BILL NUMBER: AB 635	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  AUGUST 5, 2010
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 2, 2009

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member  V. Manuel Perez 
 De La Torre 
    (   Coauthors:   Assembly Members 
 Arambula,   Tom Berryhill,   Block,  
Caballero,   Bonnie Lowenthal,   and V. Manuel
Perez   ) 

                        FEBRUARY 25, 2009

    An act to add Chapter 2.5 (commencing with Section 13065)
to Part 1 of Division 12 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to
firefighting.   An act to add Article 1 (commencing with
Section 3000) to Chapter 3 of Part 1 of Division 2 of the Public
Contract Code, relating to public contracts, and declaring the
urgency thereof, to take effect immediately. 


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 635, as amended,  V. Manuel Perez   De La
Torre  .  Fire protection: air purifying devices.
  Public contracts: roof projects.  
   Existing law prohibits a state agency, political subdivision,
municipal corporation, or district from drafting specifications for
bids, in connection with the construction, alteration, or repair of
public works, calling for a designated material, product, thing, or
service by specific brand or trade name unless the specification is
followed by the words "or equal" so that bidders may furnish any
equal material, product, thing, or service.  
   This bill would require a school district, community college
district, state university, or state agency to require decisions, as
to whether proposed substitute items in connection with a project to
replace or repair a roof are equal pursuant to the above provisions,
to be made by an independent architect, engineer, or roofing
consultant, as provided. The bill would set forth requirements for
the bidding specifications for these roofing projects. The bill would
require an architect, engineer, roofing consultant, and other
specified persons or entities to sign a certification related to
financial relationships. The bill would require a school district,
community college district, state university, or state agency to
publish on its Internet Web site certain information pertaining to
roofing projects. This bill would also authorize the State Allocation
Board, the Office of Public School Construction, and the Department
of General Services to provide educational programs, information, or
online material to school and state government administrators in
relation to these matters. By imposing duties on school districts,
the bill would create a state-mandated local program.  
   The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.  
   This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates
determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these
statutory provisions.  
   This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as
an urgency statute.  
   Existing law establishes the State Board of Fire Services in the
Office of the State Fire Marshal. Existing law requires the board to
recommend the establishment of minimum standards with respect to
specified elements of fire protection, including fire equipment.
 
   This bill would provide that a state or local agency shall not
prohibit a firefighter from using an air purifying device during a
wild land fire. 
   Vote:  majority   2/3  . Appropriation:
no. Fiscal committee:  no   yes  .
State-mandated local program:  no   yes  .


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   SECTION 1.    Article 1 (commencing with Section
3000) is a   dded to Chapter 3 of Part 1 of Division 2 of
the   Public Contract Code   , to read:  

      Article 1.  Roofing Projects


   3000.  For purposes of this article, the following terms have the
following meanings:
   (a) "Architect" means an architect who has a current license
issued by the state.
   (b) "District or governmental body" means a school district,
community college district, state university, or state agency.
   (c) "Engineer" means an engineer who has a current license issued
by the state.
   (d) "Public facility" means a public school, community college, or
state university, or any facility owned or operated by the state.
   (e) "Roofing consultant" means a consultant who is registered by
RCI (formerly Roof Consultants Institute).
   (f) "Roof project" means a project for the replacement or repair
of a roof of a public facility.
   (g) "Substitute" or "substitution" means a material, product,
thing, or service proposed by a bidder to be an adequate substitute
material, product, thing, or service that is equal to an item
designated in specifications, pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section
3400 and subdivision (a) of Section 10129.
   3002.  (a) For purposes of subdivision (b) of Section 3400 and
subdivision (a) of Section 10129, for any roof project, a material,
product, thing, or service shall be considered equal if it meets all
of the following requirements:
   (1) The item is at least equal in quality, durability, design, and
appearance but not necessarily of an identical color.
   (2) The item will perform the intended function at least equally
well.
   (3) The item conforms substantially, even with deviations, to the
detailed requirements contained in the specifications.
   (b) A substitute may be unequal if the resulting roof system would
be substantially different than other equal or better systems in
terms of performance and durability, but not merely different by
virtue of the inclusion of proprietary products or a proprietary
warranty.
   3004.  (a) Specifications for any roof project shall be designed
to promote competition. These specifications shall (1) name a minimum
of three separate manufacturers that share no financial,
partnership, or subsidiary relationships, or interests, or shared
product lines, or (2) require performance standards that at least
three manufacturers have indicated, in writing, in advance of the
bidding period, the ability to comply with.
   (b) Specifications requiring proprietary products or a proprietary
warranty may not be included in specifications for a roof project if
these items would cost more than 10 percent more than for similar
projects utilizing open competitive bidding without a requirement for
proprietary products or a proprietary warranty.
   3006.  (a) For purposes of this section, "necessary" means
essential for determining performance and durability characteristics.

