Source: http://wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=SB283%20SUB1.htm&yr=2018&sesstype=RS&i=283
Timestamp: 2019-04-22 13:26:13+00:00

Document:
A BILL to amend and reenact §5-22-1 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; to amend and reenact §5A-3-10b, §5A-3-10c, §5A-3-10e, §5A-3-33d, §5A-3-33f, §5A-3-37, and §5A-3-45 of said code; to amend said code by adding thereto a new section, designated §5A-3-61; to amend and reenact §5G-1-3 of said code; to amend and reenact §6D-1-1 of said code; and to amend and reenact §18B-5-4 of said code, all relating generally to procurement by state agencies; defining terms; authorizing competitive bidding of certain open-ended repair and maintenance contracts; modifying use and consideration of alternates in solicitations; prohibiting alternates from being accepted out of order; modifying criteria to be considered in best value procurement awards; eliminating sole source procurement; establishing direct award procurement requirements; establishing prequalification agreements and their requirements and procedures; authorizing agency-delegated bidding and its procedure; increasing certain cost limits from $50,000 to $1 million; authorizing awarding contracts without competitive bidding if certain requirements are met; eliminating master contracts and direct ordering process; expanding the scope of those who may be debarred; eliminating preferences for resident vendors, vendors employing state residents, and veteran residents; establishing the concept of “reciprocal preference” for an in-state vendor over an out-of-state vendor from any state that gives or requires a preference to bidders from that state and setting forth its requirements; modifying the value determination of certain motor vehicles that are to be sold; permitting funds from sale of surplus property be deposited in alternate fund if original fund no longer exists; permitting spending units to use a standardization process to purchase commodities and setting forth its requirements; permitting an architectural or engineering firm to be selected without bidding if certain conditions exist; increasing certain contract limits from $100,000 to $1 million; requiring certain reporting; and authorizing rulemaking.
CHAPTER 5. GENERAL POWERS AND AUTHORITY OF THE GOVERNOR, SECRETARY OF STATE, AND ATTORNEY GENERAL; BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS; MISCELLANEOUS AGENCIES, COMMISSIONS, OFFICES, PROGRAMS, ETC.
§5-22-1. Bidding required; government construction contracts to go to lowest qualified responsible bidder; procedures to be followed in awarding government construction projects; penalties for violation of procedures and requirements debarment; exceptions.
(a) This section and the requirements in this section may be referred to as the West Virginia Fairness in Competitive Bidding Act.
(C) Has supplied a valid bid bond or other surety authorized or approved by the contracting public entity.
(2) “The state and its subdivisions” means the State of West Virginia, every political subdivision thereof, every administrative entity that includes such a subdivision, all municipalities, and all county boards of education.
(3) “State spending unit” means a department, agency, or institution of the state government for which an appropriation is requested, or to which an appropriation is made by the Legislature.
(4) “Alternates” means any additive options or alternative designs included in a solicitation for competitive bids that are different from and priced separately from what is included in a base bid.
(5) “Construction project” means a specifically identified scope of work involving the act, trade, or process of building, erecting, constructing, adding, repairing, remodeling, rehabilitating, reconstructing, altering, converting, improving, expanding, or demolishing of a building, structure, facility, road, or highway. Repair and maintenance of existing public improvements that is recurring or ongoing in nature and that is not fully identified or known at any one time shall be considered a construction project and procured according to this article on an open-ended basis, so long as the work to be performed under the contract falls into a generally accepted single class, or type, and bidders are notified of the open-ended nature of the work in the solicitation: Provided, That no open-ended repair or maintenance contract may exceed $1 million.
(c) The state and its subdivisions shall, except as provided in this section, solicit competitive bids for every construction project exceeding $25,000 in total cost.
(1) If a solicitation contains a request for any alternates, the alternates shall be listed numerically in the order of preference in the solicitation.
(2) A vendor who has been debarred pursuant to §5A-3-33b though §5A-3-33f of this code, may not bid on or be awarded a contract under this section.
(d) All bids submitted pursuant to this chapter shall include a valid bid bond or other surety as approved by the State of West Virginia or its subdivisions.
(d) (e) Following the solicitation of bids, the construction contract shall be awarded to the lowest qualified responsible bidder who shall furnish a sufficient performance and payment bond. The state and its subdivisions may reject all bids and solicit new bids on the project.
(e) (f) Any solicitation of bids shall include no more than seven five alternates. Alternates, if accepted, shall be accepted in the order in which they are listed on the bid form: Provided, That a public entity may accept an alternate out of the listed order if acceptance would not affect determination of the lowest qualified responsible bidder. Any unaccepted alternate contained within a bid shall expire 150 90 days after the date of the opening of bids for review.
Determination of the lowest qualified responsible bidder shall be based on the sum of the base bid and any alternates accepted.
