Bill Text: MS SB2571 | 2016 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: DOFA; authorize to issue request for administrative support to comply with ACA.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2016-05-11 - Approved by Governor [SB2571 Detail]

Download: Mississippi-2016-SB2571-Introduced.html

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MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

2016 Regular Session

To: Accountability, Efficiency, Transparency

By: Senator(s) Tollison

Senate Bill 2571

AN ACT TO CREATE STANDARDS FOR PROCUREMENTS BY THE SOLICITATION OF REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS; TO PROVIDE THAT THE STANDARDS SHALL APPLY TO PROCUREMENTS BY STATE AGENCIES OF  COMMODITIES, SUPPLIES, EQUIPMENT, TECHNOLOGY, PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL SERVICES, ANY TYPE OF STATE AGENCY PURCHASED EMPLOYEE BENEFITS AND STATE AGENCY PURCHASED SUPPLEMENTAL INSURANCE AND CAFETERIA PLANS; TO PROVIDE THE FACTORS THAT MUST BE CONSIDERED WHEN DETERMINING TO USE A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS; TO PROVIDE THE CONTENT TO INCLUDE IN A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS; TO PROVIDE THE REQUIREMENTS OF PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCES; TO PROVIDE THE METHOD TO PROPERLY DRAFT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS; TO PROVIDE THE EVALUATION FACTORS TO USE WHEN REVIEWING A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS; TO PROVIDE THE GUIDELINES FOR DISCUSSIONS ONCE PROPOSALS HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED; TO PROVIDE FOR THE CONTENT TO BE INCLUDED IN THE BEST AND FINAL OFFER; TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 25-9-120, 31-7-13 AND 25-17-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, FOR THE PURPOSE OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

     BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

     SECTION 1.  Applicability.  Except as otherwise provided by law, the provisions of this act shall apply to every procurement of commodities, supplies, equipment, technology, personal and professional services, state agency purchased employee benefits and state agency purchased supplemental insurance and cafeteria plans that is solicited by any state agency by a request for proposals.  The following provisions are intended to ensure that the best practices for soliciting requests for proposals are implemented.  Any agency that defines the provisions of soliciting a request for proposals in its rules or regulations shall, to the extent reasonably possible, implement the best practices specified in this act.

     SECTION 2.  Conditions for use.  (1)  Competitive sealed bidding is the preferred method of procurement; however, if it is not practicable and advantageous, a request for proposals may be used.  The terms "practicable" and "advantageous" are to be given ordinary dictionary meanings.  The term "practicable" denotes what may be accomplished or put into practical application. "Advantageous" denotes a judgmental assessment of what is in the state's best interest.

     (2)  The following factors shall be considered when determining advantageousness:

          (a)  The need for flexibility;

          (b)  The type of evaluations that will be needed after offers are received;

          (c)  Whether the evaluation factors involve the relative abilities of offerers to perform, including degrees of technical or professional experience or expertise;

          (d)  Whether the type of need to be satisfied involves weighing artistic and aesthetic values to the extent that price is a secondary consideration;

          (e)  Whether the types of supplies, services, or construction may require the use of comparative judgmental evaluations to evaluate them adequately; and

          (f)  Whether prior procurements indicate that a request for proposals may result in more beneficial contracts for the state.

     (3)  The following factors shall be considered when determining practicability:

          (a)  Whether the contract needs to be a contract other than a fixed-price type contract;

          (b)  Whether oral or written discussions may need to be conducted with offerers concerning technical and price aspects of their proposals;

          (c)  Whether offerers may need to be afforded the opportunity to revise their proposals, including price;

          (d)  Whether the award may need to be based upon a comparative evaluation of differing price and contractual factors as well as quality factors that include technical and performance capability and the content of the technical proposal; and

          (e)  Whether the primary consideration in determining award may not be price.

     (4)   When the chief procurement officer of an agency or his or her designee determines, in writing, that the use of competitive sealed bidding is either not practicable or not advantageous to the state, a contract may be entered into by a request for proposals.  Procurements of commodities, supplies, equipment, technology, personal and professional services, state agency purchased employee benefits and state agency purchased supplemental insurance and cafeteria plans may then be made by a request for proposals based upon such determination.  The officer who made such determination may modify or revoke it at any time, and such determination should be reviewed for current applicability from time to time.

     In addition to determining whether a request for proposals would be practicable and advantageous to the state, when making the decision to use a request for proposals, the chief procurement officer shall consider the following factors:

          (a)  Whether quality, availability or capability is overriding in relation to price in procurements for research and development, technical supplies or services;

          (b) Whether the initial installation needs to be evaluated together with subsequent maintenance and service capabilities and what priority should be given these requirements in the best interests of the state; and

          (c)  Whether the marketplace will respond better to a solicitation permitting not only a range of alternative proposals but evaluation and discussion of them before making the award.

     (5)  The final decision on whether the request for proposals method will be the most practicable and advantageous to the state shall ultimately be up to the chief procurement officer, who shall have wide discretion in making the decision.

     SECTION 3.  Content of the request for proposals.  (1)  The request for proposals shall include the following:

          (a)  Instructions and information to offerers concerning the request for proposals submission requirements, including the time and date set for receipt of proposals, the address of the office to which proposals are to be delivered, the maximum time for proposal acceptance by the state, the manner in which proposals are to be submitted, including any forms for that purpose and any other special information;

          (b)  The purchase description, evaluation factors, delivery or performance schedule and such inspection and acceptance requirements as are not included in the purchase description;

          (c)  The contract terms and conditions, including warranty and bonding or other security requirements, as applicable;

          (d)  A statement that discussions may be conducted with offerors who submit proposals determined to be reasonably susceptible of being selected for the award, but that proposals may be accepted without such discussions; and

          (e)  A statement of when and how price should be submitted.

     (2)  The request for proposals may incorporate documents by reference provided that the request for proposals specifies where such documents can be obtained.

     (3)  Proposal preparation time shall be set to provide offerers a reasonable time to prepare their proposals.  A minimum of thirty (30) days shall be provided unless a shorter time is deemed necessary for a particular procurement as determined in writing by the chief procurement officer of the requesting agency.

     SECTION 4.  Public notice.  (1)  In addition to any method of public notice regarding the solicitation of request for proposals currently being used by state agencies, the chief procurement officer shall also have posted on the Mississippi Transparency Website and on the soliciting agency's website, public notification of a pending procurement through request for proposals.  The notice shall include the following:

          (a)  The due date for responses;

          (b)  The name and phone number of the officer conducting the procurement; and

          (c)  The means of obtaining the solicitation.

     (2)  The notice shall be posted at least thirty (30) days before the date proposals are to be submitted to the chief procurement officer.

     (3)  Each chief procurement officer may determine that other methods of public notification are best for the particular agency or the particular request for proposals.  If such a determination is made, the chief procurement officer may provide notice in an alternative manner about the request for proposals in addition to the methods provided for in this act.

     (4)  The Department of Finance and Administration (DFA) shall monitor agency websites and the Mississippi Transparency Website to ensure that the agencies are posting the required notice.  DFA shall audit agencies and assess administrative penalties against any agency that is in violations of these provisions.

     SECTION 5.  Pre-proposal conferences.  (1)  Pre-proposal conferences may be conducted to explain the procurement requirements.  If a chief procurement officer plans to hold such conference, he or she shall prominently place the notification in the request for proposals solicitation.  The notification shall include the date, time and location of the conference.  If the chief procurement officer decides to hold a pre-proposal conference after the request for proposals has been sent out, then he or she shall notify all prospective offerors known to have received a request for proposals.

