STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          6324
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                      March 2, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  FINCH, KOLB -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Local Governments
        AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in  relation  to  authorizing
          the city of Auburn to prefer businesses located in the county of Cayu-
          ga in awarding public 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 section 1 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  thousand  dollars  and  all  purchase  contracts
     8  involving  an expenditure of more than twenty thousand dollars, shall be
     9  awarded by the appropriate officer,  board  or  agency  of  a  political
    10  subdivision  or  of  any district therein including but not limited to a
    11  soil conservation district to the lowest responsible  bidder  furnishing
    12  the  required security after advertisement for sealed bids in the manner
    13  provided by this section[,]; provided, however, that purchase  contracts
    14  (including  contracts  for  service  work,  but  excluding  any purchase
    15  contracts necessary for the completion of a public works contract pursu-
    16  ant to article eight of the labor law) may be awarded on  the  basis  of
    17  best  value,  as defined in section one hundred sixty-three of the state
    18  finance law, to a responsive and responsible bidder or  offerer  in  the
    19  manner  provided  by this section except that in a political subdivision
    20  other than a city with a population of one million inhabitants  or  more
    21  or  any  district, board or agency with jurisdiction exclusively therein
    22  the use of best value for  awarding  a  purchase  contract  or  purchase
    23  contracts  must be authorized by local law or, in the case of a district
    24  corporation,  school  district  or  board  of  cooperative   educational
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00776-01-7

        A. 6324                             2
     1  services, by rule, regulation or resolution adopted at a public meeting;
     2  provided  further, however, that in the city of Auburn, for public works
     3  and  purchase  contracts  up  to  one  hundred  thousand  dollars,  such
     4  contracts  may  be awarded to the responsible bidder whose bid is within
     5  five percent of the bid of the lowest  responsible  bidder  and  if  the
     6  principal  place of business of such bidder is located within the county
     7  of Cayuga.   In any case where a  responsible  bidder's  or  responsible
     8  offerer's gross price is reducible by an allowance for the value of used
     9  machinery,  equipment, apparatus or tools to be traded in by a political
    10  subdivision, the gross price shall be reduced  by  the  amount  of  such
    11  allowance,  for  the  purpose  of determining the best value.   In cases
    12  where two or more responsible bidders furnishing the  required  security
    13  submit  identical  bids  as  to price, such officer, board or agency may
    14  award the contract to any of such bidders. Such officer, board or agency
    15  may, in his or her or its discretion, reject  all  bids  or  offers  and
    16  readvertise  for  new  bids  or  offers  in  the manner provided by this
    17  section. In determining whether a purchase is an expenditure within  the
    18  discretionary  threshold  amounts  established  by this subdivision, the
    19  officer, board or agency of a political subdivision or of  any  district
    20  therein  shall  consider the reasonably expected aggregate amount of all
    21  purchases of the same commodities, services or  technology  to  be  made
    22  within  the  twelve-month  period  commencing  on  the date of purchase.
    23  Purchases of commodities, services or  technology  shall  not  be  arti-
    24  ficially  divided for the purpose of satisfying the discretionary buying
    25  thresholds established by this subdivision. A change to or a renewal  of
    26  a discretionary purchase shall not be permitted if the change or renewal
    27  would bring the reasonably expected aggregate amount of all purchases of
    28  the  same  commodities,  services  or  technology from the same provider
    29  within the twelve-month period commencing  on  the  date  of  the  first
    30  purchase  to  an  amount greater than the discretionary buying threshold
    31  amount. For purposes of this section, "sealed bids" and "sealed offers",
    32  as that term applies to purchase  contracts,  (including  contracts  for
    33  service  work,  but  excluding  any purchase contracts necessary for the
    34  completion of a public works contract pursuant to article eight  of  the
    35  labor  law)  shall  include  bids  and offers submitted in an electronic
    36  format including submission of the statement of  non-collusion  required
    37  by  section  one  hundred  three-d  of  this  article, provided that the
    38  governing board of the political subdivision or district, by resolution,
    39  has authorized the receipt of bids and offers in such format. Submission
    40  in electronic format may, for technology contracts only, be required  as
    41  the  sole  method for the submission of bids and offers. Bids and offers
    42  submitted in an electronic format shall be transmitted  by  bidders  and
    43  offerers to the receiving device designated by the political subdivision
    44  or district. Any method used to receive electronic bids and offers shall
    45  comply with article three of the state technology law, and any rules and
    46  regulations  promulgated  and  guidelines developed thereunder and, at a
    47  minimum, must (a) document the time and date of receipt of each bid  and
    48  offer  received  electronically;  (b)  authenticate  the identity of the
    49  sender; (c) ensure the security of the information transmitted; and  (d)
    50  ensure  the  confidentiality of the bid or offer until the time and date
    51  established for the opening of bids or offers. The timely submission  of
    52  an  electronic bid or offer in compliance with instructions provided for
    53  such submission in the advertisement for bids or offers and/or the spec-
    54  ifications shall be the responsibility solely of each bidder or  offerer
    55  or  prospective  bidder or offerer. No political subdivision or district
    56  therein shall incur any liability from delays of or interruptions in the

