2024 -- S 3139

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LC006235

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2024

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC PROPERTY AND WORKS -- STATE PURCHASES

     

     Introduced By: Senator Louis P. DiPalma

     Date Introduced: June 04, 2024

     Referred To: Senate Finance

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Section 37-2-13.1 of the General Laws in Chapter 37-2 entitled "State

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Purchases" is hereby amended to read as follows:

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     37-2-13.1. Procurement regulations — Request for proposal.

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     (a) No request for proposal shall change to a master-price agreement unless the request for

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proposal is cancelled and reissued as a master price agreement.

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     (b) No vendor, parent corporation, subsidiary, affiliate, or subcontractor of any state vendor

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may bid on a request for proposal if that person or entity has or had any contractual, financial,

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business, or beneficial interest with the state or a conflict of interest as defined in chapter 14 of title

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36 with any official, officer, or agency in charge of the request or if they materially participated or

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were consulted with respect to the requirements, technical aspects, or any other part of the

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formation and promulgation of the request for proposals except for the situations outlined in

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subsection (f) of this section.

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     (c) Further, no person or entity who or that acts as an operator or vendor for the state may

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participate in any request for proposal relating to any audit, examination, independent verification,

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review, or evaluation of any of the person’s or entity’s work, financials or operations performed

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for or on behalf of the state, or any official, officer, or agency.

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     (c)(d) Persons or entities certified as “sole source” providers under § 37-2-21 shall be

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exempt from the requirements of subsection (b) of this section.

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     (d)(e) Any person or entity submitting a proposal in response to a request for proposal shall

 

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make a written certification attesting under the penalty of perjury that the terms of subsection (b)

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of this section have been complied with or that the person or entity is exempt under subsection (c)

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of this section.

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     (f) Requests for information formally issued by the division of purchases and emergency

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procurements as defined in § 37-2-21 shall be exempt from subsection (b) of this section. Feasibility

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studies and preliminary evaluations shall also be exempt from subsection (b) of this section if the

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purchasing agent certifies in writing to the director of administration that a request for feasibility

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studies or preliminary evaluations resulted in no responsive bids. However, the division of

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purchases shall publicly disclose any final prior feasibility studies and/or evaluation reports

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completed in a subsequent procurement regarding a project.

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     (g) All potential suppliers shall be given a fair opportunity to present their capabilities and

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products. Reasonable effort shall be made to provide fair bidding opportunities to all qualified and

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interested suppliers.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC PROPERTY AND WORKS -- STATE PURCHASES

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     This act would provide that vendors, parent corporations, subsidiaries, affiliates, or

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subcontractors of the state are prohibited from bidding on requests for proposals if the person or

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entity has a conflict of interest as defined by the code of ethics.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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