(f) (g) The apparent low bidder on a contract valued at more than $250,000 for the construction, alteration, decoration, painting, or improvement of a new or existing building or structure with a state spending unit shall submit a list of all subcontractors who will perform more than $25,000 worth of work on the project including labor and materials. This section does not apply to other construction projects such as highway, mine reclamation, water, or sewer projects. The list shall include the names of the bidders and the license numbers as required by §21-11-1 et seq. of this code. This information shall be provided to the state spending unit within one business day of the opening of bids for review prior to the awarding of a construction contract. If the apparent low bidder fails to submit the subcontractor list, the spending unit shall promptly request by telephone and electronic mail that the low bidder and second low bidder provide the subcontractor list within one business day of the request. Failure to submit the subcontractor list within one business day of receiving the request shall result in disqualification of the bid. A subcontractor list may not be required if the bidder provides notice in the bid submission or in response to a request for a subcontractor list that no subcontractors who will perform more than $25,000 worth of work will be used to complete the project.
(3) The contractor certifies in writing that the subcontractor listed in the original bill fails, is unable, or refuses to perform the subcontract.
(h) (i) The contracting public entity may not award the contract to a bidder which fails to meet the minimum requirements set out in this section. As to a prospective low bidder which the contracting public entity determines not to have met one or more of the requirements of this section or other requirements as determined by the public entity in the written bid solicitation, prior to the time a contract award is made, the contracting public entity shall document in writing and in reasonable detail the basis for the determination and shall place the writing in the bid file. After the award of a bid under this section, the bid file of the contracting public agency and all bids submitted in response to the bid solicitation shall be open and available for public inspection.
(i) (j) The contracting public entity shall not award a contract pursuant to this section to any bidder that is known to be in default on any monetary obligation owed to the state or a political subdivision of the state, including, but not limited to, obligations related to payroll taxes, property taxes, sales and use taxes, fire service fees, or other fines or fees. Any governmental entity may submit to the Division of Purchasing information which identifies vendors that qualify as being in default on a monetary obligation to the entity. The contracting public entity shall take reasonable steps to verify whether the lowest qualified bidder is in default pursuant to this subsection prior to awarding a contract.
(j) (k) A public official or other person who individually or together with others knowingly makes an award of a contract under this section in violation of the procedures and requirements of this section is subject to the penalties set forth in §5A-3-29 of this code.
(k) (l) No officer or employee of this state or of a public agency, public authority, public corporation, or other public entity and no person acting or purporting to act on behalf of an officer or employee or public entity may require that a performance bond, payment bond, or surety bond required or permitted by this section be obtained from a particular surety company, agent, broker or producer.
(l) (m) All bids shall be open in accordance with the provisions of §5-22-2 of this code, except design-build projects which are governed by §5-22A-1 et seq. of this code and are exempt from these provisions.
(4) A situation where the state or subdivision thereof reaches an agreement with volunteers, or a volunteer group, in which the governmental body will provide construction or repair materials, architectural, engineering, technical, or other professional services, and the volunteers will provide the necessary labor without charge to, or liability upon, the governmental body.
CHAPTER 5A. DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATION.
(a) The director may utilize best value procurement to enter into a contract when he or she determines in writing that it is advantageous to the state.
(b) A solicitation for bids under best value procurement shall be made in the same manner as provided in §5A-3-10 of this code.
(c) Best value procurement awards shall be based on criteria set forth in the solicitation including, but not limited to, price and information contained in the proposals submitted in response to the solicitation. Those criteria include, but are not limited to, price and the total cost of acquiring, operating, maintaining, and supporting a commodity or service over its projected lifetime, as well as technical criteria. The technical criteria may include, but are not limited to, the evaluated technical merit of the bidder’s bid or proposal, the bidder’s past performance, the degree to which a proposal exceeds other proposals in technical merit, the utility of any novel or unrequested items in the proposal, and the evaluated probability of performing the requirements stated in the solicitation on time, with high quality, and in a manner that accomplishes the business objectives set forth in the solicitation.
(d) The award must be made to the highest scoring responsive and responsible bidder whose bid is determined, in writing, to be most advantageous to the state, taking into consideration all evaluation factors set forth in the best value solicitation.
(e) The director may not use best value procurement to enter into government construction contracts, including, but not limited to, those set forth in §5-22-1 et seq. of this code.
§5A-3-10c. Sole source procurement Direct award procurement.
(5) No other vendor expresses an interest in providing the commodity or service in question.
(b) If a vendor expresses an interest in providing the commodity or service described in the notice of intent to make a direct award, then the spending unit must convert the direct award to a competitive bid, unless the director determines that the interest expressed by a vendor is unreasonable. The competitive bid may, at the discretion of the director, be either a request for quotation or request for proposal.