        A. 6324                             3
     1  receiving device designated for the submission and receipt of electronic
     2  bids and offers.
     3    §  2.  Subdivision  1  of section 103 of the general municipal law, as
     4  amended by section 2 of chapter 2 of the laws of  2012,  is  amended  to
     5  read as follows:
     6    1. Except as otherwise expressly provided by an act of the legislature
     7  or  by  a  local  law adopted prior to September first, nineteen hundred
     8  fifty-three, all contracts for public work involving an  expenditure  of
     9  more  than  thirty-five  thousand  dollars  and  all  purchase contracts
    10  involving an expenditure of more than twenty thousand dollars, shall  be
    11  awarded  by  the  appropriate  officer,  board  or agency of a political
    12  subdivision or of any district therein including but not  limited  to  a
    13  soil  conservation  district to the lowest responsible bidder furnishing
    14  the required security after advertisement for sealed bids in the  manner
    15  provided  by  this  section,  provided, however, that purchase contracts
    16  (including contracts  for  service  work,  but  excluding  any  purchase
    17  contracts necessary for the completion of a public works contract pursu-
    18  ant  to  article  eight of the labor law) may be awarded on the basis of
    19  best value, as defined in section one hundred sixty-three of  the  state
    20  finance  law,  to  a responsive and responsible bidder or offerer in the
    21  manner provided by this section except that in a  political  subdivision
    22  other  than  a city with a population of one million inhabitants or more
    23  or any district, board or agency with jurisdiction  exclusively  therein
    24  the  use  of  best  value  of  awarding  a purchase contract or purchase
    25  contracts must be authorized by local law or, in the case of a  district
    26  corporation,   school  district  or  board  of  cooperative  educational
    27  services, by rule, regulation or resolution adopted at a public meeting.
    28  In determining whether a purchase is an expenditure within  the  discre-
    29  tionary  threshold amounts established by this subdivision, the officer,
    30  board or agency of a political subdivision or of  any  district  therein
    31  shall consider the reasonably expected aggregate amount of all purchases
    32  of  the  same  commodities, services or technology to be made within the
    33  twelve-month period commencing on the date  of  purchase.  Purchases  of
    34  commodities,  services  or  technology shall not be artificially divided
    35  for the purpose of satisfying the discretionary buying thresholds estab-
    36  lished by this subdivision. A change to or a renewal of a  discretionary
    37  purchase shall not be permitted if the change or renewal would bring the
    38  reasonably  expected  aggregate  amount  of  all  purchases  of the same
    39  commodities, services or technology from the same  provider  within  the
    40  twelve-month  period  commencing on the date of the first purchase to an
    41  amount greater than the discretionary buying threshold  amount.  In  any
    42  case  where  a responsible bidder's or responsible offerer's gross price
    43  is reducible by an allowance for the value of used machinery, equipment,
    44  apparatus or tools to be traded in by a political subdivision, the gross
    45  price shall be reduced by the amount of such allowance, for the  purpose
    46  of  determining  the  low  bid or best value. In cases where two or more
    47  responsible bidders furnishing the required  security  submit  identical
    48  bids  as  to price, such officer, board or agency may award the contract
    49  to any of such bidders. Such officer, board or agency may, in  his,  her
    50  or  its  discretion,  reject  all bids or offers and readvertise for new
    51  bids or offers in the manner provided by this section; provided,  howev-
    52  er,  that in the city of Auburn, for public works and purchase contracts
    53  up to one hundred thousand dollars, such contracts may be awarded to the
    54  responsible bidder whose bid is within five percent of the  bid  of  the
    55  lowest responsible bidder and if the principal place of business of such
    56  bidder is located within the county of Cayuga.

        A. 6324                             4
     1    §  3. This act shall take effect immediately, provided that the amend-
     2  ments to subdivision 1 of section 103 of the general municipal law  made
     3  by section one of this act shall be subject to the expiration and rever-
     4  sion  of  such  subdivision pursuant to subdivision (a) of section 41 of
     5  part  X  of  chapter  62 of the laws of 2003, as amended, when upon such
     6  date the provisions of section two of this act shall take effect.