Bill Text: FL H0825 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Local Bids and Contracts for Public Construction Works
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Failed) 2012-03-09 - Died in Government Operations Subcommittee [H0825 Detail]
Download: Florida-2012-H0825-Introduced.html
HB 825 |
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2 | An act relating to local bids and contracts for public |
3 | construction works; amending s. 255.20, F.S.; |
4 | eliminating specified conditions under which a local |
5 | government is exempt from the requirement to |
6 | competitively award contracts; providing an effective |
7 | date. |
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9 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
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11 | Section 1. Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section |
12 | 255.20, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: |
13 | 255.20 Local bids and contracts for public construction |
14 | works; specification of state-produced lumber.- |
15 | (1) A county, municipality, special district as defined in |
16 | chapter 189, or other political subdivision of the state seeking |
17 | to construct or improve a public building, structure, or other |
18 | public construction works must competitively award to an |
19 | appropriately licensed contractor each project that is estimated |
20 | in accordance with generally accepted cost-accounting principles |
21 | to cost more than $300,000. For electrical work, the local |
22 | government must competitively award to an appropriately licensed |
23 | contractor each project that is estimated in accordance with |
24 | generally accepted cost-accounting principles to cost more than |
25 | $75,000. As used in this section, the term "competitively award" |
26 | means to award contracts based on the submission of sealed bids, |
27 | proposals submitted in response to a request for proposal, |
28 | proposals submitted in response to a request for qualifications, |
29 | or proposals submitted for competitive negotiation. This |
30 | subsection expressly allows contracts for construction |
31 | management services, design/build contracts, continuation |
32 | contracts based on unit prices, and any other contract |
33 | arrangement with a private sector contractor permitted by any |
34 | applicable municipal or county ordinance, by district |
35 | resolution, or by state law. For purposes of this section, cost |
36 | includes the cost of all labor, except inmate labor, and the |
37 | cost of equipment and materials to be used in the construction |
38 | of the project. Subject to the provisions of subsection (3), the |
39 | county, municipality, special district, or other political |
40 | subdivision may establish, by municipal or county ordinance or |
41 | special district resolution, procedures for conducting the |
42 | bidding process. |
43 | (c) The provisions of this subsection do not apply: |
44 | 1. If the project is undertaken to replace, reconstruct, |
45 | or repair an existing public building, structure, or other |
46 | public construction works damaged or destroyed by a sudden |
47 | unexpected turn of events such as an act of God, riot, fire, |
48 | flood, accident, or other urgent circumstances, and such damage |
49 | or destruction creates: |
50 | a. An immediate danger to the public health or safety; |
51 | b. Other loss to public or private property which requires |
52 | emergency government action; or |
53 | c. An interruption of an essential governmental service. |
54 | 2. If, after notice by publication in accordance with the |
55 | applicable ordinance or resolution, the governmental entity does |
56 | not receive any responsive bids or proposals. |
57 | 3. To construction, remodeling, repair, or improvement to |
58 | a public electric or gas utility system if such work on the |
59 | public utility system is performed by personnel of the system. |
60 | 4. To construction, remodeling, repair, or improvement by |
61 | a utility commission whose major contracts are to construct and |
62 | operate a public electric utility system. |
63 | 5. If the project is undertaken as repair or maintenance |
64 | of an existing public facility. For the purposes of this |
65 | paragraph, the term "repair" means a corrective action to |
66 | restore an existing public facility to a safe and functional |
67 | condition and the term "maintenance" means a preventive or |
68 | corrective action to maintain an existing public facility in an |
69 | operational state or to preserve the facility from failure or |
70 | decline. Repair or maintenance includes activities that are |
71 | necessarily incidental to repairing or maintaining the facility. |
72 | Repair or maintenance does not include the construction of any |
73 | new building, structure, or other public construction works or |
74 | any substantial addition, extension, or upgrade to an existing |
75 | public facility. Such additions, extensions, or upgrades shall |
76 | be considered substantial if the estimated cost of the |
77 | additions, extensions, or upgrades included as part of the |
78 | repair or maintenance project exceeds the threshold amount in |
79 | subsection (1) and exceeds 20 percent of the estimated total |
80 | cost of the repair or maintenance project using generally |
81 | accepted cost-accounting principles that fully account for all |
82 | costs associated with performing and completing the work, |
83 | including employee compensation and benefits, equipment cost and |
84 | maintenance, insurance costs, and materials. An addition, |
85 | extension, or upgrade shall not be considered substantial if it |
86 | is undertaken pursuant to the conditions specified in |
87 | subparagraph 1. Repair and maintenance projects and any related |
88 | additions, extensions, or upgrades may not be divided into |
89 | multiple projects for the purpose of evading the requirements of |
90 | this subparagraph. |
91 | 6. If the project is undertaken exclusively as part of a |
92 | public educational program. |
93 | 7. If the funding source of the project will be diminished |
94 | or lost because the time required to competitively award the |
95 | project after the funds become available exceeds the time within |
96 | which the funding source must be spent. |
97 | 8. If the local government competitively awarded a project |
98 | to a private sector contractor and the contractor abandoned the |
99 | project before completion or the local government terminated the |
100 | contract. |
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145 | 9. |
146 | determines upon consideration of specific substantive criteria |
147 | that it is in the best interest of the local government to award |
148 | the project to an appropriately licensed private sector |
149 | contractor pursuant to administrative procedures established by |
150 | and expressly set forth in a charter, ordinance, or resolution |
151 | of the local government adopted before July 1, 1994. The |
152 | criteria and procedures must be set out in the charter, |
153 | ordinance, or resolution and must be applied uniformly by the |
154 | local government to avoid awarding a project in an arbitrary or |
155 | capricious manner. This exception applies only if all of the |
156 | following occur: |
157 | a. The governing board of the local government, after |
158 | public notice, conducts a public meeting under s. 286.011 and |
159 | finds by a two-thirds vote of the governing board that it is in |
160 | the public's best interest to award the project according to the |
161 | criteria and procedures established by charter, ordinance, or |
162 | resolution. The public notice must be published at least 14 days |
163 | before the date of the public meeting at which the governing |
164 | board takes final action. The notice must identify the project, |
165 | the estimated cost of the project, and specify that the purpose |
166 | for the public meeting is to consider whether it is in the |
167 | public's best interest to award the project using the criteria |
168 | and procedures permitted by the preexisting charter, ordinance, |
169 | or resolution. |
170 | b. The project is to be awarded by any method other than a |
171 | competitive selection process, and the governing board finds |
172 | evidence that: |
173 | (I) There is one appropriately licensed contractor who is |
174 | uniquely qualified to undertake the project because that |
175 | contractor is currently under contract to perform work that is |
176 | affiliated with the project; or |
177 | (II) The time to competitively award the project will |
178 | jeopardize the funding for the project, materially increase the |
179 | cost of the project, or create an undue hardship on the public |
180 | health, safety, or welfare. |
181 | c. The project is to be awarded by any method other than a |
182 | competitive selection process, and the published notice clearly |
183 | specifies the ordinance or resolution by which the private |
184 | sector contractor will be selected and the criteria to be |
185 | considered. |
186 | d. The project is to be awarded by a method other than a |
187 | competitive selection process, and the architect or engineer of |
188 | record has provided a written recommendation that the project be |
189 | awarded to the private sector contractor without competitive |
190 | selection, and the consideration by, and the justification of, |
191 | the government body are documented, in writing, in the project |
192 | file and are presented to the governing board prior to the |
193 | approval required in this paragraph. |
194 | 10. |
195 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012. |
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