     (2)  If a pre-proposal conference is held, it shall be at least fourteen (14) days after the request for proposals has been issued.  In setting the time for the conference, the chief procurement officer shall consider the complexity of the procurement and the potential modifications that may need to be made after the conference and any amendments to the solicitation that the chief procurement officer may need to make after the conference.

     (3)  The chief procurement officer issuing the request for proposals shall serve as chairman of the conference.  Offerors attending the conference shall be required to sign an attendance sheet provided by the soliciting agency.  The chairman shall announce at the beginning of the conference how the conference is to be handled.  The conference shall be recorded.  A chief procurement officer may mandate attendance at a conference if he or she feels it is critical to understanding the solicitation.  Once the conference is over, the chief procurement officer shall put the recordings from the conference and the questions and answers from the conference in writing and send them to the offerors who received the requests for proposals.

     SECTION 6.  Drafting the request for proposals.  (1)  In addition to the items listed in this act, the contents of a request for proposals shall also include the following:

          (a)  A statement that discussions may be conducted with offerers who submit proposals determined to be reasonably susceptible of being selected for the award, but that proposals may also be accepted without such discussions; and

          (b)  A statement of when and how price should be submitted.

     (2)  The request for proposals shall indicate, either by the order listed, weights or some other manner, the order of importance of the evaluation criteria.

     (3)  The request for proposals, its amendments, the offeror's proposals and the best and final offer shall constitute the contract.

     SECTION 7.  Receipt and registration of proposals.  (1)  Submitted proposals shall not be opened publicly, but shall be opened in the presence of two (2) or more agency procurement officials.  Proposals and modifications shall be date-stamped or time and date-stamped upon receipt and held in a secure place until the established due date.

     (2)  After the date established for receipt of proposals, a register of proposals shall be prepared, which shall include for all proposals the name of each offerer, the number of modifications received, if any, and a description sufficient to identify the supply, service commodity or other item offered.  The register of proposals shall be open to public inspection only after the award of the contract.

     (3)  Proposals and modifications shall be shown only to personnel having a legitimate interest in them.  Electronic proposals received will be stored in an electronic lockbox until the time designated for the opening of the proposal.

     SECTION 8.  Evaluation factors in the request for proposals.  (1)  The request for proposals shall state all of the evaluation factors, including price, and their relative importance.  The evaluation shall be based on the evaluation factors set forth in the request for proposals.  The evaluation criteria used and the weights given to each shall be decided and agreed to by the evaluation committee before the opening of any proposal.  Numerical rating systems may be used but are not required.  Factors not specified in the request for proposals shall not be considered.  Upon completion and award of a contract, the evaluation score sheets used to review the submitted proposals shall be public information.

     (2)  Proposals shall be initially classified as:  (a) acceptable; (b) potentially acceptable, which means reasonably susceptible of being made acceptable; or (c) unacceptable.  Offerers whose proposals are unacceptable shall be so notified promptly.

     (3)  Discussions may be held with offerers to:

          (a)  Promote understanding of the state's requirements and the offerer's proposals; and

          (b)  Facilitate arriving at a contract that will be most advantageous to the state taking into consideration price and the other evaluation factors set forth in the request for proposals.    (4)  Offerers shall be accorded fair and equal treatment with respect to any opportunity for discussions and revisions of proposals.  Any discussions that take place under the provisions of this section shall be recorded and the recordings shall be made public upon award of the contract.  The chief procurement officer shall establish procedures and schedules for conducting discussions.  If, during discussions, there is a need for any substantial clarification of or change in the request for proposals, the request shall be amended to incorporate such clarification or change.  Auction techniques, revealing one offerer's price to another, and disclosure of any information derived from competing proposals is prohibited.  Any substantial oral clarification of a proposal shall be reduced to writing by the offerer.

     SECTION 9.  Best and final offers.  The chief procurement officer shall establish a common date and time for the submission of best and final offers.  Best and final offers shall be submitted only once; however, the chief procurement officer may make a written determination that it is in the state's best interest to conduct additional discussions or change the state's

requirements and require another submission of best and final offers.  Otherwise, no discussion of or changes in the best and final offers shall be allowed before the award.  Offerers shall also be informed that if they do not submit a notice of withdrawal or another best and final offer, their immediate previous offer will be constructed as their best and final offer.

     SECTION 10.  Section 25-9-120, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

     25-9-120.  (1)  Contract personnel, whether classified as contract workers or independent contractors shall not be deemed state service or nonstate service employees of the State of Mississippi, and shall not be eligible to participate in the Public Employees' Retirement System, or the State and School Employees' Health Insurance Plan, nor be allowed credit for personal and sick leave and other leave benefits as employees of the State of Mississippi, notwithstanding Sections 25-3-91 through 25-3-101; 25-9-101 through 25-9-151; 25-11-1 through 25-11-126; 25-11-128 through 25-11-131; 25-15-1 through 25-15-23 and for the purpose set forth herein.  Contract workers, i.e., contract personnel who do not meet the criteria of independent contractors, shall be subject to the provisions of Section 25-11-127.

     (2)  (a)  There is hereby created the Personal Service Contract Review Board, which shall be composed of the following members:

              (i)  The State Personnel Director;

              (ii)  Two (2) individuals appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate;

              (iii)  Two (2) individuals appointed by the Lieutenant Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate; and

              (iv)  The Executive Director of the Department of Finance and Administration, serving as an ex officio member;

          (b)  The initial terms of each appointee shall be as follows:

              (i)  One (1) member appointed by the Governor to serve for a term ending June 30, 2017;

              (ii)  One (1) member appointed by the Governor to serve for a term ending June 30, 2020;

              (iii)  One (1) member appointed by the Lieutenant Governor to serve for a term ending June 30, 2018; and

              (iv)  One (1) member appointed by the Lieutenant Governor to serve for a term ending June 30, 2019.

     After the expiration of the initial terms, all appointed members' terms shall be for a period of four (4) years from the expiration date of the previous term, and until such time as the member's successor is duly appointed and qualified;

          (c)  When appointing members to the Personal Service Contract Review Board, the Governor and Lieutenant Governor shall take into consideration persons who possess at least five (5) years of management experience in general business, health care, or finance for an organization, corporation, or other public or private entity.  Any person, or any employee or owner of a company, who receives any grants, procurements or contracts that are subject to approval under this section shall not be appointed to the Personal Service Contract Review Board.  Any person, or any employee or owner of a company, who is a principal of the source providing the personal or professional service shall not be appointed to the Personal Service Contract Review Board if the principal owns or controls a greater than five percent (5%) interest or has an ownership value of One Million Dollars ($1,000,000.00) in the source's business, whichever is smaller;

          (d)  Members of the Personal Service Contract Review Board shall be entitled to per diem as authorized by Section 25-3-69 and travel reimbursement as authorized by Section 25-3-41;

          (e)  The State Personnel Director shall be chairman and shall preside over the meetings of the board.  The board shall annually elect a vice chairman, who shall serve in the absence of the chairman.  No business shall be transacted, including adoption of rules of procedure, without the presence of a quorum of the board.  Three (3) members shall be a quorum.  No action shall be valid unless approved by the chairman and two (2) other of those members present and voting, entered upon the minutes of the board and signed by the chairman.  Necessary clerical and administrative support for the board shall be provided by the State Personnel Board.  Minutes shall be kept of the proceedings of each meeting, copies of which shall be filed on a monthly basis with the Chairmen of the Accountability, Efficiency and Transparency Committees of the Senate and House of Representatives.

