2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth › Chapter 7 - Executive Office for Administration and Finance › Section 22 - Purchase of Supplies and Equipment; Rules and Regulations; Duties of State Purchasing Agent

Section 22. The secretary shall, subject to the approval of the governor and council, make rules, regulations and orders which shall regulate and govern the manner and method of the purchasing, delivering and handling of, and the contracting for, supplies, equipment and other property for the various state departments, offices, and commissions, except when they are for legislative or military purposes. Such rules and regulations shall include, so far as practicable, the purchase of recycled paper products for said supplies. Such rules, regulations and orders shall be of general or limited application, and shall, so far as practicable, be uniform, shall be in conformity with existing laws relative to the purchase of articles and materials made by inmates of penal institutions and articles and supplies made by the blind except that such purchase shall be made by or under the direction of the state purchasing agent subject, however, to such approval by the secretary as would be required if the purchase where made from some other source, and shall include provision for the following:
(1) The advertisement for and the receipt of bids for supplies and other property and the stimulation of competition with regard thereto;
(2) The purchase of supplies and other property without advertisement or the receipt of bids, where the amount involved will not exceed $10,000, when, in the judgment of the state purchasing agent, it is expedient;
(3) The purchase of supplies and other property without competition, in cases of emergency requiring immediate action;
(4) The purchasing of or contracting for certain supplies, equipment and other property by long or short term contracts, or by purchases or contracts made at certain seasons of the year, or by blanket contracts or orders covering the requirements of one or more departments, offices and commissions;
(5) Prescribing the times for submitting estimates for various supplies, equipment and other property;
(6) Regulations to secure the prompt delivery of commissary and other necessary supplies;
(7) Standardization of forms for estimates, orders and contracts;
(8) Standardization of specifications for purchasing supplies, equipment and other property;
(9) Standardization of quality, grades and brands to eliminate unnecessary number of commodities or of grades or brands of the same commodity;
(10) The purchase of supplies and other property locally, upon permission, specific or otherwise, of the state purchasing agent;
(11) The use and disposal of the products of state institutions;
(12) Disposal of obsolete, excess and unsuitable supplies, salvage and waste material and other property and the transfer of same to other departments, offices and commissions; provided, however, that any such property that may be of use to cities and towns, including motor vehicles but excluding those forfeited to the commonwealth under section forty-seven of chapter ninety-four C, shall be offered for sale to cities and towns before being offered to the general public;
(13) Storage of surplus supplies, equipment and other property not needed for immediate use;
(14) The testing of commodities or supplies or samples thereof;
(15) Hearings on complaints in respect to the quality, grade or brand of commodities or supplies;
(16) The waiver of rules in special cases.
(17) A preference in the purchase of supplies and materials, other considerations being equal, in favor, first, of supplies and materials manufactured and sold within the commonwealth, with a proviso that the state purchasing agent may, where practicable, allow a further preference in favor of such supplies and materials manufactured and sold in those cities and towns within the commonwealth which have been designated as depressed areas. For the purpose of this section a depressed area shall be considered as cities and towns which are designated as Groups D, E or F, in the Department of Labor of the United States publication entitled ''Area Trends in Employment and Unemployment'', or which are listed in said publication as areas which have substantial or persistent unemployment and second, of supplies and materials manufactured and sold elsewhere within the United States.
(18) Contracts or orders for meats and meat products shall be given to such establishments only as pay the prevailing rate of wages, based on a working day of eight hours, with not more than forty hours in any one week. The prevailing rate of wages shall be determined by the director of labor standards as herein provided. Said prevailing rates shall be based on wage rates and working hours that have been established in the meat and meat products industry by collective agreement or understanding between organized labor and employers. At least once in six months the director of labor standards shall prepare and furnish for the use of the secretary, or other awarding officials, a list of the several classifications usually performed by the employees in the meat and meat products industry together with the prevailing rate of wages and working hours.