(6) Contact information for the director or his or her designee, and instructions to submit a statement of interest to the director or his or her designee.
(d) The director may refuse a spending unit’s request to utilize a direct award procurement if the commodities or services have previously been obtained through competitive bidding.
(e) On or before December 1, 2018, and annually thereafter, the director shall report to the Governor and the Joint Committee on Government and Finance on the spending units who have requested a direct award for their commodities or services, the type of commodity or service, and results of the direct award process.
§5A-3-10e. Master contracts; direct ordering process Prequalification agreement; agency- delegated bidding.
(a) Subject to the limitations of this section, the director may permit spending units to procure commodities directly from a preapproved vendor through a master contract direct ordering process prequalification agreement and delegated prequalification bidding if the director determines the process is fair, economical, and in the best interests of the state.
(1) “Information technology” means hardware and software related to electronic processing, and storage, retrieval, transmittal, and manipulation of data.
(2) “ Master contract” “Prequalification agreement” means an agreement, having a term of no more than one year three years, between the Purchasing Division and at least two preapproved prequalified vendors authorizing a spending unit to purchase a commodity directly and on a recurrent basis through the direct ordering process delegated prequalification bidding process defined in the prequalification agreement.
(3) “Preapproved” “Prequalified vendor” means a “vendor”, as that term is defined in §5A-1-1 of this code, that has entered into a master contract prequalification agreement with the Purchasing Division and may participate in the direct ordering process delegated prequalification bidding subject to the terms and conditions of the master contract prequalification agreement.
(4) “ Direct ordering process” “Delegated prequalification bidding” means the competitive bidding process whereby the preapproved prequalified vendors that are parties to a master contract prequalification agreement may submit sealed bids directly to spending units to provide a commodity identified in the master contract prequalification agreement subject to the limitations set forth in this section.
(1) For each master contract prequalification agreement, the director shall set forth the requirements, technical or otherwise, under which a vendor may be qualified to supply a commodity through the direct ordering process delegated prequalification bidding. For each master contract prequalification agreement, the director shall follow the notice and advertising requirements set forth in §5A-3-10 of this code.
(2) A master contract prequalification agreement may authorize the direct ordering process delegated prequalification bidding for only one type of commodity.
(3) A vendor may submit information to the director to establish that it meets the requirements set forth in the master contract prequalification agreement.
(4) If the director determines that a vendor meets the requirements set forth in the master contract prequalification agreement, the vendor may enter into the master contract prequalification agreement as a preapproved prequalified vendor.
(1) A spending unit may commence the direct ordering delegated prequalification bidding process by issuing a request for a commodity identified in the master contract, prequalification agreement stating in the request the quantity of the commodity to be procured in that particular instance.
(2) The preapproved prequalified vendor that submits the lowest bid in response to the request shall be awarded the procurement in that particular instance.
(3) The direct ordering process delegated prequalification bidding may not be utilized for any request for commodities, other than information technology, anticipated to cost more than $50,000 $1 million, unless approved in writing by the Director of Purchasing. The state may not issue a series of orders each anticipated to cost less than $50,000 $1 million to circumvent the monetary limitation in this subsection. The limit expressed herein applies to each delegated prequalification bid conducted pursuant to the prequalification agreement and not to total spending under the prequalification agreement.
(4) The direct ordering process may not be utilized for any request for information technology anticipated to cost more than $1 million, unless approved in writing by the Director of Purchasing. The state may not issue a series of orders each anticipated to cost less than $1 million to circumvent the monetary limitation in this subsection.
(e) Rule-making authority. — The Director of the Purchasing Division shall propose rules for legislative approval in accordance with the provisions of §29A-3-1 et seq. of this code to implement this section, including but not limited to provisions to establish procedures for the solicitation and authorization of master contracts prequalification agreements, preapproval prequalification of vendors, and implementation of direct ordering delegated prequalification bidding.
(E) (9) Any other cause of a serious and compelling nature amounting to knowing and willful misconduct of the vendor that demonstrates a wanton indifference to the interests of the public and that caused, or that had a substantial likelihood of causing, serious harm to the public.
(b) For the purposes of this section, the term “conviction” includes, but may not be limited to, the entering of a deferred prosecution agreement or a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, including pleading to a lesser or related offense in exchange for some form of prosecutorial leniency.
(a) Unless the director determines in writing that there is a compelling reason to do otherwise, the state and its subdivisions may not solicit offers from, award contracts to, nor consent to subcontract with a debarred vendor during the debarment period.
(b) The contracting officer may not exercise an option to renew or otherwise extend a current contract with a debarred vendor, nor a contract which is being performed in any part by a debarred subcontractor, unless the director approves the action in writing, based on compelling reasons for exercise of the option or extension.
