HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2483        FILED ON: 1/14/2009

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 2991

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the Year Two Thousand Nine

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An Act relative to achieving cost-saving through bulk purchasing programs..

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, for the benefit of their school programs, education collaboratives as defined in section 4E of chapter 40 of the General Laws, may make purchases from a vendor’s contract that has been competitively procured by another state or political subdivision or public entity thereof for the item or items being purchased.

SECTION 2. These education collaboratives shall not be subject to section 1(c) of chapter 30B of the General Laws or section 22A of chapter 7 of the General Laws insofar as those laws preclude out-of-state collective purchases by education collaboratives for a period not to exceed 2 years after the effective date of this act, and thereafter the provisions of said section 1(c) of chapter 30B and sections 22A of chapter 7 shall apply for any future collective purchasing by education collaboratives.

SECTION 3. The inspector general shall review the process by which education collaboratives are making out-of-state collective purchases. Education collaboratives participating in out-of-state collective purchasing must submit biannually the following summary information to the Massachusetts Office of the Inspector General. (1). Where it purchased from and, if the purchase was from a state, political subdivision or a public entity of another state, what information informed them that the out-of-state entity was a political subdivision or a public entity. (2) A full and complete description of the item(s) purchased.  (3) Documentation of savings obtained with relevant Massachusetts cost comparisons.