innovative techniques of 46 highway and bridge design, construction, maintenance, and 47 finance which have the intended effect of measuring resiliency 48 and structural integrity and controlling time and cost increases 49 on construction projects. Such techniques may include, but are 50 not limited to, state-of-the-art technology for pavement, 51 safety, and other aspects of highway and bridge design, 52 construction, and maintenance; innovative bidding and financing 53 techniques; progressive design-build contracts; accelerated 54 construction procedures; and those techniques that have the 55 potential to reduce project life cycle costs. To the maximum 56 extent practical, the department must use the existing process 57 to award and administer construction and maintenance contracts. 58 When specific innovative techniques are to be used, the 59 department is not required to adhere to those provisions of law 60 that would prevent, preclude, or in any way prohibit the 61 department from using the innovative technique. However, before 62 using an innovative technique that is inconsistent with another 63 provision of law, the department must document in writing the 64 need for the exception and identify what benefits the traveling 65 public and the affected community are anticipated to receive. 66 The department may enter into no more than $120 million in 67 contracts awarded annually for the purposes authorized by this 68 section. 69 (2)The annual cap on contracts provided in subsection (1) 70 does not apply to: 71 (a)Turnpike enterprise projects. 72 (b)Progressive design-build contracts for complex, high 73 risk projects with a minimum contract value of $250 million Low 74 bid design-build milling and resurfacing contracts. 75 Section 3.Subsection (7) of section 337.11, Florida 76 Statutes, is amended to read: 77 337.11Contracting authority of department; bids; emergency 78 repairs, supplemental agreements, and change orders; combined 79 design and construction contracts; progress payments; records; 80 requirements of vehicle registration. 81 (7)(a)If the department determines that it is in the best 82 interests of the public, the department may combine the design 83 and construction phases of a building, a major bridge, a limited 84 access facility, or a rail corridor project into a single 85 contract. Such contract is referred to as a design-build 86 contract. 87 (b)If the department determines that it is in the best 88 interests of the public, the department may combine the design 89 and construction phases of a project into a single contract and 90 select the design-build firm in the early stages of a project to 91 ensure that the design-build firm is part of the collaboration 92 and development of the design as part of a step-by-step 93 progression through construction. Such contract is referred to 94 as a progressive design-build contract. For progressive design 95 build contracts, the selection and award processes must include 96 a two-phase process. For phase one, the department shall 97 competitively award the contract to a design-build firm based 98 upon qualifications. For phase two, the design-build firm shall 99 competitively bid construction trade subcontractor packages and, 100 based upon these bids, negotiate with the department a fixed 101 firm price or guaranteed maximum price that meets the project 102 budget and scope as advertised in the request for 103 qualifications. 104 (c)Design-build contracts and progressive design-build 105 contracts may be advertised and awarded notwithstanding the 106 requirements of paragraph (3)(c). However, construction 107 activities may not begin on any portion of such projects for 108 which the department has not yet obtained title to the necessary 109 rights-of-way and easements for the construction of that portion 110 of the project has vested in the state or a local governmental 111 entity and all railroad crossing and utility agreements have 112 been executed. Title to rights-of-way shall be deemed to have 113 vested in the state when the title has been dedicated to the 114 public or acquired by prescription. 115 (d)(b)The department shall adopt by rule procedures for 116 administering design-build contracts and progressive design 117 build contracts. Such procedures shall include, but not be 118 limited to: 119 1.Prequalification requirements. 120 2.Public announcement procedures. 121 3.Scope of service requirements. 122 4.Letters of interest requirements. 123 5.Short-listing criteria and procedures. 124 6.Bid proposal requirements. 125 7.Technical review committee. 126 8.Selection and award processes. 127 9.Stipend requirements. 128 (e)(c)The department must receive at least three letters 129 of interest in order to proceed with a request for proposals. 130 The department shall request proposals from no fewer than three 131 of the design-build firms submitting letters of interest. If a 132 design-build firm withdraws from consideration after the 133 department requests proposals, the department may continue if at 134 least two proposals are received. 135 Section 4.Subsection (4) of section 337.14, Florida 136 Statutes, is amended to read: 137 337.14Application for qualification; certificate of 138 qualification; restrictions; request for hearing. 139 (4)If the applicant is found to possess the prescribed 140 qualifications, the department shall issue to him or her a 141 certificate of qualification that, unless thereafter revoked by 142 the department for good cause, will be valid for a period of 18 143 months after the date of the applicants financial statement or 144 such shorter period as the department prescribes. Submission of 145 an application does and subsequent approval do not affect 146 expiration of the certificate of qualification, the ability 147 factor of the applicant, or the maximum capacity rating of the 148 applicant. An applicant may submit a written request with a 149 timely submitted application to keep an existing certificate of 150 qualification in place until the expiration date. If the request 151 is approved by the department, the current maximum capacity 152 rating of the applicant must remain in place until expiration of 153 the current certificate of qualification. If the department 154 finds that an application is incomplete or contains inadequate 155 information or information that cannot be verified, the 156 department may request in writing that the applicant provide the 157 necessary information to complete the application or provide the 158 source from which any information in the application may be 159 verified. If the applicant fails to comply with the initial 160 written request within a reasonable period of time as specified 161 therein, the department shall request the information a second 162 time. If the applicant fails to comply with the second request 163 within a reasonable period of time as specified therein, the 164 application shall be denied. 165 Section 5.Section 337.168, Florida Statutes, is amended to 166 read: 167 337.168Confidentiality of official estimates, identities 168 of potential bidders, and bid analysis and monitoring system. 169 (1)A document or electronic file revealing the official 170 cost estimate of the department of a project is confidential and 171 exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) until the contract 172 for the project has been executed or until the project is no 173 longer under active consideration. 174 (2)A document that reveals the identity of a person who 175 has requested or obtained a bid package, plan, or specifications 176 pertaining to any project to be let by the department is 177 confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) for 178 the period that begins 2 working days before the deadline for 179 obtaining bid packages, plans, or specifications and ends with 180 the letting of the bid. A document that reveals the identity of 181 a person who has requested or obtained a bid package, plan, or 182 specifications pertaining to any project to be let by the 183 department before the 2 working days before the deadline for 184 obtaining bid packages, plans, or specifications remains a 185 public record subject to s. 119.07(1). 186 (3)The bid analysis and monitoring system of the 187 department is confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 188 119.07(1). This exemption applies to all system documentation, 189 input, computer processes and programs, electronic data files, 190 and output, but does not apply to the actual source documents, 191 unless otherwise exempted under other provisions of law. 192 Section 6.This act shall take effect July 1, 2022.