(c) The debarment decision may extend to all commodities and services of the vendor, or may be limited to specific commodities or services, as the director specifically finds, in the debarment procedure under §5A-3-33e of this code, to be in the public interest based on the substantial record.
(4) A business entity or individual that has contracted with or employed a debarred vendor or individual to perform work on one or more public contracts.
(4) Other good cause shown, including evidence that the vendor has become responsible.
(f) The director may extend the debarment period for an additional period if the director determines that the extension is necessary to protect the interests of the state. Upon the expiration of a debarment period, the director shall extend the debarment period for any vendor who has not paid all current state obligations for at least the four most recent calendar quarters, exempting the current calendar quarter, and for any vendor who is in default on a repayment agreement with an agency of the state, until such time as the cause for the extended debarment is removed. If the director extends the debarment period, the director shall follow the same procedures, and afford the vendor like notice, hearing, and other rights for extending the debarment, as provided for debarment under §5A-3-33e of this code.
(g) A debarment under this article may be waived by the director with respect to a particular contract if the director determines the debarment of the vendor would severely disrupt the operation of a governmental entity to the detriment of the general public or would not be in the public interest.
§5A-3-37. Preference for resident vendors; preference for vendors employing state residents; preference for veteran residents; exceptions Reciprocal preference.
(7) Notwithstanding any provisions of subdivisions (1), (2), (3), (4), (5) or (6) of this subsection to the contrary, if any nonresident vendor that is bidding on the purchase of commodities or printing by the director or by a state department is also certified as a small, women or minority-owned business pursuant to section fifty-nine of this article, the nonresident vendor shall be provided the same preference made available to any resident vendor under the provisions of this subsection.
(b) If the Secretary of the Department of Revenue determines under any audit procedure that a vendor who received a preference under this section fails to continue to meet the requirements for the preference at any time during the term of the project for which the preference was received the secretary may: (1) Reject the vendor’s bid; or (2) assess a penalty against the vendor of not more than five percent of the vendor’s bid on the project.
(c) Political subdivisions of the state including county boards of education may grant the same preferences to any vendor of this state who has made a written claim for the preference at the time a bid is submitted, but for the purposes of this subsection, in determining the lowest bid, any political subdivision shall exclude from the bid the amount of business occupation taxes which must be paid by a resident vendor to any municipality within the county comprising or located within the political subdivision as a result of being awarded the contract which is the object of the bid; in the case of a bid received by a municipality, the municipality shall exclude only the business and occupation taxes as will be paid to the municipality: Provided, That prior to soliciting any competitive bids, any political subdivision may, by majority vote of all its members in a public meeting where all the votes are recorded, elect not to exclude from the bid the amount of business and occupation taxes as provided in this subsection.
(d) If any of the requirements or provisions set forth in this section jeopardize the receipt of federal funds, then the requirement or provisions are void and of no force and effect for that specific project.
(e) If any provision or clause of this section or application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of this section which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this section are severable.
(a) In any instance that a purchase of commodities or printing by the director or by a state spending unit is required under the provisions of this article to be made upon competitive bids, preference shall be given to resident vendors of West Virginia against a nonresident vendor from any state that gives or requires a preference to bidders from that state. The amount of the preference shall be equal to the amount of the preference given or required by the state of the nonresident vendor for that particular supply.
(4) Has actually paid, and not just applied to pay, all required business taxes imposed by chapter 11 of this code.
(c) If any of the requirements or provisions set forth in this section jeopardizes the receipt of federal funds then such requirements or provision shall be void and of no force and effect.
§5A-3-45. Disposition of surplus state property; semiannual report; application of proceeds from sale.
(a) The state agency for surplus property has the exclusive power and authority to make disposition of commodities or expendable commodities now owned or in the future acquired by the state when the commodities are or become obsolete or unusable or are not being used or should be replaced.
(7) Selling the commodities to the highest bidder by means of an Internet auction site approved by the director, as set forth in an emergency a legislative rule pursuant to the provisions of chapter 29A of this code.
(c) Upon the sale to the general public or transfer of commodities or expendable commodities between departments, or upon the sale of commodities or expendable commodities to an eligible organization, the agency shall set the price to be paid by the receiving eligible organization, with due consideration given to current market prices.