     (3)  The Personal Service Contract Review Board shall have the following powers and responsibilities:

          (a)  Promulgate rules and regulations governing the solicitation and selection of contractual services personnel including personal and professional services contracts for any form of consulting, policy analysis, public relations, marketing, public affairs, legislative advocacy services or any other contract that the board deems appropriate for oversight, with the exception of any personal service contracts entered into for computer or information technology-related services governed by the Mississippi Department of Information Technology Services, any personal service contracts entered into by the Mississippi Department of Transportation, and any contract for attorney, accountant, auditor, architect, engineer, and utility rate expert services.  Any such rules and regulations shall provide for maintaining continuous internal audit covering the activities of such agency affecting its revenue and expenditures as required under Section 7-7-3(6)(d), Mississippi Code of 1972.  Any rules and regulation changes related to personal and professional services contracts that may be proposed by the Personal Service Contract Review Board shall be submitted to the Chairmen of the Accountability, Efficiency and Transparency Committees of the Senate and House of Representatives at least fifteen (15) days prior to the board voting on the proposed changes, and such rules and regulation changes, if adopted, shall be promulgated in accordance with the Mississippi Administrative Procedures Act;

          (b)  Approve all personal and professional services contracts involving the expenditures of funds in excess of Seventy-five Thousand Dollars ($75,000.00);

          (c)  Develop mandatory standards with respect to contractual services personnel which require invitations for public bid, requests for proposals, record keeping and financial responsibility of contractors.  The Personal Service Contract Review Board shall, unless exempted under this paragraph (c) or under paragraph (d) or (j) of this subsection (3), require the agency involved to advertise such contract for public bid, and may reserve the right to reject any or all bids;

              (i)  Any agency that seeks to procure personal or professional service contracts that are required to be approved by the Personal Service Contract Review Board may petition for relief from any requirement that the agency use competitive bidding as a procurement method.  The agency shall be required to show to the Personal Service Contract Review Board's satisfaction one (1) of the following:

                   1.  Federal law has established limitations on the use of competitive bidding for the personal or professional contracts the agency is seeking to procure; or

                   2.  The agency is required to hire professionals whose members are prohibited from bidding by the rules of professional conduct promulgated by the regulating agency or agencies for that professional; or

                   3.  The agency can establish that the use of competitive bidding will be counterproductive to the business of the agency.

              (ii)  If the Personal Service Contract Review Board determines that competitive bidding shall not be required for the particular personal or professional service the agency seeks to procure, then the Personal Service Contract Review Board shall direct the agency to establish a competitive procurement procedure for selecting the personal or professional service contract that ensures open, transparent procedures for making a selection.  Such procedures shall include, but not be limited to, qualifications based selection or requests for qualifications.  The Personal Service Contract Review Board shall also have the authority to audit the records of any agency to ensure it has used competitive procedures to contract for the personal or professional service;

          (d)  Prescribe certain circumstances whereby agency heads may enter into contracts for personal and professional services without receiving prior approval from the Personal Service Contract Review Board.  The Personal Service Contract Review Board may establish a preapproved list of providers of various personal and professional services for set prices with which state agencies may contract without bidding or prior approval from the board;

          (e)  To provide standards for the issuance of requests for proposals, the evaluation of proposals received, consideration of costs and quality of services proposed, contract negotiations, the administrative monitoring of contract performance by the agency and successful steps in terminating a contract;

          (f)  To present recommendations for governmental privatization and to evaluate privatization proposals submitted by any state agency;

          (g)  To authorize personal and professional service contracts to be effective for more than one (1) year provided a funding condition is included in any such multiple year contract, except the State Board of Education, which shall have the authority to enter into contractual agreements for student assessment for a period up to ten (10) years.  The State Board of Education shall procure these services in accordance with the Personal Service Contract Review Board procurement regulations;

          (h)  To request the State Auditor to conduct a performance audit on any personal or professional service contract;

          (i)  Prepare an annual report to the Legislature concerning the issuance of personal service contracts during the previous year, collecting any necessary information from state agencies in making such report;

          (j)  Develop and implement the following standards and procedures for the approval of any sole source contract for personal and professional services regardless of the value of the procurement:

              (i)  For the purposes of this paragraph (j), the term "sole source" means only one (1) source is available that can provide the required personal or professional service.

              (ii)  An agency that has been issued a binding, valid court order mandating that a particular source or provider must be used for the required service must include a copy of the applicable court order in all future sole source contract reviews for the particular personal or professional service referenced in the court order.

              (iii)  Any agency alleging to have a sole source for any personal or professional service shall have published on the procurement portal website established by Sections 25-53-151 and 27-104-165, for at least fourteen (14) days, the terms of the proposed contract for those services.  In addition, the publication shall include, but is not limited to, the following information:

                   1.  The personal or professional service offered in the contract;

                   2.  An explanation of why the personal or professional service is the only one that can meet the needs of the agency;

                   3.  An explanation of why the source is the only person or entity that can provide the required personal or professional service;

                   4.  An explanation of why the amount to be expended for the personal or professional service is reasonable; and

                   5.  The efforts that the agency went through to obtain the best possible price for the personal or professional service.

              (iv)  If any person or entity objects and proposes that the personal or professional service published under subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph (j) is not a sole source service and can be provided by another person or entity, then the objecting person or entity shall notify the Personal Service Contract Review Board and the agency that published the proposed sole source contract with a detailed explanation of why the personal or professional service is not a sole source service.

              (v)  1.  If the agency determines after review that the personal or professional service in the proposed sole source contract can be provided by another person or entity, then the agency must withdraw the sole source contract publication from the procurement portal website and submit the procurement of the personal or professional service to an advertised competitive bid or selection process.

                   2.  If the agency determines after review that there is only one (1) source for the required personal or professional service, then the agency may appeal to the Personal Service Contract Review Board.  The agency has the burden of proving that the personal or professional service is only provided by one (1) source.

                   3.  If the Personal Service Contract Review Board has any reasonable doubt as to whether the personal or professional service can only be provided by one (1) source, then the agency must submit the procurement of the personal or professional service to an advertised competitive bid or selection process.  No action taken by the Personal Service Contract Review Board in this appeal process shall be valid unless approved by the chairman and two (2) other members of the Personal Service Contract Review Board present and voting.

              (vi)  The Personal Service Contract Review Board shall prepare and submit a quarterly report to the House of Representatives and Senate Committees on Accountability, Efficiency and Transparency that details the sole source contracts presented to the Personal Service Contract Review Board and the reasons that the Personal Service Contract Review Board approved or rejected each contract.  Such quarterly reports shall also include the documentation and memoranda required in subsection (5) of this section.  An agency that submitted a sole source contract shall be prepared to explain the sole source contract to each committee by December 15 of each year upon request by the committee.

     (4)  Any contract submitted to the Personal Service Contract Review Board for review and approval shall be presumed to be approved if the Personal Service Contract Review Board does not object to the contract within thirty (30) days of the agency's submission of the contract.  All submissions shall be made thirty (30) days before the monthly meeting of the Personal Service Contract Review Board or as prescribed by the Personal Service Contract Review Board.  If the Personal Service Contract Review Board rejects any contract submitted for review or approval, the Personal Service Contract Review Board shall clearly set out the reasons for its action, including, but not limited to, the policy that the agency has violated in its submitted contract and any corrective actions that the agency may take to amend the contract to comply with the rules and regulations of the Personal Service Contract Review Board.

     (5)  All sole source contracts for personal and professional services awarded by state agencies, whether approved by an agency head or the Personal Service Contract Review Board, shall contain in the procurement file a written determination for the approval, using a request form furnished by the Personal Service Contract Review Board.  The written determination shall document the basis for the determination, including any market analysis conducted in order to ensure that the service required was practicably available from only one (1) source.  A memorandum shall accompany the request form and address the following four (4) points:

          (a)  Explanation of why this service is the only service that can meet the needs of the purchasing agency;

          (b)  Explanation of why this vendor is the only practicably available source from which to obtain this service;

          (c)  Explanation of why the price is considered reasonable; and

          (d)  Description of the efforts that were made to conduct a noncompetitive negotiation to get the best possible price for the taxpayers.

