2026 -- S 2445

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LC004625

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC PROPERTY AND WORKS -- STATE PURCHASES

     Introduced By: Senators DiPalma, Felag, Gallo, Tikoian, and Ciccone

     Date Introduced: February 06, 2026

     Referred To: Senate Finance

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 37-2-7 of the General Laws in Chapter 37-2 entitled "State

Purchases" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     37-2-7. Definitions.

     The words defined in this section have the meanings set forth below whenever they appear

in this chapter, unless the context in which they are used clearly requires a different meaning or a

different definition is prescribed for a particular section, group of sections, or provision:

     (1) “Business” means any corporation, partnership, individual, sole proprietorship, joint

stock company, joint venture, or any other legal entity through which business is conducted.

     (2) “Change order” means a written authorization signed by the purchasing agent directing

or allowing the contractor to proceed with changes, alterations, or modifications to the terms,

conditions, or scope of work on a previously awarded contract.

     (3) “Chief purchasing officer” shall mean: (i) For a state agency, the director of the

department of administration, and (ii) For a public agency, the executive director or the chief

operational officer of the agency.

     (4) “Construction” means the process of building, altering, repairing, improving, or

demolishing any public structures or building, or other public improvements of any kind to any

public real property. It does not include the routine maintenance or repair of existing structures,

buildings, or real property performed by salaried employees of the state of Rhode Island in the

usual course of their jobs.

     (5) “Contract” means all types of agreements, including grants and orders, for the purchase

or disposal of supplies, services, construction, or any other item. It includes awards; contracts of a

fixed-price, cost, cost-plus-a-fixed-fee, or incentive type; contracts providing for the issuance of

job or task orders; leases; letter contracts; purchase orders; and construction management contracts.

It also includes supplemental agreements with respect to any of the foregoing. “Contract” does not

include labor contracts with employees of state agencies.

     (6) “Contract amendment” means any written alteration in the specifications, delivery

point, rate of delivery, contract period, price, quantity, or other contract provisions of any existing

contract, whether accomplished by unilateral action in accordance with a contract provision, or by

mutual action of the parties to the contract. It includes bilateral actions, such as supplemental

agreements, and unilateral actions, such as change orders, administrative changes, notices of

termination, and notices of the exercise of a contract option.

     (7) “Contractor” means any person having a contract with a governmental body.

     (8) “Data” means recorded information, regardless of form or characteristic.

     (9) “Designee” means a duly authorized representative of a person holding a superior

position.

     (10) “Employee” means an individual drawing a salary from a state governmental entity.

     (11) “State governmental entity” means any entity created as a legislative body or a public

or state agency by the general assembly or constitution of this state, except for municipal, regional,

or county governmental entities.

     (12) “May” means permissive.

     (13) “Negotiation” means contracting by either the method set forth in § 37-2-19, 37-2-20,

or 37-2-21.

     (14) “Person” means any business, individual, organization, or group of individuals.

     (15) “Procurement” means the purchasing, buying, renting, leasing, or otherwise obtaining

of any supplies, services, or construction. It also includes all functions that pertain to the obtaining

of any supply, service, or construction item, including a description of requirements, selection and

solicitation of sources, preparation, and award of contract, and all phases of contract administration.

     (16) “Public agency” shall mean the Rhode Island industrial recreational building

authority, the Rhode Island commerce corporation, the Rhode Island industrial facilities

corporation, the Rhode Island refunding bond authority, the Rhode Island housing and mortgage

finance corporation, the Rhode Island resource recovery corporation, the Rhode Island public

transit authority, the Rhode Island student loan authority, the Howard development corporation,

the water resources board corporate, the Rhode Island health and education building corporation,

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the Rhode Island turnpike and bridge authority, the Blackstone Valley district commission, the

Narragansett Bay water quality management district commission, the Rhode Island

telecommunications authority, the convention center authority, the Channel 36 foundation, the

Rhode Island lottery commission their successors and assigns, any other body corporate and politic

which has been or will be created or established within this state excepting cities and towns, the

university of Rhode Island board of trustees for all purchases that are funded by restricted,

sponsored, or auxiliary monies, and the council on postsecondary education for all purchases that

are funded by restricted, sponsored, or auxiliary monies.

     (17) “Purchase request” or “purchase requisition” means that document whereby a using

agency requests that a contract be entered into to obtain goods and/or services for a specified need,

and may include, but is not limited to, the technical description of the requested item, delivery

requirements, transportation mode request, criteria for evaluation of proposals, and/or preparation

of suggested sources of supply, and information supplied for the making of any written

determination and finding required by § 37-2-6.

     (18) “Purchasing agency” means any state governmental entity which is authorized by this

chapter, its implementing regulations, or by way of delegation from the chief purchasing officer to

contract on its own behalf rather than through the central contracting authority of the chief

purchasing officer.