(d) The agency may sell expendable, obsolete, or unused motor vehicles owned by the state to an eligible organization, other than volunteer fire departments. In addition, the agency may sell expendable, obsolete, or unused motor vehicles owned by the state with a gross weight in excess of 4,000 pounds to an eligible volunteer fire department. The agency, with due consideration given to current market prices fair market value as determined by an independent automotive pricing guide, shall set the price at a fair market price to be paid by the receiving eligible organization for motor vehicles sold pursuant to this provision. Provided, That the sale price of any motor vehicle sold to an eligible organization may not be less than the “average loan” value, as published in the most recent available eastern edition of the National Automobile Dealer’s Association (N.A.D.A.) Official Used Car Guide, if the value is available, unless the fair market value of the vehicle is less than the N.A.D.A. “average loan” value, in which case the vehicle may be sold for less than the “average loan” value The fair market value shall be based on a thorough inspection of the vehicle by an employee of the agency who shall consider the mileage of the vehicle and the condition of the body, engine, and tires as indicators of its fair market value. If no fair market value is available, the agency shall set the price to be paid by the receiving eligible organization with due consideration given to current market prices. The duly authorized representative of the eligible organization, for whom the motor vehicle or other similar surplus equipment is purchased or otherwise obtained, shall cause ownership and proper title to the motor vehicle to be vested only in the official name of the authorized governing body for whom the purchase or transfer was made. The ownership or title, or both, shall remain in the possession of that governing body and be nontransferable for a period of not less than one year from the date of the purchase or transfer. Resale or transfer of ownership of the motor vehicle or equipment prior to an elapsed period of one year may be made only by reason of certified unserviceability.
(e) The agency shall report to the Legislative Auditor, semiannually, all sales of commodities or expendable commodities made during the preceding six months to eligible organizations. The report shall include a description of the commodities sold, the price paid by the eligible organization which received the commodities, and to whom each commodity was sold.
(f) The proceeds of the sales or transfers shall be deposited in the State Treasury to the credit on a pro rata basis of the fund or funds out of which the purchase of the particular commodities or expendable commodities was made: Provided, That the agency may charge and assess fees reasonably related to the costs of care and handling with respect to the transfer, warehousing, sale, and distribution of state property disposed of or sold pursuant to the provisions of this section. Notwithstanding §5A-3-45(e) of this code, if the fund or funds out of which the purchase was made no longer exist, the spending unit may designate an alternate fund within which the proceeds must be deposited.
(g)(1) For purposes of this section, “cannibalization” means the removal of parts from one commodity to use in the creation or repair of another commodity.
(2) The Director of the Purchasing Division shall propose for promulgation legislative rules to establish procedures that permit the cannibalization of a commodity when it is in the best interests of the state. The procedures shall require the approval of the director prior to the cannibalization of the commodity under such circumstances as the procedures may prescribe.
(vii) Who will cannibalize the commodity and how the person is qualified to remove and reinstall the parts.
(vii) The cost of the parts and labor to restore the commodity to an operable condition without cannibalization.
(C) If the agency intends to retain the cannibalized parts for future use, it shall provide information justifying its request.
(D) The procedures shall provide for the disposal of the residual components of cannibalized property.
(h)(1) The Director of the Purchasing Division shall propose for promulgation legislative rules to establish procedures that allow state agencies to dispose of commodities in a landfill, or by other lawful means of waste disposal, if the value of the commodity is less than the benefit that may be realized by the state by disposing of the commodity using another method authorized in this section. The procedures shall specify circumstances where the state agency for surplus property shall inspect the condition of the commodity prior to authorizing the disposal and those circumstances when the inspection is not necessary prior to the authorization.
(2) Whenever a state agency requests permission to dispose of a commodity in a landfill, or by other lawful means of waste disposal, the state agency for surplus property has the right to take possession of the commodity and to dispose of the commodity using any other method authorized in this section.
(3) If the state agency for surplus property determines, within 15 days of receiving a commodity, that disposing of the commodity in a landfill or by other lawful means of waste disposal would be more beneficial to the state than disposing of the commodity using any other method authorized in this section, the cost of the disposal is the responsibility of the agency from which it received the commodity.
(a) Notwithstanding any provision in this article to the contrary, a spending unit may utilize the process described in this section to standardize purchases of commodities used by the spending unit on a repeated basis. Such standardization may result in a determination that only a specific brand name for the commodity in question will be used.
(b) Standardization is limited to commodities that represent a core function of the spending unit’s mission; would yield a savings of time and money if standardized; and either require testing or evaluation to determine accuracy or consistency or require interoperability in a larger system or network. Savings of time and money must be shown without considering the traditional procurement process or the standardization process.
(c) Any standardization established under this section shall be valid for no more than four years. Upon expiration, the spending unit establishing the standardization may either take no action, which would allow the standardization to end, or undertake the process outlined in this section to establish a new standard.
(1) The head of the spending unit must identify the commodity to be standardized and request approval from the director to establish a standard. The head of the spending unit shall provide to the director written certification and supporting evidence verifying that the requirements for standardization have been met.
(2) The spending unit must identify the individual or individuals that will be evaluating the commodity for standardization. Each individual must certify that he or she has no conflict of interest and can evaluate the information used to standardize without favoritism or bias. At least one individual involved in the standardization evaluation must be the spending unit’s procurement officer. If the spending unit has no procurement officer, the individual responsible for the spending unit’s procurement must participate in the evaluation.
