Bill Text: NJ S3396 | 2024-2025 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Broadens types of contracts that educational research and service corporations may enter into on behalf of members; exempts those contracts from certain public bidding requirements.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced) 2024-06-06 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Higher Education Committee [S3396 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2024-S3396-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator ANDREW ZWICKER
District 16 (Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset)
SYNOPSIS
Broadens types of contracts that educational research and service corporations may enter into on behalf of members; exempts those contracts from certain public bidding requirements.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning educational research and service corporations and amending P.L.2015, c.140.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 2 of P.L.2015, c.140 (C.18A:3B-6.1) is amended to read as follows:
2. a. The governing board of a public research university or a State college may join with other public research universities, State colleges, county colleges, public institutions of higher education primarily located in the State of New Jersey, and nonprofit independent institutions of higher education that receive direct State aid, to form an educational research and services corporation to be operated exclusively for charitable, scientific, and educational purposes, within the meaning of paragraph (3) of subsection (c) of section 501 of the federal Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. s.501).
b. (1) An educational research and services corporation may act as a lead agency or contracting unit for the procurement of goods or services including, but not limited to, goods or services concerning educational technology systems and related services, by those entities comprising the educational and research services corporation.
An educational research and services corporation may enter into an agreement with an institution of higher education which is a voting member of the educational research and services corporation to provide services, consulting, staffing, or goods concerning educational technology systems and related educational support services. The agreement shall be considered a shared services agreement and shall not be subject to any public bidding requirements under State law including, but not limited to, the provisions of the "County College Contracts Law," P.L.1982, c.189 (C.18A:64A-25.1 et seq.) and the "State College Contracts Law," P.L.1986, c.43 (C.18A:64-52 et seq.).
(2) An educational research and services corporation shall be deemed a local unit for the purposes of the "Uniform Shared Services and Consolidation Act," sections 1 through 35 of P.L.2007, c.63 (C.40A:65-1 through C.40A:65-35) and may act as a lead agency or contracting unit for the procurement of goods or services including, but not limited to, goods or services concerning educational technology systems and related services by municipalities, fire districts, counties, local authorities subject to the "Local Authorities Fiscal Control Law," P.L.1983, c.313 (C.40A:5A-1 et seq.), school districts, county colleges, State colleges, public research universities, nonprofit independent institutions of higher education that receive direct State aid, or any combination of those entities.
c. An educational research and services corporation formed under P.L.2015, c.140, shall be subject to all applicable requirements under all applicable State and local procurement laws, including, but not limited to, section 1 of P.L.1977, c.33 (C.52:25-24.2), P.L.2012, c.25 (C.52:32-55 et seq.), and P.L.2005, c.51 (C.19:44A-20.13 et seq.), except as otherwise provided in subsection b. of this section.
(cf: P.L.2015, c.140, s.2)
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill permits educational research and service corporations to contract with institutions of higher education that are voting members of the educational research and service corporation and exempts those contracts from public bidding requirements.
Under current law, a four-year public institution of higher education is permitted to join with other public or independent institutions to form an educational research and services corporation to be operated exclusively for charitable, scientific, and educational purposes in accordance with federal law.
Current law further permits an educational research and service corporation to act as a lead agency or contracting unit for the procurement of goods and services concerning educational technology systems and related services by the entities comprising the corporation. The bill permits the educational research and services corporation to act as a lead agency or contracting unit for the procurement of all goods and services including, but not limited to, goods and services concerning educational technology systems and related services.
The provisions of the bill also permit an educational research and services corporation to enter into an agreement with an institution of higher education which is a voting member of the educational research and services corporation to provide services, consulting, staffing, or goods concerning educational technology systems and related educational support services. The bill stipulates that these agreements are to be considered shared services agreements and are not subject to any public bidding requirements under State law including, but not limited to, the County College Contracts Law and the State College Contracts Law.