     (6)  The Personal Service Contract Review Board shall develop and promulgate rules and regulations to define the allowable legal relationship between contract employees and the contracting departments, agencies and institutions of state government under the jurisdiction of the State Personnel Board, in compliance with the applicable rules and regulations of the federal Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for federal employment tax purposes.  Under these regulations, the usual common law rules are applicable to determine and require that such worker is an independent contractor and not an employee, requiring evidence of lawful behavioral control, lawful financial control and lawful relationship of the parties.  Any state department, agency or institution shall only be authorized to contract for personnel services in compliance with said regulations.

     (7)  No member of the Personal Service Contract Review Board shall use his official authority or influence to coerce, by threat of discharge from employment, or otherwise, the purchase of commodities or the contracting for personal or professional services under this section.

     (8)  Nothing in this section shall impair or limit the authority of the Board of Trustees of the Public Employees' Retirement System to enter into any personal or professional services contracts directly related to their constitutional obligation to manage the trust funds, including, but not limited to, actuarial, custodial banks, cash management, investment consultant, and investment management contracts.

     SECTION 11.  Section 31-7-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

     31-7-13.  All agencies and governing authorities shall purchase their commodities and printing; contract for garbage collection or disposal; contract for solid waste collection or disposal; contract for sewage collection or disposal; contract for public construction; and contract for rentals as herein provided.

          (a)  Bidding procedure for purchases not over $5,000.00.  Purchases which do not involve an expenditure of more than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), exclusive of freight or shipping charges, may be made without advertising or otherwise requesting competitive bids.  However, nothing contained in this paragraph (a) shall be construed to prohibit any agency or governing authority from establishing procedures which require competitive bids on purchases of Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) or less.

          (b)  Bidding procedure for purchases over $5,000.00 but not over $50,000.00.  Purchases which involve an expenditure of more than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) but not more than Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00), exclusive of freight and shipping charges may be made from the lowest and best bidder without publishing or posting advertisement for bids, provided at least two (2) competitive written bids have been obtained.  Any state agency or community/junior college purchasing commodities or procuring construction pursuant to this paragraph (b) may authorize its purchasing agent, or his designee, to accept the lowest competitive written bid under Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00).  Any governing authority purchasing commodities pursuant to this paragraph (b) may authorize its purchasing agent, or his designee, with regard to governing authorities other than counties, or its purchase clerk, or his designee, with regard to counties, to accept the lowest and best competitive written bid.  Such authorization shall be made in writing by the governing authority and shall be maintained on file in the primary office of the agency and recorded in the official minutes of the governing authority, as appropriate.  The purchasing agent or the purchase clerk, or their designee, as the case may be, and not the governing authority, shall be liable for any penalties and/or damages as may be imposed by law for any act or omission of the purchasing agent or purchase clerk, or their designee, constituting a violation of law in accepting any bid without approval by the governing authority.  The term "competitive written bid" shall mean a bid submitted on a bid form furnished by the buying agency or governing authority and signed by authorized personnel representing the vendor, or a bid submitted on a vendor's letterhead or identifiable bid form and signed by authorized personnel representing the vendor.  "Competitive" shall mean that the bids are developed based upon comparable identification of the needs and are developed independently and without knowledge of other bids or prospective bids.  Any bid item for construction in excess of Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) shall be broken down by components to provide detail of component description and pricing.  These details shall be submitted with the written bids and become part of the bid evaluation criteria.  Bids may be submitted by facsimile, electronic mail or other generally accepted method of information distribution.  Bids submitted by electronic transmission shall not require the signature of the vendor's representative unless required by agencies or governing authorities.

          (c)  Bidding procedure for purchases over $50,000.00.

              (i)  Publication requirement.

                   1.  Purchases which involve an expenditure of more than Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00), exclusive of freight and shipping charges, may be made from the lowest and best bidder after advertising for competitive bids once each week for two (2) consecutive weeks in a regular newspaper published in the county or municipality in which such agency or governing authority is located.  However, all American Recovery and Reinvestment Act projects in excess of Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) shall be bid.  All references to American Recovery and Reinvestment Act projects in this section shall not apply to programs identified in Division B of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

                   2.  The purchasing entity may designate the method by which the bids will be received, including, but not limited to, bids sealed in an envelope, bids received electronically in a secure system, bids received via a reverse auction, or bids received by any other method that promotes open competition and has been approved by the Office of Purchasing and Travel.  However, reverse auction shall not be used for any public contract for design or construction of public facilities, including buildings, roads and bridges.

                   3.  The date as published for the bid opening shall not be less than seven (7) working days after the last published notice; however, if the purchase involves a construction project in which the estimated cost is in excess of Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00), such bids shall not be opened in less than fifteen (15) working days after the last notice is published and the notice for the purchase of such construction shall be published once each week for two (2) consecutive weeks.  However, all American Recovery and Reinvestment Act projects in excess of Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) shall be bid.  For any projects in excess of Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, publication shall be made one (1) time and the bid opening for construction projects shall not be less than ten (10) working days after the date of the published notice.  The notice of intention to let contracts or purchase equipment shall state the time and place at which bids shall be received, list the contracts to be made or types of equipment or supplies to be purchased, and, if all plans and/or specifications are not published, refer to the plans and/or specifications on file.  If there is no newspaper published in the county or municipality, then such notice shall be given by posting same at the courthouse, or for municipalities at the city hall, and at two (2) other public places in the county or municipality, and also by publication once each week for two (2) consecutive weeks in some newspaper having a general circulation in the county or municipality in the above-provided manner.  On the same date that the notice is submitted to the newspaper for publication, the agency or governing authority involved shall mail written notice to, or provide electronic notification to the main office of the Mississippi Procurement Technical Assistance Program under the Mississippi Development Authority that contains the same information as that in the published notice.  Submissions received by the Mississippi Procurement Technical Assistance Program for projects funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act shall be displayed on a separate and unique Internet web page accessible to the public and maintained by the Mississippi Development Authority for the Mississippi Procurement Technical Assistance Program.  Those American Recovery and Reinvestment Act related submissions shall be publicly posted within twenty-four (24) hours of receipt by the Mississippi Development Authority and the bid opening shall not occur until the submission has been posted for ten (10) consecutive days.  The Department of Finance and Administration shall maintain information regarding contracts and other expenditures from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, on a unique Internet web page accessible to the public.  The Department of Finance and Administration shall promulgate rules regarding format, content and deadlines, unless otherwise specified by law, of the posting of award notices, contract execution and subsequent amendments, links to the contract documents, expenditures against the awarded contracts and general expenditures of funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.  Within one (1) working day of the contract award, the agency or governing authority shall post to the designated web page maintained by the Department of Finance and Administration, notice of the award, including the award recipient, the contract amount, and a brief summary of the contract in accordance with rules promulgated by the department.  Within one (1) working day of the contract execution, the agency or governing authority shall post to the designated web page maintained by the Department of Finance and Administration a summary of the executed contract and make a copy of the appropriately redacted contract documents available for linking to the designated web page in accordance with the rules promulgated by the department.  The information provided by the agency or governing authority shall be posted to the web page for the duration of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding or until the project is completed, whichever is longer.

              (ii)  Bidding process amendment procedure.  If all plans and/or specifications are published in the notification, then the plans and/or specifications may not be amended.  If all plans and/or specifications are not published in the notification, then amendments to the plans/specifications, bid opening date, bid opening time and place may be made, provided that the agency or governing authority maintains a list of all prospective bidders who are known to have received a copy of the bid documents and all such prospective bidders are sent copies of all amendments.  This notification of amendments may be made via mail, facsimile, electronic mail or other generally accepted method of information distribution.  No addendum to bid specifications may be issued within two (2) working days of the time established for the receipt of bids unless such addendum also amends the bid opening to a date not less than five (5) working days after the date of the addendum.