(E) The approximate date and time by which a decision will be made.
(4) If the spending unit desires to conduct product testing, it must notify vendors in the request for information and establish a time period during which tests will be performed. Vendors may provide commodities for demonstration, testing, and evaluation so long as such items are provided at no cost and no risk to the state. A written record describing the nature of the testing performed and a written record of the results of that testing shall be produced pursuant to any testing conducted on all the commodities being considered. The written record of testing and results shall be provided to the Purchasing Division and preserved.
(5) The spending unit will evaluate the information received in response to the request for information, information the spending unit has obtained from its own research, the results of any product testing, and anything else the spending unit finds relevant to establish a pending standardization.
(E) The location where the final decision will be posted.
(7) The spending unit must review the comments submitted in response to the pending standardization advertisement and make any adjustments that it deems necessary.
(8) The head of the spending unit shall notify the director of a selection of the standard commodity, and the director shall post the results of the standardization decision on the Purchasing Division’s website. The spending unit shall also specifically notify any vendor who participated in the standardization evaluation process of the results in writing, within five business days of the final standardization selection.
(e) Any vendor that participated in the standardization process may appeal the standardization decision to the head of the spending unit. The head of the spending unit shall consider the appeal in accordance with the administrative procedures established in chapter 29A of this code.
(f) Once a standard has been established, the Purchasing Division is authorized to solicit competitive bids on behalf of the spending unit in the form of a request for quotation for the standardized commodity.
(g) The director may develop any necessary forms and reporting templates for use in standardization approval, testing, reporting, or any other forms necessary to carry out the provisions of this section. Such forms and reports shall be maintained by the Purchasing Division.
CHAPTER 5G. PROCUREMENT OF ARCHITECT-ENGINEER SERVICES BY STATE AND ITS SUBDIVISIONS.
ARTICLE 1. PROCUREMENT OF ARCHITECT-ENGINEER SERVICES.
§5G-1-3. Contracts for architectural and engineering services; selection process where total project costs are estimated to cost $250,000 or more.
In the procurement of architectural and engineering services for projects estimated to cost $250,000 or more, the director of purchasing shall encourage firms engaged in the lawful practice of the profession to submit an expression of interest, which shall include a statement of qualifications and performance data, and may include anticipated concepts and proposed methods of approach to the project. All jobs shall be announced by public notice published as a Class II legal advertisement in compliance with the provisions of §59-3-1 et seq. of this code. A committee of three to five representatives of the agency initiating the request shall evaluate the statements of qualifications and performance data and other material submitted by interested firms and select three firms which, in their opinion, are best qualified to perform the desired service: Provided, That if such circumstances exist, such that seeking competition could result in a compromise to public safety, significantly increase costs, or an extended interruption of essential services, the agency may, with the prior approval of the director of purchasing, select a firm on the basis of previous satisfactory performance and knowledge of the agency’s facilities and needs: Provided, however, That on projects funded, wholly or in part, by School Building Authority moneys, in accordance with §18-9D-15 and §18-9D-16 of this code, two of said three firms shall have had offices within this state for a period of at least one year prior to submitting an expression of interest regarding a project funded by School Building Authority moneys. Interviews with each firm selected shall be conducted and the committee shall conduct discussions regarding anticipated concepts and proposed methods of approach to the assignment. The committee shall then rank, in order of preference, no less than three professional firms deemed to be the most highly qualified to provide the services required, and shall commence scope of service and price negotiations with the highest qualified professional firm for architectural or engineering services or both. Should the agency be unable to negotiate a satisfactory contract with the professional firm considered to be the most qualified, at a fee determined to be fair and reasonable, price negotiations with the firm of second choice shall commence. Failing accord with the second most qualified professional firm, the committee shall undertake price negotiations with the third most qualified professional firm. Should the agency be unable to negotiate a satisfactory contract with any of the selected professional firms, it shall select additional professional firms in order of their competence and qualifications and it shall continue negotiations in accordance with this section until an agreement is reached: Provided however, further, That county boards of education may either elect to start the selection process over in the original order of preference, or it may select additional professional firms in order of their competence and qualifications, and it shall continue negotiations in accordance with this section until an agreement is reached: And provided further, That for any water or wastewater construction project the engineering design and construction inspection costs may not exceed the amount calculated pursuant to the compensation curves for consulting engineering services based upon project construction costs published by the American Society of Civil Engineers manual of practice, unless granted a variance by the Infrastructure and Jobs Development Council established pursuant to §31-15A-1 et seq. of this code.
article 1. disclosure of interested parties.
(a) “Applicable contract” means a contract of a state agency that has an actual or estimated value of at least $100,000 $1 million: Provided, That this shall include a series of related contracts or orders in which the cumulative total exceeds $100,000 $1 million.
