BILL NUMBER: SB 502	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 7, 2013

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Block

                        FEBRUARY 21, 2013

   An act to amend Section 10504.5 of the Public Contract Code,
relating to public contracts.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 502, as amended, Block. University of California: bidding
requirements.
   Existing law requires the Regents of the University of California,
except as specified, to let any contract for a project to the lowest
responsible bidder. Existing law also provides that where the
Regents of the University of California are of the view that a
project of $100,000 or less does not require the application of all
provisions of law relating to competitive bidding by the university,
the regents shall solicit bids in writing and award the work to the
lowest responsible bidder or reject all bids.
   This bill would raise  the   this 
dollar threshold for the cost of a project to  $600,000 and
require the regents, on a 2-year basis, to adjust that amount upward
or downward to reflect the percentage change in the California
Construction Index, as provided   $1,000,000  .

    Existing law, until January 1, 2017, establishes a pilot program
to authorize all campuses of the University of California, including
the medical centers, to award best value contracts based on best
value procedures, as specified, for projects over $1,000,000.
Existing law requires the University of California, for purposes of
this pilot program, to establish a procedure for the prequalification
of bidders, invite prequalified bidders to submit sealed bids as
part of a solicitation for bids, and to award the contract to the
bidder whose bid is determined to be the best value to the
university.  
    The bill would require the Regents of the University of
California, with respect to projects that do not require the
application of all competitive bidding provisions, to establish a
procedure to qualify and rate a bidder for work to be awarded when
the cost of the project exceeds $400,000 but does not exceed
$1,000,000, as specified. 
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


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

  SECTION 1.  Section 10504.5 of the Public Contract Code is amended
to read:
   10504.5.  (a) Where the nature of the work, in the opinion of the
 regents   Regents of the University of
California  , is such that the application of all of the
provisions of this chapter in connection with that work is not
required, and the cost of the project does not exceed  six
hundred thousand   one million  dollars 
($600,000)   ($1,000,000)  , the regents shall
solicit bids in writing and shall award the work to the lowest
responsible bidder or reject all bids. 
   (b) On January 1, 2016, and biennially thereafter, the project
cost limit shall be adjusted upward or downward by the regents to
reflect the percentage change in the annual California Construction
Index as used by the Department of General Services. The amount shall
be rounded off to the nearest one-thousand-dollar ($1,000) figure.
 
   (b) (1) The Regents of the University of California shall
establish a procedure to qualify and rate a bidder for work to be
awarded pursuant to subdivision (a) when the cost of the project
exceeds four hundred thousand dollars ($400,000) but does not exceed
one million dollars ($1,000,000).  
   (2) The procedures shall require a bidder to complete and submit a
qualification questionnaire. The qualification questionnaire shall
cover, at a minimum, the issues covered by the Model Prequalification
Questionnaire developed in 1999 by the Department of Industrial
Relations pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 20101. The
procedures shall also require a bidder to complete and submit a
financial statement, unless the bidder is a contractor who has
qualified as a Small Business Administration entity pursuant to
paragraph (1) of subdivision (d) of Section 14837 of the Government
Code. A bidder who is required to complete and submit a qualification
questionnaire shall include the general contractor and, if utilized,
the electrical, mechanical, and plumbing subcontractor, except that
the nonqualification of a subcontractor shall not disqualify an
otherwise qualified contractor.  
   (3) Each campus or facility shall adopt and apply a uniform system
of rating a bidder on the basis of the completed qualification
questionnaire and, if available, financial statements to determine
the minimum requirements permitted for qualification to submit a bid.
Each campus or facility may process qualification questionnaires and
financial statements on a quarterly basis to qualify a prospective
bidder for a period of one calendar year from the date of
qualification.