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ENGROSSED SENATE
BILL NO. 1371 By: Quinn of the Senate
and
Pfeiffer of the House
An Act relating to the Oklahoma Central Purcha sing
Act; amending 74 O.S. 2021, Section 85.7, which
relates to competitive bidding procedures; modifying
certain exceptions; and providing an effective date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 74 O.S . 2021, Section 85.7, is
amended to read as foll ows:
Section 85.7. A. 1. Except as otherwise provided by the
Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act, or associated rules:
a. every state agency shall initiate all acquisitions by
the submission of a requisition to th e Purchasing
Division, and
b. no state agency shall make an acquisition for an
amount exceeding Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00)
or the limit determined by the State Purchasin g
Director pursuant to rules authorized by Section 85.5
of this title, not to exceed Two Hundred Fifty
Thousand Dollars ($250,000.00), without submission of
a requisition to the Purchasing Division for issuance
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of a solicitation for the acquisition on beha lf of the
agency. Any exemption from competitive bid
requirements of the Okla homa Central Purchasing Act
further exempts the acquisition from requisition
requirements of the act.
2. The State Purchasing Director may request additional
information necessary to adequately revi ew a requisition to ensure
compliance with this act and a ssociated rules. If the State
Purchasing Director determines that an acquisition is not necessary,
excessive or not justified, the State Purchasing Director shall deny
the requisition.
3. The provisions of this act shall not preclude a state agency
from:
a. accepting gifts or donations in any mann er authorized
by law, or
b. making an acquisition for itself without submitting a
requisition under this section when authorized in
writing by the State Pu rchasing Director.
4. Any acquisition a state agency mak es shall be made pursuant
to this act and associated rules. No agency shall use s plit
purchasing for the purpose of evading the requirement of competitive
bidding or other requi rement of this act or associated rules.
Violation of this provision shall be cause for discipline of a state
employee up to and including termination.
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5. The State Purchasing Director may waive or increase the
limit authorized for a state agency acquisit ion made pursuant to its
own competitive procedures. To perfect an otherwise valid
acquisition inadvertently exceeding th e limit due to administrative
error by a state agency or unforeseeable circumstances, the state
agency shall request a limited waiver or increase upon the discovery
of the error or circumstance to the State Purch asing Director. The
State Purchasing Direct or shall report requests for waivers o r
increases, stating the amount and whether the request was granted or
denied, upon request by t he Governor, Presiden t Pro Tempore of the
Senate or Speaker of the House of Re presentatives.
6. Competitive bidding requi rements of this section shall not
be required for the following:
a. contracts for master custodian banks or trust
companies, investmen t managers, investmen t
consultants, and actuaries for the state retirement
systems, and Oklahoma Employees Insurance and B enefits
Board, pension fund management consultants of the
Oklahoma State Pension Commission and the
Commissioners of the Land Office, examiners, experts,
or consultants for the Insurance Department whose job
duties are tied to Market Conduct Exams, Financi al
Exams, and Insurance Business Transfers, financial
institutions to act as depositories and managers of
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the Oklahoma College Savings Plan accounts and other
professional services as defined in Section 803 of
Title 18 of the Oklahoma Statutes. W hen requested by
the Oklahoma Employees Insuran ce and Benefits Board or
the governing board of a state retirement system
authorized to hire investment managers, the Purchasing
Division shall assist in the process of selecting
investment managers,
b. a state agency making such an acquisition shall notif y
the State Purchasing Director within fifteen (15) days
following completion of the acquisition. A list of
the exempt contracts shall be provided, upon request,
to a member of the Approp riations and Budget C ommittee
of the House of Representatives or App ropriations
Committee of the Senate.,
c. purchases of postage by state agencies made pursuant
to Sections 90.1 through 90.4 of this title,
d. a sole source acquisition made in compliance wi th
Section 85.45j 85.44D.1 of this title,
e. an acquisition for des ign, development, communication
or implementation of the state employees flexible
benefits plan; provided, procedures used for the
acquisition are consistent with competitive bid
requirements of this act and associated rules,
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f. any acquisition of a servic e which the Office of
Management and Enterprise Services has approved as
qualifying for a fixe d and uniform rate, subject to
the following:
(1) the Purchasing Division shall establish criteria
and guidelines for those services which may
qualify for a fixed and uniform rate,
(2) fixed and uniform rate contracts authorized by
this subsection shall be limited to contracts for
those services furnished to persons directly
benefiting from such services and shall not be
used by a state agency to employ consultants or
to make other acquisitions,
(3) any state agency desiring to have a service
qualified for a fixed and uniform rate shall make
a request for service qualification to the State
Purchasing Director and submit documentation to
support the request. The Sta te Purchasing
Director shall approve or deny the request. If
approved, the state agency shall establish a
fixed and uniform rate for the service. No
contracts shall be entered into by the state
agency until the rate has been approved by the
state agency in a public hearing. The proposed
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rate shall be clearly and separately identified
in the agenda of the state agency for the hearing
and shall be openly and separately discussed
during such hearing. The state agency shall
notify the State Purchasing Direc tor of its
pending consideration of the proposed rate at
