AN ACT CONCERNING CONTRACTUAL BIDDING PREFERENCES FOR VETERAN-OWNED BUSINESSES.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. Subsection (c) of section 4a-59 of the 2010 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2010):

(c) All open market orders or contracts shall be awarded to (1) the lowest responsible qualified bidder, the qualities of the articles to be supplied, their conformity with the specifications, their suitability to the requirements of the state government and the delivery terms being taken into consideration and, at the discretion of the Commissioner of Administrative Services, life-cycle costs and trade-in or resale value of the articles may be considered where it appears to be in the best interest of the state, (2) the highest scoring bidder in a multiple criteria bid, in accordance with the criteria set forth in the bid solicitation for the contract, or (3) the proposer whose proposal is deemed by the awarding authority to be the most advantageous to the state, in accordance with the criteria set forth in the request for proposals, including price and evaluation factors. Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes to the contrary, each state agency awarding a contract through competitive negotiation shall include price as an explicit factor in the criteria in the request for proposals and for the contract award. In considering past performance of a bidder for the purpose of determining the "lowest responsible qualified bidder" or the "highest scoring bidder in a multiple criteria bid", the commissioner shall evaluate the skill, ability and integrity of the bidder in terms of the bidder's fulfillment of past contract obligations and the bidder's experience or lack of experience in delivering supplies, materials, equipment or contractual services of the size or amount for which bids have been solicited. In determining the lowest responsible qualified bidder for the purposes of this section, the commissioner may give a price preference of up to ten per cent for (A) the purchase of goods made with recycled materials or the purchase of recyclable or remanufactured products if the commissioner determines that such preference would promote recycling or remanufacturing; [. As used in this subsection, "recyclable" means able to be collected, separated or otherwise recovered from the solid waste stream for reuse, or for use in the manufacture or assembly of another package or product, by means of a recycling program which is reasonably available to at least seventy-five per cent of the state's population, "remanufactured" means restored to its original function and thereby diverted from the solid waste stream by retaining the bulk of components that have been used at least once and by replacing consumable components and "remanufacturing" means any process by which a product is remanufactured;] (B) the purchase of motor vehicles powered by a clean alternative fuel; (C) the purchase of motor vehicles powered by fuel other than a clean alternative fuel and conversion equipment to convert such motor vehicles allowing the vehicles to be powered by either the exclusive use of clean alternative fuel or dual use of a clean alternative fuel and a fuel other than a clean alternative fuel; [. As used in this subsection, "clean alternative fuel" shall mean natural gas or electricity when used as a motor vehicle fuel; or] (D) the purchase of goods or services from micro businesses; [. As used in this subsection, "micro business" means a business with gross revenues not exceeding three million dollars in the most recently completed fiscal year] or (E) the purchase of goods or services from a veteran-owned business. All other factors being equal, preference shall be given to supplies, materials and equipment produced, assembled or manufactured in the state and services originating and provided in the state. If any such bidder refuses to accept, within ten days, a contract awarded to such bidder, such contract may be awarded to the next lowest responsible qualified bidder or the next highest scoring bidder in a multiple criteria bid, whichever is applicable, and so on until such contract is awarded and accepted. If any such proposer refuses to accept, within ten days, a contract awarded to such proposer, such contract shall be awarded to the next most advantageous proposer, and so on until the contract is awarded and accepted. There shall be a written evaluation made of each bid. This evaluation shall identify the vendors and their respective costs and prices, document the reason why any vendor is deemed to be nonresponsive and recommend a vendor for award. A contract valued at one million dollars or more shall be awarded to a bidder other than the lowest responsible qualified bidder or the highest scoring bidder in a multiple criteria bid, whichever is applicable, only with written approval signed by the Commissioner of Administrative Services and by the Comptroller. The commissioner shall submit to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to government administration, the State Auditors and the Comptroller, an annual report of all awards made pursuant to the provisions of this section. As used in this subsection, (i) "recyclable" means able to be collected, separated or otherwise recovered from the solid waste stream for reuse, or for use in the manufacture or assembly of another package or product, by means of a recycling program which is reasonably available to at least seventy-five per cent of the state's population, (ii) "remanufactured" means restored to its original function and thereby diverted from the solid waste stream by retaining the bulk of components that have been used at least once and by replacing consumable components, (iii) "remanufacturing" means any process by which a product is remanufactured, (iv) "clean alternative fuel" means natural gas or electricity when used as a motor vehicle fuel, (v) "micro business" means a business with gross revenues not exceeding three million dollars in the most recently completed fiscal year, and (vi) "veteran-owned business" means any business of which at least fifty-one per cent of the ownership is held by one or more veterans, as defined in subsection (a) of section 27-103.

Sec. 2. Subsection (a) of section 4b-91 of the 2010 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2010):

(a) Every contract for the construction, reconstruction, alteration, remodeling, repair or demolition of any public building or any other public work by the state except a public highway or bridge project or any other construction project administered by the Department of Transportation, which is estimated to cost more than five hundred thousand dollars, except a contract awarded by the Commissioner of Public Works for (1) a community court project, as defined in subsection (j) of section 4b-55, (2) the downtown Hartford higher education center project, as defined in subsection (l) of section 4b-55, (3) a correctional facility project, as defined in subsection (m) of section 4b-55, (4) a juvenile detention center project, as defined in subsection (n) of section 4b-55, or (5) a student residential facility for the Connecticut State University System that is a priority higher education facility project, as defined in subsection (f) of section 4b-55, shall be awarded to the lowest responsible and qualified general bidder who is prequalified pursuant to section 4a-100 on the basis of competitive bids in accordance with the procedures set forth in this chapter, after the Commissioner of Public Works or, in the case of a contract for the construction of or work on a building or other public work under the supervision and control of the Joint Committee on Legislative Management of the General Assembly, the joint committee or, in the case of a contract for the construction of or work on a building or other public work under the supervision and control of one of the constituent units of the state system of higher education, the constituent unit, has invited such bids by notice posted on the State Contracting Portal. Every contract for the construction, reconstruction, alteration, remodeling, repair or demolition of any public building or any other public work by a public agency that is paid for, in whole or in part, with state funds and that is estimated to cost more than five hundred thousand dollars, except a public highway or bridge project or any other construction project administered by the Department of Transportation, shall be awarded to a bidder that is prequalified pursuant to section 4a-100 after the public agency has invited such bids by notice posted on the State Contracting Portal. The Commissioner of Public Works, the joint committee, the constituent unit or the public agency, as the case may be, shall indicate the prequalification classification required for the contract in such notice. In determining the lowest responsible and qualified general bidder for the purposes of this section, the Commissioner of Public Works may give a price preference of up to ten per cent for a bidder that is a veteran-owned business. As used in this section, "prequalification classification" means the prequalification classifications established by the Commissioner of Administrative Services pursuant to section 4a-100, [. As used in this section,] "public agency" means public agency, as defined in section 1-200, and "veteran-owned business" means any business of which at least fifty-one per cent of the ownership is held by one or more veterans, as defined in subsection (a) of section 27-103.

Sec. 3. Section 13a-95 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2010):

The commissioner may, at any time, call for bids to construct, alter, reconstruct, improve, relocate, widen or change the grade of sections of state highways or bridges. All bids shall be submitted on forms provided by the commissioner and shall comply with the rules and regulations provided in the bid specifications. The commissioner shall state the amount of the bond which shall accompany each bid and shall name the place where bids shall be received and the time and place for opening the same. Each bid shall be accompanied by a surety company bond satisfactory to the commissioner and in such sum as the commissioner determines, and shall be so conditioned that, if the contract is awarded to the bidder, such bidder shall, when required by the commissioner, execute an agreement in writing, to be prepared by said commissioner, with such bond as shall be acceptable to the commissioner, conditioned as provided in section 49-41. The commissioner may reject any and all bids if, in the commissioner's opinion, cause exists therefor; but otherwise the commissioner shall award the contract to the lowest bidder deemed to be responsible. In determining the lowest responsible bidder, the commissioner may give a price preference of up to ten per cent for a bidder that is a veteran-owned business. The successful bidder shall give evidence satisfactory to said commissioner of such bidder's ability to perform the contract. When such contract is executed by the commissioner and the successful bidder, a copy of the contract, with an estimate of the cost of the work, shall be immediately filed with the commissioner. For purposes of this section, "veteran-owned business" means any business of which at least fifty-one per cent of the ownership is held by one or more veterans, as defined in subsection (a) of section 27-103.