              (iii)  Filing requirement.  In all cases involving governing authorities, before the notice shall be published or posted, the plans or specifications for the construction or equipment being sought shall be filed with the clerk of the board of the governing authority.  In addition to these requirements, a bid file shall be established which shall indicate those vendors to whom such solicitations and specifications were issued, and such file shall also contain such information as is pertinent to the bid.

              (iv)  Specification restrictions.

                   1.  Specifications pertinent to such bidding shall be written so as not to exclude comparable equipment of domestic manufacture.  However, if valid justification is presented, the Department of Finance and Administration or the board of a governing authority may approve a request for specific equipment necessary to perform a specific job.  Further, such justification, when placed on the minutes of the board of a governing authority, may serve as authority for that governing authority to write specifications to require a specific item of equipment needed to perform a specific job.  In addition to these requirements, from and after July 1, 1990, vendors of relocatable classrooms and the specifications for the purchase of such relocatable classrooms published by local school boards shall meet all pertinent regulations of the State Board of Education, including prior approval of such bid by the State Department of Education.

                   2.  Specifications for construction projects may include an allowance for commodities, equipment, furniture, construction materials or systems in which prospective bidders are instructed to include in their bids specified amounts for such items so long as the allowance items are acquired by the vendor in a commercially reasonable manner and approved by the agency/governing authority.  Such acquisitions shall not be made to circumvent the public purchasing laws.

              (v)  Agencies and governing authorities may establish secure procedures by which bids may be submitted via electronic means.

          (d)  Lowest and best bid decision procedure.

              (i)  Decision procedure.  Purchases may be made from the lowest and best bidder.  In determining the lowest and best bid, freight and shipping charges shall be included.  Life-cycle costing, total cost bids, warranties, guaranteed buy-back provisions and other relevant provisions may be included in the best bid calculation.  All best bid procedures for state agencies must be in compliance with regulations established by the Department of Finance and Administration.  If any governing authority accepts a bid other than the lowest bid actually submitted, it shall place on its minutes detailed calculations and narrative summary showing that the accepted bid was determined to be the lowest and best bid, including the dollar amount of the accepted bid and the dollar amount of the lowest bid.  No agency or governing authority shall accept a bid based on items not included in the specifications.

              (ii)  Decision procedure for Certified Purchasing Offices.  In addition to the decision procedure set forth in * * * paragraph (d)(i) subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (d), Certified Purchasing Offices may also use the following procedure:  Purchases may be made from the bidder offering the best value.  In determining the best value bid, freight and shipping charges shall be included.  Life-cycle costing, total cost bids, warranties, guaranteed buy-back provisions, documented previous experience, training costs and other relevant provisions, including, but not limited to, a bidder having a local office and inventory located within the jurisdiction of the governing authority, may be included in the best value calculation.  This provision shall authorize Certified Purchasing Offices to utilize a Request For Proposals (RFP) process when purchasing commodities.  All best value procedures for state agencies must be in compliance with regulations established by the Department of Finance and Administration.  No agency or governing authority shall accept a bid based on items or criteria not included in the specifications.

              (iii)  Decision procedure for Mississippi Landmarks.  In addition to the decision procedure set forth in * * * paragraph (d)(i) subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (d), where purchase involves renovation, restoration, or both, of the State Capitol Building or any other historical building designated for at least five (5) years as a Mississippi Landmark by the Board of Trustees of the Department of Archives and History under the authority of Sections 39-7-7 and 39-7-11, the agency or governing authority may use the following procedure:  Purchases may be made from the lowest and best prequalified bidder.  Prequalification of bidders shall be determined not less than fifteen (15) working days before the first published notice of bid opening.  Prequalification criteria shall be limited to bidder's knowledge and experience in historical restoration, preservation and renovation.  In determining the lowest and best bid, freight and shipping charges shall be included.  Life-cycle costing, total cost bids, warranties, guaranteed buy-back provisions and other relevant provisions may be included in the best bid calculation.  All best bid and prequalification procedures for state agencies must be in compliance with regulations established by the Department of Finance and Administration.  If any governing authority accepts a bid other than the lowest bid actually submitted, it shall place on its minutes detailed calculations and narrative summary showing that the accepted bid was determined to be the lowest and best bid, including the dollar amount of the accepted bid and the dollar amount of the lowest bid.  No agency or governing authority shall accept a bid based on items not included in the specifications.

              (iv)  Construction project negotiations authority.  If the lowest and best bid is not more than ten percent (10%) above the amount of funds allocated for a public construction or renovation project, then the agency or governing authority shall be permitted to negotiate with the lowest bidder in order to enter into a contract for an amount not to exceed the funds allocated.

          (e)  Lease-purchase authorization.  For the purposes of this section, the term "equipment" shall mean equipment, furniture and, if applicable, associated software and other applicable direct costs associated with the acquisition.  Any lease-purchase of equipment which an agency is not required to lease-purchase under the master lease-purchase program pursuant to Section 31-7-10 and any lease-purchase of equipment which a governing authority elects to lease-purchase may be acquired by a lease-purchase agreement under this paragraph (e).  Lease-purchase financing may also be obtained from the vendor or from a third-party source after having solicited and obtained at least two (2) written competitive bids, as defined in paragraph (b) of this section, for such financing without advertising for such bids.  Solicitation for the bids for financing may occur before or after acceptance of bids for the purchase of such equipment or, where no such bids for purchase are required, at any time before the purchase thereof.  No such lease-purchase agreement shall be for an annual rate of interest which is greater than the overall maximum interest rate to maturity on general obligation indebtedness permitted under Section 75-17-101, and the term of such lease-purchase agreement shall not exceed the useful life of equipment covered thereby as determined according to the upper limit of the asset depreciation range (ADR) guidelines for the Class Life Asset Depreciation Range System established by the Internal Revenue Service pursuant to the United States Internal Revenue Code and regulations thereunder as in effect on December 31, 1980, or comparable depreciation guidelines with respect to any equipment not covered by ADR guidelines.  Any lease-purchase agreement entered into pursuant to this paragraph (e) may contain any of the terms and conditions which a master lease-purchase agreement may contain under the provisions of Section 31-7-10(5), and shall contain an annual allocation dependency clause substantially similar to that set forth in Section 31-7-10(8).  Each agency or governing authority entering into a lease-purchase transaction pursuant to this paragraph (e) shall maintain with respect to each such lease-purchase transaction the same information as required to be maintained by the Department of Finance and Administration pursuant to Section 31-7-10(13).  However, nothing contained in this section shall be construed to permit agencies to acquire items of equipment with a total acquisition cost in the aggregate of less than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) by a single lease-purchase transaction.  All equipment, and the purchase thereof by any lessor, acquired by lease-purchase under this paragraph and all lease-purchase payments with respect thereto shall be exempt from all Mississippi sales, use and ad valorem taxes.  Interest paid on any lease-purchase agreement under this section shall be exempt from State of Mississippi income taxation.

          (f)  Alternate bid authorization.  When necessary to ensure ready availability of commodities for public works and the timely completion of public projects, no more than two (2) alternate bids may be accepted by a governing authority for commodities.  No purchases may be made through use of such alternate bids procedure unless the lowest and best bidder cannot deliver the commodities contained in his bid.  In that event, purchases of such commodities may be made from one (1) of the bidders whose bid was accepted as an alternate.