   (b) If a substitution is offered in a bid for a roof project, the
district or governmental body shall require decisions on whether the
proposed substitution is "equal" pursuant to subdivision (b) of
Section 3400 or subdivision (a) of Section 10129 to be made by an
independent architect, engineer, or roofing consultant based on
industry standards for performance characteristics and any necessary
generic testing standards for the industry.
   3008.  A district or governmental body shall ensure and verify in
writing that an architect, engineer, or roofing consultant develops
the plans and specifications for a roof project to ensure that the
project is designed to conform to state codes and structural
integrity and conformity with Section 3004 is maintained.
   3010.  (a) (1) The architect, engineer, or roofing consultant who
develops the specifications for a roof project shall disclose any
financial relationships to the district or governmental body by
completing and signing the certification set forth in subdivision
(b), prior to the opening of any bids or the award of any project.
The awarding authority shall review, approve, and acknowledge the
disclosure.
   (2) The materials manufacturer, contractor, or vendor shall
disclose any financial relationship to the district or governmental
body by completing the same disclosure.
   (3) The architect, engineer, or roofing consultant shall not
disclose a financial relationship in which the architect, engineer,
or roofing consultant is a stockholder of a corporation the stock of
which is listed for sale to the general public on a national
securities exchange and registered with the United States Securities
and Exchange Commission, if he or she holds less than 10 percent of
the outstanding stock entitled to vote at the annual meeting of the
corporation.
   (4) An architect, contractor, engineer, materials manufacturer,
roofing consultant, or vendor who knowingly provides false
information and fails to disclose a financial relationship pursuant
to this section shall be liable to the district or governmental body
for any costs to the district or governmental body that are
reasonably attributable to excess or unnecessary costs, when compared
to competing bids, incurred by the district or governmental body as
a result of the undisclosed financial relationship.
   (b) I, ______________      Name, Employer       , certify that I
have not offered, given, or agreed to give, received, accepted, or
agreed to accept, any gift, contribution, or any financial incentive
whatsoever to or from any person in connection with the roof project
contract. As used in this certification, "person" means any natural
person, business, partnership, corporation, union, committee, club,
or other organization, entity, or group of individuals. Furthermore,
I, ______________      Name, Employer       , certify that I do not
have, and throughout the duration of the contract, I will not have,
any financial relationship in connection with the performance of this
contract with any materials manufacturer, distributor, or vendor
that is not disclosed below.
   I, ____________________      Name, Employer       , have the
following financial relationships with a materials manufacturer,
distributor, or vendor, or other person in connection with the
following roof project contract:
   ______________________________________________________Name and
Address of Building, Contract date and number
   I certify that to the best of my knowledge, the contents of this
disclosure are true, or are believed to be true.
   _________          Signature            ____      Date
   __________          Print Name
   Reviewed for financial conflicts and approved prior to the opening
of bids or the award:
   Name__________________              Title and Employer Date ______

   (c) Any person who knowingly provides false information in the
disclosure set forth in subdivision (b) shall be subject to a civil
penalty in an amount up to $1000 dollars, in addition to any other
available remedies. An action for a civil penalty under this
provision may be brought by any public prosecutor in the name of the
people of the State of California.
   3012.  (a) To report bid rigging involving local government
agencies and employees, including, but not limited to, county, city,
and school district employees and officials, an interested person may
contact the Antitrust Law Section of the Office of the Attorney
General, 300 S. Spring St., Ste. 1702, Los Angeles, CA 90013, (800)
952-5225, or fill out the online complaint form on the Internet Web
site of the Office of the Attorney General (Consumer Complaint
Against a Business/Company) at
ag.ca.gov/contact/complaint_form.php?cmplt=CL.
   (b) To file a complaint or request an investigation regarding
improper bidding involving state funding, an interested person may
contact the Bureau of State Audits Whistleblower Hotline for any
state agency or institution, at 800-952-5665, or by mail at 555
Capitol Mall, Suite 300, Sacramento, CA 95814.
   3014.  A district or governmental body shall publish on its
Internet Web site the specifications for a roof project from the day
those specifications are issued until six months after the bid is
accepted and awarded. The information presented online shall include
the district or governmental body's written responses to bids, the
contract amounts, the date of the contract, the type of project,
bidding phase, the bidders, their bid amounts, and the winning bidder'
s accepted bid at award. The district or governmental body shall also
publish on its Internet Web site any subsequent change orders so the
total project cost may be ascertained in an easily accessible
manner. When the district or governmental body removes this
information from its Internet Web site, it shall retain the
information for a period of three years.
   3016.  The State Allocation Board, Office of Public School
Construction, and the Department of General Services may provide
educational programs, information, or online material to school and
state government administrators on California bidding statutes to
ensure that the administrators are adequately informed regarding the
legal requirements to maintain a fair and transparent bidding
process. 
   SEC. 2.    If the Commission on State Mandates
determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs
shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of
Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code. 
   SEC. 3.    This act is an urgency statute necessary
for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety
within the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go
into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
 
   In order to control expenditures for the repair or replacement of
roofs on public schools, colleges, and universities, and facilities
owned or operated by the state, it is necessary that this act take
effect immediately.  
  SECTION 1.    Chapter 2.5 (commencing with Section
13065) is added to Part 1 of Division 12 of the Health and Safety
Code, to read:
      CHAPTER 2.5.  FIREFIGHTING EQUIPMENT


   13065.  A state or local agency, including a city, county, city
and county, or district, shall not prohibit a firefighter from using
an air purifying device during a wild land fire.