HOUSE BILL No. 5800

 

September 16, 2014, Introduced by Rep. McMillin and referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

 

     A bill to amend 1976 PA 451, entitled

 

"The revised school code,"

 

by amending section 1267 (MCL 380.1267), as amended by 2008 PA 540.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 1267. (1) Before commencing construction of a new school

 

building, or addition to or repair or renovation of an existing

 

school building, except repair in emergency situations, the board

 

of a school district or intermediate school district or board of

 

directors of a public school academy, shall obtain competitive bids

 

on all the material and labor required for the complete

 

construction of a proposed new building or addition to or repair or

 

renovation of an existing school building.

 

     (2) The board, intermediate school board, or board of

 

directors shall advertise for the bids required under subsection

 

(1) by placing an advertisement for bids at least once in a


 

newspaper of general circulation in the area where the building or

 

addition is to be constructed or where the repair or renovation of

 

an existing building is to take place and by posting an

 

advertisement for bids for at least 2 weeks on the department of

 

management and budget website on a page on the website maintained

 

for this purpose or on a website maintained by a school

 

organization and designated by the department of management and

 

budget for this purpose. If the department of management and budget

 

designates a school organization website for this purpose, the

 

department of management and budget shall indicate this fact on its

 

website and include a link on its website to the school

 

organization website.

 

     (3) The advertisement for bids shall do all of the following:

 

     (a) Specify the date and time by which all bids must be

 

received by the board, intermediate school board, or board of

 

directors.

 

     (b) State that the board, intermediate school board, or board

 

of directors will not consider or accept a bid received by the

 

board, intermediate school board, or board of directors after the

 

date and time specified for bid submission.

 

     (c) Identify the time, date, and place of a public meeting at

 

which the board, intermediate school board, or board of directors

 

or its designee will open and read aloud each bid received by the

 

board, intermediate school board, or board of directors by the date

 

and time specified in subdivision (a).

 

     (d) State that the bid shall be accompanied by a sworn and

 

notarized statement disclosing any familial relationship that


 

exists between the owner or any employee of the bidder and any

 

member of the board, intermediate school board, or board of

 

directors or the superintendent of the school district,

 

intermediate superintendent of the intermediate school district, or

 

chief executive officer of the public school academy. A board,

 

intermediate school board, or board of directors shall not accept a

 

bid that does not include this sworn and notarized disclosure

 

statement.

 

     (e) Contain bid specifications for materials to be used in

 

performing the contract. All of the following apply to these bid

 

specifications:

 

     (i) The bid specifications shall be written by the architect,

 

engineer, designer, or draftsman who provides design services or

 

writes specifications, directly or indirectly, for materials to be

 

used in performing the contract and, subject to subparagraph (ii),

 

shall specify the required performance and design characteristics

 

of the materials. The person who writes the bid specifications

 

shall not be an employee or representative of a manufacturer of an

 

item to be used in performing the contract.

 

     (ii) If it is impossible or impractical to specify the required

 

performance and design characteristics, then the architect,

 

engineer, designer, or draftsman may specify a brand name and 3 or

 

more examples of items that establish an acceptable range for items

 

of equal or equivalent design and that are totally independent of

 

each other in regard to ownership. If 3 or more items of similar or

 

equivalent design and independent ownership are not available, then

 

as many items meeting these requirements as are available shall be


 

specified.

 

     (iii) The specifications shall state that bids do not require

 

the specified brand of an item, which is listed only to denote the

 

quality standard for the item, and that equivalent items are

 

acceptable. A bid specification may list 1 or more preferred brands

 

if the specification also identifies the performance standards that

 

support the preference. An item that meets the performance standard

 

specified for the listed, preferred brand shall be considered

 

equivalent to the listed brand item.

 

     (4) The board, intermediate school board, or board of

 

directors shall require each bidder for a contract under this

 

section to file with the board, intermediate school board, or board

 

of directors security in an amount not less than 1/20 of the amount

 

of the bid conditioned to secure the school district from loss or

 

damage by reason of the withdrawal of the bid or by the failure of

 

the bidder to enter a contract for performance, if the bid is

 

accepted by the board, intermediate school board, or board of

 

directors.

 

     (5) The board, intermediate school board, or board of

 

directors shall not open, consider, or accept a bid that the board,

 

intermediate school board, or board of directors receives after the

 

date and time specified for bid submission in the advertisement for

 

bids described in subsection (3).

 

     (6) At a public meeting identified in the advertisement for

 

bids described in subsection (3), the board, intermediate school

 

board, or board of directors or its designee shall open and read

 

aloud each bid that the board, intermediate school board, or board


 

of directors received at or before the time and date for bid

 

submission specified in the advertisement for bids. The board,

 

intermediate school board, or board of directors may reject any or

 

all bids, and if all bids are rejected, shall readvertise in the

 

manner required by this section.

 

     (7) The board of a school district or intermediate school

 

district or board of directors of a public school academy may adopt

 

and implement a local policy that gives a preference to a Michigan-

 

based business in awarding a contract under this section. The

 

policy may provide for a preference based on the status of the

 

primary contractor as a Michigan-based business or based on the

 

status of 1 or more subcontractors of the primary contractor as

 

Michigan-based businesses, or both. A policy adopted under this

 

subsection shall be consistent with federal statutes and

 

regulations and shall not be applied to a contract that is to be

 

paid with federal funds. Upon request by a school district,

 

intermediate school district, or public school academy that has

 

adopted and implemented a policy described in this subsection, the

 

department of treasury shall disclose to that school district,

 

intermediate school district, or public school academy verifying

 

information as described in section 268(3) of the management and

 

budget act, 1984 PA 431, MCL 18.1268. The adoption, implementation,

 

or application of a policy described in this subsection, or a

 

decision not to adopt, implement, or apply such a policy, does not

 

create a cause of action.

 

     (8) This section does not apply to buildings, renovations, or

 

repairs costing less than $20,959.00 $22,766.00 or to repair work


 

normally performed by school district, intermediate school board,

 

or public school academy employees. The maximum amount specified in

 

this subsection shall be adjusted each year by multiplying the

 

amount for the immediately preceding year by the percentage by

 

which the average consumer price index for all items for the 12

 

months ending August 31 of the year in which the adjustment is made

 

differs from that index's average for the 12 months ending on

 

August 31 of the immediately preceding year and adding that product

 

to the maximum amount that applied in the immediately preceding

 

year, rounding to the nearest whole dollar.

 

     (9) As used in this section, "Michigan-based business" means a

 

business that would qualify for a preference in a procurement

 

contract with this state under section 268 of the management and

 

budget act, 1984 PA 431, MCL 18.1268.