Bill Text: NJ S3849 | 2024-2025 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Increases certain local public contract bid threshold.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-10-28 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee [S3849 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2024-S3849-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator RENEE C. BURGESS
District 28 (Essex and Union)
SYNOPSIS
Increases certain local public contract bid threshold.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning local public contracts and amending P.L.1971, c.198 and P.L.2009, c.166.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 3 of P.L.1971, c.198 (C.40A:11-3) is amended to read as follows:
3. a. (1) When the cost or price of a contract, in the aggregate, does not exceed in a contract year the total sum of [$17,500] $22,000, the governing body, by ordinance or resolution, as appropriate to the contracting unit, may authorize a purchasing agent or other designated employee to award the contract without public advertising for bids.
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, a contract having an anticipated value in excess of [$17,500] $22,000, but below the contracting unit's applicable public [bidding] bid threshold, is not required to be awarded by the governing body of the contracting unit and may be awarded by the qualified purchasing agent of the contracting unit.
(3) The governing body of a contracting unit that has designated a purchasing agent pursuant to subsection a. of section 9 of P.L.1971, c.198 (C.40A:11-9) may establish a bid threshold of up to $25,000 or the threshold amount adjusted by the Governor pursuant to subsection c. of this section.
(4) The governing body of any contracting unit may adopt an ordinance or resolution to set a lower threshold for the receipt of public bids or the solicitation of competitive quotations.
(5) Bidding thresholds established by the governing body of a contracting unit pursuant to paragraphs (2) or (3) of this subsection may be granted for each contract or by a general delegation of the power to negotiate and award the contracts pursuant to this section.
b. Any contract made pursuant to this section may be awarded for a period of up to 24 consecutive months, except that contracts for professional services pursuant to subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 5 of P.L.1971, c.198 (C.40A:11-5) may be awarded for a period not exceeding 12 consecutive months. The Division of Local Government Services shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations concerning the methods of accounting for all contracts that do not coincide with the contracting unit's fiscal year.
c. The Governor, in consultation with the Department of the Treasury, shall, no later than March 1 of every fifth year beginning in the fifth year after the year in which P.L.1999, c.440 takes effect, adjust the threshold amount, in direct proportion to the rise of the index rate as that term is defined in section 2 of P.L.1971, c.198 (C.40A:11-2), and shall round the adjustment to the nearest $1,000. The Governor shall, no later than June 1 of every fifth year, notify each governing body of the adjustment. The adjustment shall become effective on July 1 of the year in which it is made.
(cf: P.L.2023, c.252, s.6)
2. Section 4 of P.L.2009, c.166 (C.40A:11-9a) is amended to read as follows:
4. An individual who is the duly authorized purchasing agent of a contracting unit and does not possess a qualified purchasing agent certificate on the date of enactment of P.L.2009, c.166 may continue to be referred to as the purchasing agent, but the bid threshold for that contracting unit shall be set at [$17,500 until such time as that individual obtains a qualified purchasing agent certificate] the amount authorized pursuant to section 3 of P.L.1971, c.198 (C.40A:11-3). A contracting unit exercising this authority shall file a letter to this effect with the director.
(cf: P.L.2009, c.166, s.4)
3. This act shall take effect on the first day of the fourth month next following enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill amends the "Local Public Contracts Law," P.L.1971, c.198 (C.40A:11-1 et seq.), to increase, from $17,500 to $22,000, the statutory, maximum contract amount at which the governing body of a local contracting unit may designate an employee to award a contract without public advertising for bids, regardless of whether the designated employee possesses a qualified purchasing agent certificate. Under the bill, if a contracting unit has established a bid threshold in excess of $22,000, and has designated a person possessing a qualified purchasing agent certificate to serve as the contracting unit's purchasing agent, then the contracting unit is not required to award the contract itself, and may delegate the power to award contracts in an amount between $22,000 and the bid threshold to the holder of the qualified purchasing agent certificate.
Current law authorizes the
governing body of a contracting unit that has designated a purchasing agent to
establish a bid threshold of up to $25,000 or the threshold amount set by the
Governor, which amount is currently set at $44,000. Therefore, under the bill,
a contracting unit would be able to delegate the award of a contract below
$22,000, or all contracts below $22,000, to a purchasing agent or other
employee, without publicly advertising for bids. If a
contracting unit designates a purchasing agent and sets a bid threshold in excess of $22,000, the contracting unit may delegate the power to award contracts between $22,000 and the public bid threshold to the purchasing agent.