     (19) “Purchasing agent” means any person authorized by a governmental entity in

accordance with procedures prescribed by regulations, to enter into and administer contracts and

make written determinations and findings with respect to contracts. The term also includes an

authorized representative acting within the limits of authority. “Purchasing agent” also means the

person appointed in accordance with § 37-2-1.

     (20) “Services” means the rendering, by a contractor, of its time and effort rather than the

furnishing of a specific end product, other than reports that are merely incidental to the required

performance of services. “Services” does not include labor contracts with employees of state

agencies.

     (21) “Shall” means imperative.

     (22) “State” means the state of Rhode Island and any of its departments or agencies and

public agencies.

     (23) “Supplemental agreement” means any contract modification which is accomplished

by the mutual action of the parties.

     (24) “Supplies” means all property, including, but not limited to, leases of real property,

printing, and insurance, except land or permanent interest in land.

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     (25) “Using agency” means any state governmental entity which utilizes any supplies,

services, or construction purchased under this chapter.

     (26) As used in § 37-2-59, “architect” or “engineer” services means those professional

services within the scope of practice of architecture, professional engineering, or registered land

surveying pertaining to construction, as defined by the laws of this state. “Consultant” means any

person with whom the state and/or a public agency has a contract which contract provides for the

person to give direction or information as regards a particular area of knowledge in which the

person is a specialist and/or has expertise.

     (27) For purposes of §§ 37-2-62 — 37-2-70, “directors” means those members of a public

agency appointed pursuant to a statute who comprise the governing authority of the board,

commission, authority, and/or corporation.

     (28) “State agency” means any department, commission, council, board, bureau,

committee, institution, or other governmental entity of the executive or judicial branch of this state

not otherwise established as a body corporate and politic, and includes, without limitation, the

council on postsecondary education except for purchases which are funded by restricted, sponsored,

or auxiliary moneys, the university of Rhode Island board of trustees except for all purchases which

are funded by restricted, sponsored, or auxiliary monies, and the council on elementary and

secondary education.

     (29) “Governmental entity” means any department, commission, council, board, bureau,

committee, institution, legislative body, agency, or government corporation of the executive,

legislative, or judicial branches of state, federal, and/or local governments.

     (30) “Construction management at-risk” or “construction management at-risk services” or

“construction management at-risk delivery method” is a construction method wherein a

construction manager at-risk provides a range of preconstruction services and construction

management services which may include cost estimation and consultation regarding the design of

the building project, the preparation and coordination of bid packages, scheduling, cost control, and

value engineering, acting as the general contractor during the construction, detailing the trade

contractor scope of work, holding the trade contracts and other contracts, evaluating trade

contractors and subcontractors, and providing management and construction services, all at a

guaranteed maximum price, which shall represent the maximum amount to be paid by the using

agency for the building project, including the cost of work, the general conditions, and the fee

payable to the construction management at-risk firm.

     (31) “Construction manager at-risk” or “construction management at-risk firm” is a person

or business experienced in construction that has the ability to evaluate and to implement drawings

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and specifications as they affect time, cost and quality of construction and the ability to coordinate

and deliver the construction of the project within a guaranteed maximum price, which shall

represent the maximum amount to be paid by the using agency for the building project, including

the cost of the work, the general conditions, and the fee payable to the construction management

at-risk firm. The construction manager at-risk provides consultation services during the

preconstruction and construction phases of the project. The project engineer, architect, or owner’s

program manager may not serve as the construction manager at-risk.

     (32) “Owner’s program manager” shall be an entity engaged to provide project

management services on behalf of a state agency for the construction and supervision of the

construction of a building project. The owner’s program manager acts as the owner’s agent in all

aspects of the construction project, including, but not limited to, architectural programming,

planning, design, construction, and the selection and procurement of an appropriate construction

delivery method. The owner’s program manager shall have at least seven (7) years’ experience in

the construction and supervision of construction of buildings of similar size and complexity. The

owner’s program manager shall not have been employed during the preceding year by the design

firm, the construction firm, and/or the subcontractors associated with the project.

     (33) State software application purchases” means all types of agreements, including grants

and orders, for the purchase or disposal of supplies, services, construction, or any other item,

entered into by a state agency the cost or price of which is to be paid, in whole or in part, with or

out of state funds. It includes awards; contracts of a fixed-price, cost, cost-plus-a-fixed-fee, or

incentive type; contracts providing for the issuance of job or task orders; leases; letter contracts;

purchase orders; and construction management contracts. It also includes supplemental agreements

with respect to any of the foregoing documents.

     SECTION 2. Chapter 37-2 of the General Laws entitled "State Purchases" is hereby

amended by adding thereto the following section:

     37-2-83. Prohibiting state agencies from entering into contracts limiting ability to

install or run certain software.

     A state contract for the licensing of software applications, which are intended to be installed

by a state agency and designed to run on generally available desktop or server hardware, shall not

limit a state agency's ability to install or run the software on the hardware of the state agency's

choosing.

     SECTION 3. 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 prohibit state agencies from entering into software contracts that limit the

agency's ability to install or run the software of the agency's choosing on their hardware.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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