least thirty (30) days before the sta te agency is
to meet on the proposed rate and deliver a copy
of the agenda items concerning the proposed rate
with supporting documentation. The State
Purchasing Director shall communicate any
observation, reservation, criticism or
recommendation to the a gency, either in person at
the time of the hearing or in writing delivered
to the state agency before or at the time of the
hearing. The State Purchasing Directo r shall
specifically note in the written communications
whether the Director has determined th e rate to
be excessive. Any written communication
presented in the absence of the State Purchasing
Director shall be presen ted orally during the
public hearing. Whether made in person or in
writing, any comment made by the State Purchasing
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Director shall be made a part of the minutes of
the hearing in full,
(4) within two (2) weeks after the convening of t he
Legislature, the administrative officer of the
state agency shall furnish to the Speaker of the
House of Representatives, the President Pro
Tempore of the Senate and to any member of the
House or Senate, if requested by the member, a
complete list of all of the types of se rvices
paid for by uniform fixed rates , the amount of
the rate last approved by the agency for the
service and the number of contrac ts then in
existence for each type of service. Any rate
which has been determined to be excessive by th e
State Purchasing Director shall be specifically
identified in the list by the state agency, and
(5) at any time, the State Purchasing Director may
review, suspend or terminate a contract entered
into pursuant to the provisions of this paragraph
if the Director determines th e contract is not
necessary, is excess ive or is not justified,
g. an acquisition for a client of the State Department of
Rehabilitation Services; provided, the agency develops
and maintains standards for such an acquisition. The
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agency may elect to utilize the Purchasing Division
for an acquisition. The standards shall foster
economy, provide a short response time, include
appropriate safeguards, require written records,
ensure appropriate competition for economical and
efficient purchasing and shall be a pproved by the
State Purchasing Direct or,
h. structured settlement agreements entered into by the
Attorney General’s office in order to settle any
lawsuit involving the state, the Legislature, any
state agency or any employee or officia l of the state
if:
(1) prior to entering into any contract for the
services of an entity to administer a structured
settlement agreement, the Attorney G eneral
receives proposals from at least three entities
engaged in providing such services, and
(2) the selection of a partic ular entity is made on
the basis of the response to the request which is
the most economical and provides the most
competent service which furthers the best
interests of the state,
i. an acquisition by a state agency pursuant to a
contract the State Purcha sing Director enters into on
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behalf of a state agency or awards and designates for
use by state agencies,
j. an acquisition by the C ommittee for Sustaining
Oklahoma’s Energy Resources pursuant to a contract
with a local supplier for the purpose of holding a
special event or an exhibition throu ghout the state.
7. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an acquisition
may be exempted from requirements of this section by the State
Purchasing Director when in the State Purchasing Direct or’s
discretion unusual, time-sensitive or unique circumst ances exist
which make such exemption in the best and immediate interest of the
state. As used in this subsection, “State Purchasing Director ”
shall not mean a designee. Any such acquisitions shal l be described
in detail and publicly posted as a data fee d. The description shall
include the name of the supplier, cost of the acquisition, reason
for exemption and, as applicable, detailed comparison of the
acquisition with comparable items, any identi fied cost savings
resulting from the acquisition and a des cription of benefits to the
state. The State Purchasing Director shall take no action under t he
provisions of this subsection prior to such public posting.
B. Competitively bid acquisitions shall be awarded to the
lowest and best, or best value, bidder o r bidders.
C. Bids for an amount requiring submission of requisitions to
the Purchasing Divis ion shall be evaluated by the Purchasing
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Division and the state agency receiving the acquisition. At a
minimum, cost and te chnical expertise shall be considered in
determining the lowest and best, or best value, bid. Further, the
state agency shall prese nt its evaluation and recommendation to the
State Purchasing Director. A documented evaluation report
containing the evalua tions of the Purchasing Division or th e state
agency shall be completed prior to the contract award and such
report shall be a matte r of public record.
D. Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, the
acquisition of food items or food products by a state agency from a
public trust created pursuant to Sections 176 through 180.56 of
Title 60 of the Oklahoma Statutes shall comply with competitive
bidding requirements of this section.
E. Cooperative contracts shall not be utilized unless the
purchasing cooperative and its affiliated suppl iers have complied
with competitive bid requirements of this act and associated rules.
F. Notwithstanding any provision of this act, in all cases
where federal granted funds are involved, the feder al laws, rules
and regulations thereto shall govern to the extent necessary to
inure to the benefit of such funds to this state.
G. A court order requi ring an acquisition by a state agency,
whether or not such state agency is subject to this act, shall no t
invalidate competitive bidding procedures required by th is section
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if such court order does not specify a specific supplier. Any such
acquisition shall comply with competitive bid procedures.
SECTION 2. This act shall become effective November 1, 2022.
Passed the Senate the 9th day of March, 2022.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
Passed the House of Representatives the ____ day of __________,
2022.
Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives