BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 224|
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CONSENT
Bill No: SB 224
Author: Pavley (D)
Amended: 4/14/11
Vote: 21
SENATE NATURAL RES. AND WATER COMMITTEE : 9-0, 4/26/11
AYES: Pavley, La Malfa, Cannella, Evans, Fuller, Kehoe,
Padilla, Simitian, Wolk
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Public contracts: Department of Water
Resources
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill exempts certain contracts from review
and approval by the Department of General Services (DGS),
including any contract of a type specifically mentioned and
authorized to be entered into by the Department of Water
Resources (DWR) under the Water Code, and any contract
entered into by DWR that is not funded by money derived
from state tax sources, rather than by money derived from
federal and local sources.
ANALYSIS : Existing law:
1. Provides that all contracts entered into by any state
agency for goods, services, or other specified
activities are void unless and until approved by the
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DGS.
2. Exempts certain transactions and contracts from that
law, as specified.
This bill exempts from DGS reviewing:
1. Any contract of a type specifically mentioned and
authorized to be entered into by DWR under the Water
Code.
2. Any contract entered into by DWR that is not funded by
money derived from state tax sources, but rather, is
funded by money derived from federal and local sources.
Background
Under current law, all state contracts must be reviewed and
approved by DGS, with some notable exceptions. For
example, all of California Department of Transportation's
(CalTrans) contracts are exempt from the DGS review.
DGS tries to get back to the contracting department within
10 working days as to whether or not DGS has issues with
the contract. If they do, there will be additional time
required to work out the details of the contract issues -
sometimes just days, sometimes over a month, depending on
the issue with the contract. DGS also charges the
contracting department for DGS's time - the DGS fee for
contracts for last fiscal year was 1.6 percent of the value
of the contract.
Some of the DWR contracts are exempt from DGS review. They
are:
Construction Contracts
Architecture and Engineering Contracts
State Water Project Contracts
While those contracts cover a large part of DWR's contract
activity, it still leaves a significant number of contracts
subject to DGS review. These include contracts for
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procurement, energy, subscription services, bond funded
grant programs, and miscellaneous service contracts. Last
fiscal year, DWR spend about $ 21.7 million for
non-construction contracting.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/5/11)
Alameda County Flood Control and Water Conservation
District Zone 7
Alameda County Water District
Burbank Water and Power
Calleguas Municipal Water District
Castaic Lake Water Agency
Cucamonga Valley Water District
Desert Water Agency
Eastern Municipal Water District
Kern County Water Agency
Las Virgenes Municipal Water District
Metropolitan Water District of Southern California
Mojave Water Agency
San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District
State Water Contractors
Three Valleys Municipal Water District
Tulare Lake Basin Water Storage District
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author:
"Each year, the Department of Water Resources (DWR)
enters into hundreds of contracts, often valued in the
millions. Despite having an extensive contracting
operation staffed by dozens of experienced attorneys and
contract specialists, DWR must still have many of its
contracts reviewed and approved by the Department of
General Services (DGS). This additional level of review
delays the execution of contracts and adds unnecessary
costs to each contract.
"SB 224 will provide DWR the same exception to DGS's
contract review that has been given to CalTrans. In
doing so, SB 224 will eliminate costly contract delays
and unnecessary bureaucratic review."
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CTW:kc 5/10/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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