          (g)  Construction contract change authorization.  In the event a determination is made by an agency or governing authority after a construction contract is let that changes or modifications to the original contract are necessary or would better serve the purpose of the agency or the governing authority, such agency or governing authority may, in its discretion, order such changes pertaining to the construction that are necessary under the circumstances without the necessity of further public bids; provided that such change shall be made in a commercially reasonable manner and shall not be made to circumvent the public purchasing statutes.  In addition to any other authorized person, the architect or engineer hired by an agency or governing authority with respect to any public construction contract shall have the authority, when granted by an agency or governing authority, to authorize changes or modifications to the original contract without the necessity of prior approval of the agency or governing authority when any such change or modification is less than one percent (1%) of the total contract amount.  The agency or governing authority may limit the number, manner or frequency of such emergency changes or modifications.

          (h)  Petroleum purchase alternative.  In addition to other methods of purchasing authorized in this chapter, when any agency or governing authority shall have a need for gas, diesel fuel, oils and/or other petroleum products in excess of the amount set forth in paragraph (a) of this section, such agency or governing authority may purchase the commodity after having solicited and obtained at least two (2) competitive written bids, as defined in paragraph (b) of this section.  If two (2) competitive written bids are not obtained, the entity shall comply with the procedures set forth in paragraph (c) of this section.  In the event any agency or governing authority shall have advertised for bids for the purchase of gas, diesel fuel, oils and other petroleum products and coal and no acceptable bids can be obtained, such agency or governing authority is authorized and directed to enter into any negotiations necessary to secure the lowest and best contract available for the purchase of such commodities.

          (i)  Road construction petroleum products price adjustment clause authorization.  Any agency or governing authority authorized to enter into contracts for the construction, maintenance, surfacing or repair of highways, roads or streets, may include in its bid proposal and contract documents a price adjustment clause with relation to the cost to the contractor, including taxes, based upon an industry-wide cost index, of petroleum products including asphalt used in the performance or execution of the contract or in the production or manufacture of materials for use in such performance.  Such industry-wide index shall be established and published monthly by the Mississippi Department of Transportation with a copy thereof to be mailed, upon request, to the clerks of the governing authority of each municipality and the clerks of each board of supervisors throughout the state.  The price adjustment clause shall be based on the cost of such petroleum products only and shall not include any additional profit or overhead as part of the adjustment.  The bid proposals or document contract shall contain the basis and methods of adjusting unit prices for the change in the cost of such petroleum products.

          (j)  State agency emergency purchase procedure.  If the governing board or the executive head, or his designees, of any agency of the state shall determine that an emergency exists in regard to the purchase of any commodities or repair contracts, so that the delay incident to giving opportunity for competitive bidding would be detrimental to the interests of the state, then the head of such agency, or his designees, shall file with the Department of Finance and Administration (i) a statement explaining the conditions and circumstances of the emergency, which shall include a detailed description of the events leading up to the situation and the negative impact to the entity if the purchase is made following the statutory requirements set forth in paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of this section, and (ii) a certified copy of the appropriate minutes of the board of such agency requesting the emergency purchase, if applicable.  Upon receipt of the statement and applicable board certification, the State Fiscal Officer, or his designees, may, in writing, authorize the purchase or repair without having to comply with competitive bidding requirements.

     If the governing board or the executive head, or his designees, of any agency determines that an emergency exists in regard to the purchase of any commodities or repair contracts, so that the delay incident to giving opportunity for competitive bidding would threaten the health or safety of any person, or the preservation or protection of property, then the provisions in this section for competitive bidding shall not apply, and any officer or agent of the agency having general or specific authority for making the purchase or repair contract shall approve the bill presented for payment, and he shall certify in writing from whom the purchase was made, or with whom the repair contract was made.

     Total purchases made under this paragraph (j) shall only be for the purpose of meeting needs created by the emergency situation.  Following the emergency purchase, documentation of the purchase, including a description of the commodity purchased, the purchase price thereof and the nature of the emergency shall be filed with the Department of Finance and Administration.

          (k)  Governing authority emergency purchase procedure.  If the governing authority, or the governing authority acting through its designee, shall determine that an emergency exists in regard to the purchase of any commodities or repair contracts, so that the delay incident to giving opportunity for competitive bidding would be detrimental to the interest of the governing authority, then the provisions herein for competitive bidding shall not apply and any officer or agent of such governing authority having general or special authority therefor in making such purchase or repair shall approve the bill presented therefor, and he shall certify in writing thereon from whom such purchase was made, or with whom such a repair contract was made.  At the board meeting next following the emergency purchase or repair contract, documentation of the purchase or repair contract, including a description of the commodity purchased, the price thereof and the nature of the emergency shall be presented to the board and shall be placed on the minutes of the board of such governing authority.

          (l)  Hospital purchase, lease-purchase and lease authorization.

              (i)  The commissioners or board of trustees of any public hospital may contract with such lowest and best bidder for the purchase or lease-purchase of any commodity under a contract of purchase or lease-purchase agreement whose obligatory payment terms do not exceed five (5) years.

              (ii)  In addition to the authority granted in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (l), the commissioners or board of trustees is authorized to enter into contracts for the lease of equipment or services, or both, which it considers necessary for the proper care of patients if, in its opinion, it is not financially feasible to purchase the necessary equipment or services.  Any such contract for the lease of equipment or services executed by the commissioners or board shall not exceed a maximum of five (5) years' duration and shall include a cancellation clause based on unavailability of funds.  If such cancellation clause is exercised, there shall be no further liability on the part of the lessee.  Any such contract for the lease of equipment or services executed on behalf of the commissioners or board that complies with the provisions of this subparagraph (ii) shall be excepted from the bid requirements set forth in this section.

          (m)  Exceptions from bidding requirements.  Excepted from bid requirements are:

              (i)  Purchasing agreements approved by department.  Purchasing agreements, contracts and maximum price regulations executed or approved by the Department of Finance and Administration.

              (ii)  Outside equipment repairs.  Repairs to equipment, when such repairs are made by repair facilities in the private sector; however, engines, transmissions, rear axles and/or other such components shall not be included in this exemption when replaced as a complete unit instead of being repaired and the need for such total component replacement is known before disassembly of the component; however, invoices identifying the equipment, specific repairs made, parts identified by number and name, supplies used in such repairs, and the number of hours of labor and costs therefor shall be required for the payment for such repairs.

              (iii)  In-house equipment repairs.  Purchases of parts for repairs to equipment, when such repairs are made by personnel of the agency or governing authority; however, entire assemblies, such as engines or transmissions, shall not be included in this exemption when the entire assembly is being replaced instead of being repaired.

              (iv)  Raw gravel or dirt.  Raw unprocessed deposits of gravel or fill dirt which are to be removed and transported by the purchaser.

              (v)  Governmental equipment auctions.  Motor vehicles or other equipment purchased from a federal agency or authority, another governing authority or state agency of the State of Mississippi, or any governing authority or state agency of another state at a public auction held for the purpose of disposing of such vehicles or other equipment.  Any purchase by a governing authority under the exemption authorized by this subparagraph (v) shall require advance authorization spread upon the minutes of the governing authority to include the listing of the item or items authorized to be purchased and the maximum bid authorized to be paid for each item or items.

              (vi)  Intergovernmental sales and transfers.  Purchases, sales, transfers or trades by governing authorities or state agencies when such purchases, sales, transfers or trades are made by a private treaty agreement or through means of negotiation, from any federal agency or authority, another governing authority or state agency of the State of Mississippi, or any state agency or governing authority of another state.  Nothing in this section shall permit such purchases through public auction except as provided for in subparagraph (v) of this * * * section paragraph (m).  It is the intent of this section to allow governmental entities to dispose of and/or purchase commodities from other governmental entities at a price that is agreed to by both parties.  This shall allow for purchases and/or sales at prices which may be determined to be below the market value if the selling entity determines that the sale at below market value is in the best interest of the taxpayers of the state.  Governing authorities shall place the terms of the agreement and any justification on the minutes, and state agencies shall obtain approval from the Department of Finance and Administration, prior to releasing or taking possession of the commodities.

