A 3848: Relates to advertising for bids and offers; letting of contracts; raises the aggregate amount for sealed bids above the current levels for commodities from $20,000 to $80,000 and public works from $35,000 to $125,000.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 3848 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY January 30, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. BRABENEC -- read once and referred to the Commit- tee on Local Governments AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to advertising for bids and offers; letting of contracts The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 103 of the general municipal law, 2 as amended by chapter 668 of the laws of 2023, is amended to read as 3 follows: 4 1. Except as otherwise expressly provided by an act of the legislature 5 or by a local law adopted prior to September first, nineteen hundred 6 fifty-three, all contracts for public work involving an expenditure of 7 more than [thirty-five] one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars and all 8 purchase contracts involving an expenditure of more than [twenty] eighty 9 thousand dollars, shall be awarded by the appropriate officer, board or 10 agency of a political subdivision or of any district therein including 11 but not limited to a soil conservation district to the lowest responsi- 12 ble bidder furnishing the required security after advertisement for 13 sealed bids in the manner provided by this section, provided, however, 14 that purchase contracts (including contracts for service work, but 15 excluding any purchase contracts necessary for the completion of a 16 public works contract pursuant to article eight of the labor law) may be 17 awarded on the basis of best value, as defined in section one hundred 18 sixty-three of the state finance law, to a responsive and responsible 19 bidder or offerer in the manner provided by this section except that in 20 a political subdivision other than a city with a population of one 21 million inhabitants or more or any district, board or agency with juris- 22 diction exclusively therein the use of best value for awarding a 23 purchase contract or purchase contracts must be authorized by local law 24 or, in the case of a district corporation, school district or board of 25 cooperative educational services, by rule, regulation or resolution EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD02382-01-5 
 A. 3848 2 1 adopted at a public meeting. In any case where a responsible bidder's or 2 responsible offerer's gross price is reducible by an allowance for the 3 value of used machinery, equipment, apparatus or tools to be traded in 4 by a political subdivision, the gross price shall be reduced by the 5 amount of such allowance, for the purpose of determining the best value. 6 In cases where two or more responsible bidders furnishing the required 7 security submit identical bids as to price, such officer, board or agen- 8 cy may award the contract to any of such bidders. Such officer, board or 9 agency may, in [his or her] their or its discretion, reject all bids or 10 offers and readvertise for new bids or offers in the manner provided by 11 this section. In determining whether a purchase is an expenditure within 12 the discretionary threshold amounts established by this subdivision, the 13 officer, board or agency of a political subdivision or of any district 14 therein shall consider the reasonably expected aggregate amount of all 15 purchases of the same commodities, services or technology to be made 16 within the twelve-month period commencing on the date of purchase. 17 Purchases of commodities, services or technology shall not be arti- 18 ficially divided for the purpose of satisfying the discretionary buying 19 thresholds established by this subdivision. A change to or a renewal of 20 a discretionary purchase shall not be permitted if the change or renewal 21 would bring the reasonably expected aggregate amount of all purchases of 22 the same commodities, services or technology from the same provider 23 within the twelve-month period commencing on the date of the first 24 purchase to an amount greater than the discretionary buying threshold 25 amount. For purposes of this section, "sealed bids" and "sealed offers", 26 as that term applies to purchase contracts, (including contracts for 27 service work, but excluding any purchase contracts necessary for the 28 completion of a public works contract pursuant to article eight of the 29 labor law) shall include bids and offers submitted in an electronic 30 format including submission of the statement of non-collusion required 31 by section one hundred three-d of this article, provided that the 32 governing board of the political subdivision or district, by resolution, 33 has authorized the receipt of bids and offers in such format. Submission 34 in electronic format may, for technology contracts only, be required as 35 the sole method for the submission of bids and offers. Provided however, 36 the appropriate officer, board or agency of a city with a population of 37 one million inhabitants or more, or any district, board or agency with 38 jurisdiction exclusively within such city, may authorize or require bids 39 and offers for any contract to be submitted in an electronic format. 40 Bids and offers submitted in an electronic format shall be transmitted 41 by bidders and offerers to the receiving device designated by the poli- 42 tical subdivision or district. Any method used to receive electronic 43 bids and offers shall comply with article three of the state technology 44 law, and any rules and regulations promulgated and guidelines developed 45 thereunder and, at a minimum, must (a) document the time and date of 46 receipt of each bid and offer received electronically; (b) authenticate 47 the identity of the sender; (c) ensure the security of the information 48 transmitted; and (d) ensure the confidentiality of the bid or offer 49 until the time and date established for the opening of bids or offers. 50 The timely submission of an electronic bid or offer in compliance with 51 instructions provided for such submission in the advertisement for bids 52 or offers and/or the specifications shall be the responsibility solely 53 of each bidder or offerer or prospective bidder or offerer. No political 54 subdivision or district therein shall incur any liability from delays of 55 or interruptions in the receiving device designated for the submission 56 and receipt of electronic bids and offers. 
