Bill Text: OR HB4115 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to public contracts for construction; appropriating money; declaring an emergency.
Spectrum: Unknown
Status: (Failed) 2012-03-05 - In committee upon adjournment. [HB4115 Detail]
Download: Oregon-2012-HB4115-Introduced.html
76th OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2012 Regular Session
NOTE: Matter within { + braces and plus signs + } in an
amended section is new. Matter within { - braces and minus
signs - } is existing law to be omitted. New sections are within
{ + braces and plus signs + } .
LC 208
House Bill 4115
Introduced and printed pursuant to House Rule 12.00. Presession
filed (at the request of House Interim Committee on General
Government and Consumer Protection)
SUMMARY
The following summary is not prepared by the sponsors of the
measure and is not a part of the body thereof subject to
consideration by the Legislative Assembly. It is an editor's
brief statement of the essential features of the measure as
introduced.
Requires contracting agency to pay fee to Secretary of State in
amount of one-tenth of one percent of contract price for public
contract. Requires secretary to use fee proceeds to conduct or
enter into contract with person to conduct, without notice,
financial, performance and compliance audits of public contracts.
Establishes Public Contracting Audit Account in State Treasury.
Continuously appropriates moneys in account to Secretary of State
for purpose of conducting audits of public contracts.
Declares emergency, effective on passage.
A BILL FOR AN ACT
Relating to public contracts for construction; appropriating
money; and declaring an emergency.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
SECTION 1. { + Section 2 of this 2012 Act is added to and made
a part of ORS chapter 279C. + }
SECTION 2. { + (1)(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b), (c)
or (d) of this subsection, a contracting agency that awards a
public contract subject to this chapter, in addition to and not
in lieu of the charges specified in ORS 297.230, shall pay a fee
equivalent to one-tenth of one percent of the contract price for
the public contract from funds appropriated for the public
contract to the office of the Secretary of State at the time the
contracting agency executes the public contract. The Secretary of
State shall pay the moneys received under this subsection to the
State Treasurer for deposit in the Public Contracting Audit
Account established under section 4 of this 2012 Act.
(b) A contracting agency that uses funds for a public contract
that are subject to provisions under the Oregon Constitution or
under state or federal law that restrict the use of the funds may
not pay the fee described in paragraph (a) of this subsection
except in accordance with the restrictive provisions.
(c) If a contracting agency does not pay a fee described in
paragraph (a) of this subsection, the secretary may enter into an
interagency agreement or an intergovernmental agreement under ORS
chapter 190 to require the contracting agency to pay the costs
for auditing a specific public contract.
(d) A contracting agency that is a party to an interagency
agreement or intergovernmental agreement under paragraph (c) of
this subsection is not subject to the fee described in paragraph
(a) of this subsection with respect to the public contract that
is the subject of the interagency agreement or intergovernmental
agreement.
(2)(a) The secretary shall use moneys available in the Public
Contracting Audit Account to conduct or enter into contracts for
conducting financial, compliance and performance audits under
this section. The secretary shall choose the subject of the audit
and conduct each audit according to standards adopted under ORS
297.070 and without advance notice to the contracting agency or
other parties to the public contract. A person that the secretary
assigns or enters into a contract with to conduct the audit must
have substantial familiarity with and experience in public
improvement contracting and auditing.
(b) If the secretary finds in an audit, or receives reliable
information at any time, that fraud, waste, misconduct or abuse
has occurred under a particular public contract, the secretary
may conduct a special investigation of the contracting agency or
other parties to the public contract. The secretary may use
moneys available in the Public Contracting Audit Account to
conduct the special investigation.
(c) The secretary, in accordance with policies and priorities
that the secretary establishes, each year shall allocate the
amount of moneys available or projected to be available in the
Public Contracting Audit Account that year for conducting a
regular course of audits under this section.
(3) In addition to complying with the requirements of ORS
297.050, the secretary shall publish, on the secretary's website
and on the Oregon transparency website described in ORS 184.483,
a report for each audit conducted under this section.
(4) An appropriate committee of the Legislative Assembly may
review the audit reports described in subsection (3) of this
section and may establish and convene a work group composed of
representatives from contracting agencies, contractors, the
office of the Secretary of State and other interested persons to
review the audit reports and make recommendations to the
Legislative Assembly concerning the content of the audit reports
and public contracting practices and procedures. + }
SECTION 3. { + Section 4 of this 2012 Act is added to and made
a part of ORS chapter 297. + }
SECTION 4. { + The Public Contracting Audit Account is
established in the State Treasury, separate and distinct from the
General Fund. All moneys in the Public Contracting Audit Account
are continuously appropriated to the Secretary of State for the
purposes set forth in section 2 of this 2012 Act. + }
SECTION 5. { + This 2012 Act being necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health and safety, an emergency
is declared to exist, and this 2012 Act takes effect on its
passage. + }
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