(b) “Business entity” means any entity recognized by law through which business is conducted, including, but not limited to, a sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company, or corporation. For purposes of this article, “business entity” does not include publicly traded companies listed on a national or international stock exchange.
(c) “Disclosure” shall mean a form prescribed and approved by the Ethics Commission pursuant to §6D-1-3 of this code.
(d) “Interested party” or “interested parties” means: (1) A business entity performing work or service pursuant to, or in furtherance of, the applicable contract, including specifically sub-contractors; (2) the person(s) any person who have has an ownership interest equal to or greater than 25% 25 percent in the business entity performing work or service pursuant to, or in furtherance of, the applicable contract; and (3) the person or business entity, if any, that served as a compensated broker or intermediary to actively facilitate the applicable contract or negotiated the terms of the applicable contract with the state agency: Provided, That subdivision (2) shall be inapplicable if a business entity is a publicly traded company: Provided, however, That §6D-1-1(d)(3) of this code shall not include persons or business entities performing legal services related to the negotiation or drafting of the applicable contract.
(e) “State agency” means a board, commission, office, department, or other agency in the executive, judicial, or legislative branch of state government, including publicly funded institutions of higher education: Provided, That for purposes of this article, the West Virginia Investment Management Board shall not be deemed a state agency nor subject to the requirements of this article.
§18B-5-4. Purchase or acquisition of materials, supplies, equipment, services, and printing.
(a) The council, commission and each governing board shall purchase or acquire all materials, supplies, equipment, services and printing required for their respective needs: Provided, That the governing boards under the jurisdiction of the commission, including the exempted schools, are subject to §18B-5-4(d) of this code.
(9) No fewer than three bids are obtained when bidding is required, except if fewer than three bids are submitted, an award may be made from among those received.
(4) If the state institution elects to challenge the disapproval by filing a writ of mandamus or other action and prevails, then the Attorney General shall pay reasonable attorney fees and costs incurred.
(e) The governing boards shall adopt sufficient accounting and auditing procedures and promulgate and adopt appropriate rules subject to §18B-1-6 of this code to govern and control acquisitions, purchases, leases, and other instruments for grounds, buildings, office, or other space, and capital improvements, including equipment, or lease-purchase agreements.
(f) The council, commission, or each governing board may issue a check in advance to a company supplying postage meters for postage used by that board, the council, or commission and by the state institutions of higher education under their jurisdiction.
(g) When a purchase is to be made by bid, any or all bids may be rejected. However, all purchases based on advertised bid requests shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder taking into consideration the qualities of the articles to be supplied, their conformity with specifications, their suitability to the requirements of the governing boards, council, or commission and delivery terms. The preference for resident vendors as provided in section thirty-seven, article three, chapter five-a of this code applies to the competitive bids made pursuant to this section.
(h) The governing boards, council, and commission shall maintain a purchase file, which shall be a public record and open for public inspection.
(C) The reason for rejection, if the mathematical low vendor was not awarded the order or contract.
(2) A record in the purchase file may not be destroyed without the written consent of the Legislative Auditor. Those files in which the original documentation has been held for at least one year and in which the original documents have been reproduced and archived on microfilm or other equivalent method of duplication may be destroyed without the written consent of the Legislative Auditor.
(3) All files, no matter the storage method, shall be open for inspection by the Legislative Auditor upon request.
(2) Has at least four years’ experience in purchasing for any unit of government or for any business, commercial, or industrial enterprise.
(j) Any person making purchases and acquisitions pursuant to this section shall execute a bond in the penalty of $50,000, payable to the State of West Virginia, with a corporate bonding or surety company authorized to do business in this state as surety thereon, in form prescribed by the Attorney General and conditioned upon the faithful performance of all duties in accordance with this section and sections five through eight, inclusive, of this article and the rules of the governing board and the council and commission. In lieu of separate bonds for these buyers, a blanket surety bond may be obtained. The bond shall be filed with the Secretary of State and the cost of the bond shall be paid from funds appropriated to the applicable governing board or the council or commission.
(k) All purchases and acquisitions shall be made in consideration and within limits of available appropriations and funds and in accordance with applicable provisions of §5A-2-1 et seq. of this code relating to expenditure schedules and quarterly allotments of funds. Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the contrary, only those purchases exceeding the dollar amount for competitive sealed bids in this section are required to be encumbered. Such purchases may be entered into the state’s centralized accounting system by the staff of the commission, council, or governing boards to satisfy the requirements of §5A-2-1 et seq. of this code to determine whether the amount of the purchase is within the quarterly allotment of the commission, council, or governing board, is in accordance with the approved expenditure schedule and otherwise conforms to the article: Provided, That, notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this subsection or any other provision of this code to the contrary, purchases by exempted schools are not required to be encumbered.
