BILL ANALYSIS Ó
Bill No: SB
741
SENATE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION
Senator Roderick D. Wright, Chair
2011-2012 Regular Session
Bill Analysis
SB 741 Author: Dutton
Introduced: February 18, 2011
Hearing Date: April 12, 2011
Consultant: Paul Donahue
SUBJECT : Public contracts: Alternative Protest Process
pilot project
SUMMARY : Makes permanent the expiring Alternative Protest
Process that is administered by the Department of General
Services.
Existing law :
1) Establishes the Alternative Protest Process, which
provides for alternative protest procedures in connection
with state agency acquisition of goods and services,
including the acquisition of information technology goods
and services, and requires the Department of General
Services (DGS) to administer the project until December 31,
2011.
2) Provides that the pilot project applies to the following
categories: information technology, materials, supplies,
equipment, and ancillary services.
3) Specifies that a contracting department, in order to be
eligible for the project, must agree to participate in the
project, and requires DGS to indicate prior to release of
the solicitation that it is required to be conducted as
part of the project solicitation.
4) Requires any bid protest conduct under the pilot project
to include one or more of the following alternative
procedures:
SB 741 (Dutton)
Page 2
a) Prohibits the protest process from preventing the
commencement of work in accordance with the terms of
any other contract awarded pursuant to the pilot
project. Permits a contract to be entered into
pending a final decision on the protest.
b) Requires DGS to review the protest within seven
days of the filing date to determine if the protest is
frivolous. If determined to be frivolous, the protest
is prohibited from proceeding under the Pilot Project
until the bidder posts a protest bond in an amount of
not less than 10 percent of the estimated contract
value.
c) Requires the director of DGS to issue a decision
within a period not to exceed 45 days from the date
the protest is filed.
d) Requires arbitration, as defined and established by
DGS, to be the resolution tool.
This bill : This bill would delete the sunset date on the
Alternative Protest Process, thereby extending the
Alternative Protest Process indefinitely.
COMMENT :
This measure permanently codifies the Alternative Protest
Process by repealing the sunset date for Public Contract
Code § 12125. According to DGS, the key to the APP process
is a fast and fair protest decision, and DGS has found the
project to be a very effective tool for resolution of
protests on contract awards.
DGS states that it has experienced considerable savings
from the use of the expedited protest process conducted
under the program. DGS reports that, in fact, the
resolution period for protests resolved under the pilot
project is one-half the time of those resolved under the
traditional protest process. DGS states that making these
alternative provisions permanent in statute allows DGS to
continue to utilize this streamlined protest process, make
government more efficient, and save money.
Related Legislation:
SB 741 (Dutton)
Page 3
The Pilot Project was established in 1998 by AB 1159
(Bowen, Chap. 762, Stats. 1997), and was later extended by
SB 951 (Committee on Governmental Organization, Chap. 610,
Stats. 2001), and again by SB 837 (Dutton, Chap. 272,
Stats. 2005).
SUPPORT: Department of General Services (source)
OPPOSE: None on file
FISCAL COMMITTEE: yes
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