              (vii)  Perishable supplies or food.  Perishable supplies or food purchased for use in connection with hospitals, the school lunch programs, homemaking programs and for the feeding of county or municipal prisoners.

              (viii)  Single source items.  Noncompetitive items available from one (1) source only.  In connection with the purchase of noncompetitive items only available from one (1) source, a certification of the conditions and circumstances requiring the purchase shall be filed by the agency with the Department of Finance and Administration and by the governing authority with the board of the governing authority.  Upon receipt of that certification the Department of Finance and Administration or the board of the governing authority, as the case may be, may, in writing, authorize the purchase, which authority shall be noted on the minutes of the body at the next regular meeting thereafter.  In those situations, a governing authority is not required to obtain the approval of the Department of Finance and Administration.  Following the purchase, the executive head of the state agency, or his designees, shall file with the Department of Finance and Administration, documentation of the purchase, including a description of the commodity purchased, the purchase price thereof and the source from whom it was purchased.

              (ix)  Waste disposal facility construction contracts.  Construction of incinerators and other facilities for disposal of solid wastes in which products either generated therein, such as steam, or recovered therefrom, such as materials for recycling, are to be sold or otherwise disposed of; however, in constructing such facilities, a governing authority or agency shall publicly issue requests for proposals, advertised for in the same manner as provided herein for seeking bids for public construction projects, concerning the design, construction, ownership, operation and/or maintenance of such facilities, wherein such requests for proposals when issued shall contain terms and conditions relating to price, financial responsibility, technology, environmental compatibility, legal responsibilities and such other matters as are determined by the governing authority or agency to be appropriate for inclusion; and after responses to the request for proposals have been duly received, the governing authority or agency may select the most qualified proposal or proposals on the basis of price, technology and other relevant factors and from such proposals, but not limited to the terms thereof, negotiate and enter contracts with one or more of the persons or firms submitting proposals.

              (x)  Hospital group purchase contracts.  Supplies, commodities and equipment purchased by hospitals through group purchase programs pursuant to Section 31-7-38.

              (xi)  Information technology products.  Purchases of information technology products made by governing authorities under the provisions of purchase schedules, or contracts executed or approved by the Mississippi Department of Information Technology Services and designated for use by governing authorities.

              (xii)  Energy efficiency services and equipment.  Energy efficiency services and equipment acquired by school districts, community and junior colleges, institutions of higher learning and state agencies or other applicable governmental entities on a shared-savings, lease or lease-purchase basis pursuant to Section 31-7-14.

              (xiii)  Municipal electrical utility system fuel.  Purchases of coal and/or natural gas by municipally owned electric power generating systems that have the capacity to use both coal and natural gas for the generation of electric power.

              (xiv)  Library books and other reference materials.  Purchases by libraries or for libraries of books and periodicals; processed film, videocassette tapes, filmstrips and slides; recorded audiotapes, cassettes and diskettes; and any such items as would be used for teaching, research or other information distribution; however, equipment such as projectors, recorders, audio or video equipment, and monitor televisions are not exempt under this subparagraph.

              (xv)  Unmarked vehicles.  Purchases of unmarked vehicles when such purchases are made in accordance with purchasing regulations adopted by the Department of Finance and Administration pursuant to Section 31-7-9(2).

              (xvi)  Election ballots.  Purchases of ballots printed pursuant to Section 23-15-351.

              (xvii)  Multichannel interactive video systems.  From and after July 1, 1990, contracts by Mississippi Authority for Educational Television with any private educational institution or private nonprofit organization whose purposes are educational in regard to the construction, purchase, lease or lease-purchase of facilities and equipment and the employment of personnel for providing multichannel interactive video systems (ITSF) in the school districts of this state.

              (xviii)  Purchases of prison industry products by the Department of Corrections, regional correctional facilities or privately owned prisons.  Purchases made by the Mississippi Department of Corrections, regional correctional facilities or privately owned prisons involving any item that is manufactured, processed, grown or produced from the state's prison industries.

              (xix)  Undercover operations equipment.  Purchases of surveillance equipment or any other high-tech equipment to be used by law enforcement agents in undercover operations, provided that any such purchase shall be in compliance with regulations established by the Department of Finance and Administration.

              (xx)  Junior college books for rent.  Purchases by community or junior colleges of textbooks which are obtained for the purpose of renting such books to students as part of a book service system.

              (xxi)  Certain school district purchases.  Purchases of commodities made by school districts from vendors with which any levying authority of the school district, as defined in Section 37-57-1, has contracted through competitive bidding procedures for purchases of the same commodities.

              (xxii)  Garbage, solid waste and sewage contracts.  Contracts for garbage collection or disposal, contracts for solid waste collection or disposal and contracts for sewage collection or disposal.

              (xxiii)  Municipal water tank maintenance contracts.  Professional maintenance program contracts for the repair or maintenance of municipal water tanks, which provide professional services needed to maintain municipal water storage tanks for a fixed annual fee for a duration of two (2) or more years.

              (xxiv)  Purchases of Mississippi Industries for the Blind products.  Purchases made by state agencies or governing authorities involving any item that is manufactured, processed or produced by the Mississippi Industries for the Blind.

              (xxv)  Purchases of state-adopted textbooks.  Purchases of state-adopted textbooks by public school districts.

              (xxvi)  Certain purchases under the Mississippi Major Economic Impact Act.  Contracts entered into pursuant to the provisions of Section 57-75-9(2), (3) and (4).

              (xxvii)  Used heavy or specialized machinery or equipment for installation of soil and water conservation practices purchased at auction.  Used heavy or specialized machinery or equipment used for the installation and implementation of soil and water conservation practices or measures purchased subject to the restrictions provided in Sections 69-27-331 through 69-27-341.  Any purchase by the State Soil and Water Conservation Commission under the exemption authorized by this subparagraph shall require advance authorization spread upon the minutes of the commission to include the listing of the item or items authorized to be purchased and the maximum bid authorized to be paid for each item or items.

              (xxviii)  Hospital lease of equipment or services.  Leases by hospitals of equipment or services if the leases are in compliance with paragraph (l)(ii).

              (xxix)  Purchases made pursuant to qualified cooperative purchasing agreements.  Purchases made by certified purchasing offices of state agencies or governing authorities under cooperative purchasing agreements previously approved by the Office of Purchasing and Travel and established by or for any municipality, county, parish or state government or the federal government, provided that the notification to potential contractors includes a clause that sets forth the availability of the cooperative purchasing agreement to other governmental entities.  Such purchases shall only be made if the use of the cooperative purchasing agreements is determined to be in the best interest of the governmental entity.

              (xxx)  School yearbooks.  Purchases of school yearbooks by state agencies or governing authorities; provided, however, that state agencies and governing authorities shall use for these purchases the RFP process as set forth in the Mississippi Procurement Manual adopted by the Office of Purchasing and Travel.

              (xxxi)  Design-build method and dual-phase design-build method of contracting.  Contracts entered into under the provisions of Section 31-7-13.1, 37-101-44 or 65-1-85.

              (xxxii)  Toll roads and bridge construction projects.  Contracts entered into under the provisions of Section 65-43-1 or 65-43-3.

              (xxxiii)  Certain purchases under Section 57-1-221.  Contracts entered into pursuant to the provisions of Section 57-1-221.

              (xxxiv)  Certain transfers made pursuant to the provisions of Section 57-105-1(7).  Transfers of public property or facilities under Section 57-105-1(7) and construction related to such public property or facilities.