(l) The governing boards, council, or commission may make requisitions upon the State Auditor for a sum to be known as an advance allowance account, not to exceed five percent of the total of the appropriations for the governing board, council, or commission, and the State Auditor shall draw a warrant upon the Treasurer for those accounts. All advance allowance accounts shall be accounted for by the applicable governing board or the council or commission once every 30 days or more often if required by the State Auditor.
(m) Contracts entered into pursuant to this section shall be signed by the applicable governing board or the council or commission in the name of the state and shall be approved as to form by the Attorney General. A contract which requires approval as to form by the Attorney General is considered approved if the Attorney General has not responded within 15 days of presentation of the contract. A contract or a change order for that contract and notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the contrary, associated documents such as performance and labor/material payments, bonds, and certificates of insurance which use terms and conditions or standardized forms previously approved by the Attorney General and do not make substantive changes in the terms and conditions of the contract do not require approval as to form by the Attorney General. The Attorney General shall make a list of those changes which he or she considers to be substantive and the list, and any changes to the list, shall be published in the State Register. A contract that exceeds the dollar amount requiring competitive sealed bids in this section shall be filed with the State Auditor. If requested to do so, the governing boards, council, or commission shall make all contracts available for inspection by the State Auditor. The governing board, council, or commission, as appropriate, shall prescribe the amount of deposit or bond to be submitted with a bid or contract, if any, and the amount of deposit or bond to be given for the faithful performance of a contract.
(n) If the governing board, council, or commission purchases or contracts for materials, supplies, equipment, services and printing contrary to §18B-5-4 through §18B-5-4 of this code or the rules pursuant to this article, the purchase or contract is void and of no effect.
(o) A governing board or the council, or commission, as appropriate, may request the director of purchasing to make available the facilities and services of that department to the governing boards, council, or commission in the purchase and acquisition of materials, supplies, equipment, services, and printing. The director of purchasing shall cooperate with that governing board, council, or commission, as appropriate, in all such purchases and acquisitions upon that request.
(p) Each governing board or the council, or commission, as appropriate, may permit affiliated organizations, state institutions of higher education, or private institutions of higher education to join as purchasers on purchase contracts for materials, supplies, services, and equipment entered into by that governing board or the council, or commission. An affiliated organization, state institution of higher education, or private institution desiring to join as purchaser on purchase contracts shall file with that governing board or the council or commission, as appropriate, an affidavit signed by the president or designee of the affiliated organization, state institution of higher education, or private institution requesting that it be authorized to join as purchaser on purchase contracts of that governing board or the council, or commission, as appropriate. The affiliated organization, state institution of higher education, or private institution shall agree that it is bound by such terms and conditions as that governing board or the council, or commission may prescribe and that it will be responsible for payment directly to the vendor under each purchase contract.
(q) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the contrary, the governing boards, council, and commission, as appropriate, may make purchases from cooperative buying groups, consortia, the federal government or from federal government contracts if the materials, supplies, services, equipment, or printing to be purchased is available from that source, and purchasing from that source would be the most financially advantageous manner of making the purchase.
(r) An independent performance audit of all purchasing functions and duties which are performed at any state institution of higher education shall be performed at least once in each three-year period. The Joint Committee on Government and Finance shall require a performance audit and the governing boards, council, and commission, as appropriate, are responsible for paying the cost of the audit from funds appropriated to the governing boards, council, or commission.
(1) The governing board shall provide for independent performance audits of all purchasing functions and duties on its campus at least once in each three-year period.
(2) Each audit shall be inclusive of the entire time period that has elapsed since the date of the preceding audit.
(3) Copies of all appropriate documents relating to any audit performed by a governing board shall be furnished to the Joint Committee on Government and Finance and the Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability within 30 days of the date the audit report is completed.
(s) The governing boards shall require each institution under their respective jurisdictions to notify and inform every vendor doing business with that institution of §5A-3-54 of this code, also known as the Prompt Pay Act of 1990.
(t) Consultant services, such as strategic planning services, do not preclude or inhibit the governing boards, council, or commission from considering any qualified bid or response for delivery of a product or a commodity because of the rendering of those consultant services.
(u) Purchasing card use may be expanded by the council, commission, and state institutions of higher education pursuant to this subsection.
(C) Sufficient accounting and auditing procedures for all purchasing card transactions.
(B) Payment of any routine, regularly scheduled payment, including, but not limited to, utility payments and real property rental fees.
(3) The commission and council each shall evaluate the capacity of each state college and university and community and technical college under its jurisdiction for complying with the procedures established pursuant to §18B-5-4(u)(2) of this code. The commission and council each shall authorize expanded use of purchasing cards pursuant to that subdivision for any state college and university and community and technical college it determines has the capacity to comply.

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