2023 Tennessee Code › Title 4 - STATE GOVERNMENT (§§ 4-1-101 — 4-58-110) › Chapter 56 - PROCUREMENT (§§ 4-56-NEW — 4-56-112) › Section 4-56-107 - Requests for noncompetitive contracts to fiscal review committee - Review by the fiscal review committee - Exceptions to requests - Reports

(a)
(1)
All requests of the procuring agency to procure goods or services through a noncompetitive contract must be contemporaneously filed with the fiscal review committee of the general assembly, comptroller of the treasury, and the chief procurement officer. For purposes of this section, "noncompetitive contract" includes any procurement arrangement, including, but not limited to, a grant or contract, but does not include a grant or contract awarded to a:
(A)
Public institution of higher education to procure research or public service-related goods or services; or
(B)
Governmental entity, including, but not limited to, a local government.
(2)
If review is required pursuant to subsection (a), the procuring agency shall provide the request to the fiscal review committee, which must include the following:
(A)
Description of the goods or services to be acquired;
(B)
Explanation of the need for or requirement to acquire the goods or services;
(C)
Name and address of the proposed contractor's principal owner;
(D)
Evidence that the proposed contractor has experience in providing the same or similar goods or services and evidence of the length of time the contractor has provided the same or similar goods or services;
(E)
Explanation of whether the goods or services were purchased by the procuring agency in the past and, if applicable, the method used to purchase the goods or services and the name and address of the contractor;
(F)
Description of the procuring agency's efforts to use existing state employees and resources or, in the alternative, to identify reasonable and competitive procurement alternatives, rather than to use noncompetitive negotiation;
(G)
Justification of why the goods or services should be acquired through noncompetitive negotiation; and
(H)
Any additional information that the fiscal review committee may direct the procuring agency to provide that will assist the committee in evaluating the contract.
(b)
(1)
The following contracts and contract amendments shall be subject to review by the fiscal review committee:
(A)
Proposed noncompetitive contracts with a term of more than one (1) year or which contain a provision to allow for extension by either party that would extend the contract beyond twelve (12) months and which have a cumulative value of not less than two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000), including all possible extensions; and
(B)
Any amendment to a contract meeting the term and dollar threshold requirements as described in subdivision (b)(1)(A), regardless of whether the original contract was procured through competitive or noncompetitive means, where the amendment:
(i)
Increases or decreases the maximum liability;
(ii)
Extends or shortens the contract term;
(iii)
Changes the entity or name of the entity with which the state is contracting; or
(iv)
Otherwise changes an original contract or amended contract in a substantive manner.
(2)
If the chief procurement officer or delegated state agency is unable to determine whether a proposed contract or amendment would be subject to review by the fiscal review committee, the chief procurement officer or delegated state agency shall contact the fiscal review committee staff for a determination.
(3)
The contracts subject to review shall include all contracts of the executive branch that otherwise meet the requirements of subdivision (b)(1), including, but not limited to, contracts of higher education, including the board of regents, the University of Tennessee, and the Tennessee higher education commission. Highway and road improvement contracts reviewed by the department of transportation, contracts reviewed by the state building commission and debt issuance contracts reviewed by the comptroller of the treasury shall not be subject to this review.
(4)
The fiscal review committee, pursuant to its jurisdiction under §
3-7-103(a)
, is authorized to review any other state contract or contract amendment in accordance with the procedures established in this section without regard to whether the contract or contract amendment meets the requirements of subdivision (b)(1).
(5)
(A)
The fiscal review committee shall have forty (40) business days from receipt of the request as provided in this section to comment on the proposed contract. After this forty-day period, any such contract authorized by the chief procurement officer may be executed. All other requests to negotiate noncompetitive contracts shall be reviewed by the fiscal review committee after approval by the chief procurement officer. With respect to such requests, the fiscal review committee shall be provided the same information to be submitted in accordance with subsection (a). The chair or the chair's designee, after consultation with the comptroller of the treasury, shall have authority to waive the forty-day period for comment and authorize the chief procurement officer to execute contracts or amendments that are determined to be in the best interest of the state, and to proceed with reporting and comment by the committee at their next scheduled meeting.
(B)
If an exception is granted to any request, approved in accordance with subdivision (a)(1) or rules promulgated pursuant to §
4-56-103
, then any such exception shall be filed with the fiscal review committee for its perusal, comment and review.
(C)
The procurement office shall file a goods and services contract report quarterly with the fiscal review committee. The report shall list contracts approved in accordance with rules authorized by §
4-56-103
during the prior quarter and detail whether each contract procurement was competitive.
(D)
Each procuring agency granted a special delegated authority, pursuant to rules authorized by §
4-56-105
, to establish goods and services contracts shall report to the fiscal review committee a list of all contracts awarded under the delegated authority. The list of contracts awarded shall be filed quarterly and shall include the contractor name, contract period, contract amount, method used to select the contractor, and the completion date for a monitoring review, as defined by any applicable policy developed by the chief procurement officer and any other information the procuring agency wishes to include.
(E)
The department of transportation shall report to the fiscal review committee on approved highway and road improvement contracts that would otherwise meet the requirements of subdivision (b)(1) within thirty (30) days of approval, including all of the information specified in subsection (a) and any other information the committee deems necessary or helpful. The fiscal review committee shall have the option to conduct a separate hearing on highway and road improvement contracts approved by the department of transportation.
(F)
The state building commission shall report to the fiscal review committee on contracts it has approved that would otherwise meet the requirements of subdivision (b)(1) within thirty (30) days of approval, including all of the information specified in subsection (a) and any other information the committee deems necessary or helpful. The committee shall have the option to conduct a separate hearing on contracts approved by the building commission.
(c)
(1)
No later than the first business day of each calendar month, the chief procurement officer shall report to the director of the fiscal review committee the following information for the prior calendar month:
(A)
An itemized listing of all contracts, grants, or any other noncompetitive procurement means that were awarded the previous month; and
(B)
Any policy, procedure, or rule change to the state procurement processes planned for the following month.
(2)
The reports required pursuant to subdivision (c)(1) must include the name of the department or agency for which the procurement is being made, the name and contact information for the vendor, identification of the goods or services being procured, the term on the procurement method, as well as any expenditures and revenue associated with the procurement.
Amended by 2021 Tenn. Acts, ch. 562, Secs.s2, s3 eff. 5/26/2021.
Amended by 2013 Tenn. Acts, ch. 403, s 6, eff. 7/1/2013.
Acts 2010 , ch. 1098, § 1; 2010 , ch. 1135, § 12; 2011 , ch. 295, § 5.