              (xxxv)  Certain purchases or transfers entered into with local electrical power associations.  Contracts or agreements entered into under the provisions of Section 55-3-33.

          (n)  Term contract authorization.  All contracts for the purchase of:

              (i)  All contracts for the purchase of commodities, equipment and public construction (including, but not limited to, repair and maintenance), may be let for periods of not more than sixty (60) months in advance, subject to applicable statutory provisions prohibiting the letting of contracts during specified periods near the end of terms of office.  Term contracts for a period exceeding twenty-four (24) months shall also be subject to ratification or cancellation by governing authority boards taking office subsequent to the governing authority board entering the contract.

              (ii)  Bid proposals and contracts may include price adjustment clauses with relation to the cost to the contractor based upon a nationally published industry-wide or nationally published and recognized cost index.  The cost index used in a price adjustment clause shall be determined by the Department of Finance and Administration for the state agencies and by the governing board for governing authorities.  The bid proposal and contract documents utilizing a price adjustment clause shall contain the basis and method of adjusting unit prices for the change in the cost of such commodities, equipment and public construction.

          (o)  Purchase law violation prohibition and vendor penalty.  No contract or purchase as herein authorized shall be made for the purpose of circumventing the provisions of this section requiring competitive bids, nor shall it be lawful for any person or concern to submit individual invoices for amounts within those authorized for a contract or purchase where the actual value of the contract or commodity purchased exceeds the authorized amount and the invoices therefor are split so as to appear to be authorized as purchases for which competitive bids are not required.  Submission of such invoices shall constitute a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) nor more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), or by imprisonment for thirty (30) days in the county jail, or both such fine and imprisonment.  In addition, the claim or claims submitted shall be forfeited.

          (p)  Electrical utility petroleum-based equipment purchase procedure.  When in response to a proper advertisement therefor, no bid firm as to price is submitted to an electric utility for power transformers, distribution transformers, power breakers, reclosers or other articles containing a petroleum product, the electric utility may accept the lowest and best bid therefor although the price is not firm.

          (q)  Fuel management system bidding procedure.  Any governing authority or agency of the state shall, before contracting for the services and products of a fuel management or fuel access system, enter into negotiations with not fewer than two (2) sellers of fuel management or fuel access systems for competitive written bids to provide the services and products for the systems.  In the event that the governing authority or agency cannot locate two (2) sellers of such systems or cannot obtain bids from two (2) sellers of such systems, it shall show proof that it made a diligent, good-faith effort to locate and negotiate with two (2) sellers of such systems.  Such proof shall include, but not be limited to, publications of a request for proposals and letters soliciting negotiations and bids.  For purposes of this paragraph (q), a fuel management or fuel access system is an automated system of acquiring fuel for vehicles as well as management reports detailing fuel use by vehicles and drivers, and the term "competitive written bid" shall have the meaning as defined in paragraph (b) of this section.  Governing authorities and agencies shall be exempt from this process when contracting for the services and products of fuel management or fuel access systems under the terms of a state contract established by the Office of Purchasing and Travel.

          (r)  Solid waste contract proposal procedure.  Before entering into any contract for garbage collection or disposal, contract for solid waste collection or disposal or contract for sewage collection or disposal, which involves an expenditure of more than Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00), a governing authority or agency shall issue publicly a request for proposals concerning the specifications for such services which shall be advertised for in the same manner as provided in this section for seeking bids for purchases which involve an expenditure of more than the amount provided in paragraph (c) of this section.  Any request for proposals when issued shall contain terms and conditions relating to price, financial responsibility, technology, legal responsibilities and other relevant factors as are determined by the governing authority or agency to be appropriate for inclusion; all factors determined relevant by the governing authority or agency or required by this paragraph (r) shall be duly included in the advertisement to elicit proposals.  After responses to the request for proposals have been duly received, the governing authority or agency shall select the most qualified proposal or proposals on the basis of price, technology and other relevant factors and from such proposals, but not limited to the terms thereof, negotiate and enter into contracts with one or more of the persons or firms submitting proposals.  If the governing authority or agency deems none of the proposals to be qualified or otherwise acceptable, the request for proposals process may be reinitiated.  Notwithstanding any other provisions of this paragraph, where a county with at least thirty-five thousand (35,000) nor more than forty thousand (40,000) population, according to the 1990 federal decennial census, owns or operates a solid waste landfill, the governing authorities of any other county or municipality may contract with the governing authorities of the county owning or operating the landfill, pursuant to a resolution duly adopted and spread upon the minutes of each governing authority involved, for garbage or solid waste collection or disposal services through contract negotiations.

          (s)  Minority set-aside authorization.  Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the contrary, any agency or governing authority, by order placed on its minutes, may, in its discretion, set aside not more than twenty percent (20%) of its anticipated annual expenditures for the purchase of commodities from minority businesses; however, all such set-aside purchases shall comply with all purchasing regulations promulgated by the Department of Finance and Administration and shall be subject to bid requirements under this section.  Set-aside purchases for which competitive bids are required shall be made from the lowest and best minority business bidder.  For the purposes of this paragraph, the term "minority business" means a business which is owned by a majority of persons who are United States citizens or permanent resident aliens (as defined by the Immigration and Naturalization Service) of the United States, and who are Asian, Black, Hispanic or Native American, according to the following definitions:

              (i)  "Asian" means persons having origins in any of the original people of the Far East, Southeast Asia, the Indian subcontinent, or the Pacific Islands.

              (ii)  "Black" means persons having origins in any black racial group of Africa.

              (iii)  "Hispanic" means persons of Spanish or Portuguese culture with origins in Mexico, South or Central America, or the Caribbean Islands, regardless of race.

              (iv)  "Native American" means persons having origins in any of the original people of North America, including American Indians, Eskimos and Aleuts.

          (t)  Construction punch list restriction.  The architect, engineer or other representative designated by the agency or governing authority that is contracting for public construction or renovation may prepare and submit to the contractor only one (1) preliminary punch list of items that do not meet the contract requirements at the time of substantial completion and one (1) final list immediately before final completion and final payment.

          (u)  Procurement of construction services by state institutions of higher learning.  Contracts for privately financed construction of auxiliary facilities on the campus of a state institution of higher learning may be awarded by the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning to the lowest and best bidder, where sealed bids are solicited, or to the offeror whose proposal is determined to represent the best value to the citizens of the State of Mississippi, where requests for proposals are solicited.

          (v)  Insurability of bidders for public construction or other public contracts.  In any solicitation for bids to perform public construction or other public contracts to which this section applies including, but not limited to, contracts for repair and maintenance, for which the contract will require insurance coverage in an amount of not less than One Million Dollars ($1,000,000.00), bidders shall be permitted to either submit proof of current insurance coverage in the specified amount or demonstrate ability to obtain the required coverage amount of insurance if the contract is awarded to the bidder.  Proof of insurance coverage shall be submitted within five (5) business days from bid acceptance.

          (w)  Purchase authorization clarification.  Nothing in this section shall be construed as authorizing any purchase not authorized by law.

     SECTION 12.  Section 25-17-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

     25-17-3.  Notwithstanding any other benefit plan offered to any eligible employee of a state agency or local governmental entity, all state agencies shall, and any local governmental entity may contract for and adopt a benefit plan that meets the requirements of a cafeteria plan as defined in Section 125 et seq. of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and regulations thereunder, for the benefit of eligible employees and their dependents.  However, the maximum benefit available under a health flexible spending account shall be Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) per participating employee per plan year, unless federal Internal Revenue Service regulations allow that the available benefit at any point in time may be limited by the premium paid as of that point in time.  Any state agency or local governmental entity may contract for insurance to cover its potential for loss under a health flexible spending account.

     SECTION 13.  This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2016.

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