Every contractor, subcontractor or other employer, engaged in any work to which clause (18) and clause (19) apply, shall keep a true and accurate record of employees, showing the name, address and occupational classification of each employee, and the hours worked by, and the wages paid to, each such employee, and shall furnish to the director of labor standards upon his request a true statement of the contents of such record. Such records shall be kept in such manner as the director of labor standards shall prescribe, and shall be open to inspection by any authorized representative of the secretary or of the department of labor standards at any reasonable time and as often as may be necessary.
Whoever, for himself or as an agent, superintendent or foreman for another, violates any provision of clause (18) and clause (19) shall be punished for a first offense by a fine of not less than twenty-five nor more than one hundred dollars, and for a subsequent offense by a fine of not less than fifty nor more than two hundred dollars, or by imprisonment for not more than three months, or both. Whoever, as a manufacturer, contractor, jobber or other employer engaged in any work to which clause (19) applies or whoever for himself or as an agent, superintendent or foreman for another, fails to pay the determined rate of wages or otherwise violates any provision of clause (19) shall be punished for a first offense by a fine of not less than one hundred nor more than five hundred dollars, and for a subsequent offense by a fine of not less than two hundred and fifty nor more than one thousand dollars, or by imprisonment for not more than three months, or both. Whoever shall have been convicted of a second violation of any provision of clause (18) and clause (19) shall be prohibited from contracting, directly or indirectly, with the commonwealth for, or from performing, any work covered by this section as contractor or subcontractor for a period of two years from the date of said conviction.
Bonds, satisfactory to the secretary, or other awarding official, may be required to be given by the party to whom any contract is awarded, to secure its faithful performance under clause (18) or clause (19).
(19) Contracts or orders for items of clothing or apparel shall be given to such establishments only as submit to the secretary the name and address of the manufacturer of such items, and the names and addresses of any and all contractors of such items, and only to such establishments as pay the prevailing rate of wages, determined by the director of labor standards as herein provided. Said prevailing rates shall be based on wage rates and working hours that have been established by collective bargaining agreement or understanding between organized labor and employers in the apparel industry. The director of labor and workforce development shall upon application from the purchasing agent prepare and furnish for use of said purchasing agent or other awarding official a list of the several classifications of labor usually performed by the employees in the apparel trades, together with the prevailing rate of wages and working hours. A written declaration by the bidder on said contracts or orders for items of clothing or apparel, upon submission of his bid, that each garment to be purchased shall have a union label affixed to such garment shall be sufficient evidence that said manufacturer or contractor pays the prevailing rate of wages based on wage rates and working hours established by collective bargaining or understanding between organized labor and the employer.
(20) Any person submitting a proposal for the sale, lease or provision of supplies, equipment or other property shall certify as follows:
The undersigned certifies under the penalties of perjury that this bid is in all respects bona fide, fair and made without collusion of fraud with any other person. As used in this clause the word ''person'' shall mean any natural person, joint venture, partnership, corporation, or other business or legal entity.
Rules, regulations and orders made under this section shall not restrict otherwise than as provided in this section the several state departments, offices and commissions as to the quantity of supplies, equipment or other property which may be purchased or contracted for, for them, or as to the nature thereof.
A copy of the rules, regulations and orders issued under this section and at the time being in force shall be delivered or mailed to any person on request, and the commission shall annually give public notice by advertisement inviting such requests and inviting all persons who desire to bid on state supplies, materials or contracts so to signify in writing by sending their names and addresses to the office of the commission with a statement of the class or classes of supplies, materials or contracts on which they desire opportunity to bid. The state purchasing agent, under the direction of the commission, shall maintain a classified list of all persons so signifying such desire and shall make such use of the same for the stimulation of competition as shall be provided by said rules and regulations, having in view the time of delivery, the quantity required, the locality in which delivery is to be made, and any other special circumstances of the case.
For the information of the public and of prospective bidders, the state purchasing agent shall keep and maintain a public list or bulletin enumerating the supplies and materials to be purchased or contracted for and the dates on which bids for the same will be received.
Bids shall be opened in public.