Amendment #16 to H2015

Procurement

Mr. Binienda of Worcester moves to amend the order inserting at the end thereof the following section:-

JOINT PROCUREMENT.

36.  (a) All procurement for goods or services from joint legislative accounts shall be completed by the House and Senate Business Managers with the approval of House and Senate Counsel.

(b) All procurements for goods or services from joint legislative accounts shall, to the extent practicable, be made from the statewide procurement list established by the operational services division.

(c) Upon certification by the House and Senate Business Manager that a necessary procurement cannot be made using the statewide procurement list established by the operational services division, the House and Senate Business Manager may procure the required goods or services pursuant to the following:

(i)for a procurement of a supply or service in an amount of less than $5,000, the House and Senate Business Manager shall use sound business practices;

(ii)for a procurement of a supply or service in an amount of $5,000, but less than $50,000, the House and Senate Business Manager shall seek written or oral quotations from no fewer than 3 persons customarily providing such supply or service. The House and Senate Business Manager shall record the names and addresses of all persons from whom quotations were sought, the names of the persons submitting quotations and the date and amount of each quotation. The House and Senate Business Manager shall award the contract to the responsible person whose quotation offers the needed quality of supply or service and which represents the best value for the Commonwealth;

(iii)for a procurement of a supply or service in an amount exceeding $50,000 the business manager shall seek proposals through a competitive bid process jointly established by the offices of House and Senate Counsel; provided, however, that the Offices of House and Senate Counsel shall file the competitive bid process with the House Clerk no later than March 31 of the first year of the session.

(d) All procurements for legal and consulting services shall be handled exclusively by the Offices of House and Senate Counsel in compliance with the provisions of this rule. Prior to executing a contract for legal or consulting services, said offices shall certify, in writing, to the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the Clerk of the Senate that no employee of the House of Representatives possesses the required skills to complete the service which is the subject of the contract.

(e) The House and Senate Business Managers shall maintain a file on each contract not executed using the statewide procurement list established by the operational services division and in excess of $5,000 and shall include in such file a copy of all documents related to the contract. Upon execution of the contract, the House and Senate Business Managers shall transmit copies of the file to the Offices of House and Senate Counsel which shall make the file available for inspection within said office by members of the House for at least 3 years from the date of final payment under the contract; provided, however, that the Offices of House and Senate Counsel shall redact from said file any information which (i) is legally privileged; (ii) is proprietary; or (iii) related to individual members or House personnel.

(f) Whenever the time required to comply with a requirement of this rule would endanger the health, safety or convenience of the members, staff or visitors to the House of Representatives or Senate the House and Senate Business Managers may make an emergency procurement without satisfying the requirement of this rules; provided, however, that both the House and Senate Business Managers and the House and Senate Counsel certify in writing that: (i) an emergency exists and explain the nature thereof; (ii) the emergency procurement is limited to only supplies or services necessary to meet the emergency; (iii) shall conform to the requirements of rule to the extent practicable under the circumstances; (iv) each contractor’s name, (v) the amount and the type of each contract; (vi) the supplies or services provided under each contract; (vii) and basis for determining the need for an emergency procurement. Such certification shall be filed with the Clerk of the House and with the Clerk of the Senate prior to an emergency procurement.

Additional co-sponsor(s) added to Amendment #16 to H2015

Procurement