 A. 3848 3 1 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 103 of the general municipal law, as 2 amended by section 2 of chapter 2 of the laws of 2012, is amended to 3 read as follows: 4 1. Except as otherwise expressly provided by an act of the legislature 5 or by a local law adopted prior to September first, nineteen hundred 6 fifty-three, all contracts for public work involving an expenditure of 7 more than [thirty-five] one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars and all 8 purchase contracts involving an expenditure of more than [twenty] eighty 9 thousand dollars, shall be awarded by the appropriate officer, board or 10 agency of a political subdivision or of any district therein including 11 but not limited to a soil conservation district to the lowest responsi- 12 ble bidder furnishing the required security after advertisement for 13 sealed bids in the manner provided by this section, provided, however, 14 that purchase contracts (including contracts for service work, but 15 excluding any purchase contracts necessary for the completion of a 16 public works contract pursuant to article eight of the labor law) may be 17 awarded on the basis of best value, as defined in section one hundred 18 sixty-three of the state finance law, to a responsive and responsible 19 bidder or offerer in the manner provided by this section except that in 20 a political subdivision other than a city with a population of one 21 million inhabitants or more or any district, board or agency with juris- 22 diction exclusively therein the use of best value of awarding a purchase 23 contract or purchase contracts must be authorized by local law or, in 24 the case of a district corporation, school district or board of cooper- 25 ative educational services, by rule, regulation or resolution adopted at 26 a public meeting. In determining whether a purchase is an expenditure 27 within the discretionary threshold amounts established by this subdivi- 28 sion, the officer, board or agency of a political subdivision or of any 29 district therein shall consider the reasonably expected aggregate amount 30 of all purchases of the same commodities, services or technology to be 31 made within the twelve-month period commencing on the date of purchase. 32 Purchases of commodities, services or technology shall not be arti- 33 ficially divided for the purpose of satisfying the discretionary buying 34 thresholds established by this subdivision. A change to or a renewal of 35 a discretionary purchase shall not be permitted if the change or renewal 36 would bring the reasonably expected aggregate amount of all purchases of 37 the same commodities, services or technology from the same provider 38 within the twelve-month period commencing on the date of the first 39 purchase to an amount greater than the discretionary buying threshold 40 amount. In any case where a responsible bidder's or responsible 41 offerer's gross price is reducible by an allowance for the value of used 42 machinery, equipment, apparatus or tools to be traded in by a political 43 subdivision, the gross price shall be reduced by the amount of such 44 allowance, for the purpose of determining the low bid or best value. In 45 cases where two or more responsible bidders furnishing the required 46 security submit identical bids as to price, such officer, board or agen- 47 cy may award the contract to any of such bidders. Such officer, board or 48 agency may, in [his, her] their or its discretion, reject all bids or 49 offers and readvertise for new bids or offers in the manner provided by 50 this section. 51 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately, provided that the amend- 52 ments to subdivision 1 of section 103 of the general municipal law made 53 by section one of this act shall be subject to the expiration and rever- 54 sion of such subdivision pursuant to subdivision a of section 41 of part 55 X of chapter 62 of the laws of 2003, as amended, when upon such date the 56 provisions of section two of this act shall take effect.