§ 44A — Definitions applicable to Secs. 44A to 44H; competitive bids on construction, etc., of public works; award; bonds; extreme emergency situations; records contracts not subjected to competitive bid process

Section 44A. (1) The words defined in this section shall have the meaning set forth below whenever they appear in sections forty-four A through forty-four H, inclusive, of this chapter unless indicated otherwise or unless the context in which they are used clearly requires a different meaning."Commissioner'', means the commissioner of the division of capital asset management and maintenance or his designee."Public Agency'' means a department, agency, board, commission, authority, or other instrumentality of the commonwealth or political subdivision of the commonwealth, or two or more subdivisions thereof but not including the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority;"Responsible'' means demonstrably possessing the skill, ability and integrity necessary to faithfully perform the work called for by a particular contract, based upon a determination of competent workmanship and financial soundness in accordance with the provisions of section forty-four D of this chapter;"Eligible'' means able to meet all requirements for bidders or offerors set forth in sections forty-four A through forty-four H of this chapter and not debarred from bidding under section forty-four C of this chapter or any other applicable law, and who shall certify that he is able to furnish labor that can work in harmony with all other elements of labor employed or to be employed on the work.[ Definition of "Maintenance service contract'' inserted following definition of "Eligible'' in subsection (1) by 2024, 140, Sec. 142 effective July 1, 2024. See 2024, 140, Sec. 264.]"Maintenance service contract'', a multi-year contract exclusively for the ongoing, periodic maintenance, including maintaining, servicing, testing and incidental repairs, of 1 or more of the following building systems: (i) electrical system; (ii) elevator system; (iii) fire protection sprinkler system, as defined in section 81 of chapter 146; (iv) fire alarm system; (v) heating, ventilating and air-conditioning and any associated mechanical system; or (vi) plumbing system."Modular Building'', a pre-designed building or units of a pre-designed building assembled and equipped with internal plumbing, electrical or similar systems prior to movement to the site where such units are attached to each other and such building is affixed to a foundation and connected to external utilities; or any portable structure with walls, a floor, and a roof, designed or used for the shelter of persons or property, transportable in one or more sections and affixed to a foundation and connected to external utilities."Procurement'', buying, purchasing, or otherwise acquiring and installing a modular building, and all functions that pertain to the acquisition and installation of a modular building, including description of requirements, selection and solicitation of sources, preparation and award of contract, and all phases of contract administration."Proprietary environmental technology systems'', systems, in the town of Nantucket, including solid waste related equipment, supporting structures, and buildings, designed, manufactured, and produced under exclusive individual right to sell such product, pertaining to solid waste related environmental protection or remediation. Such systems shall include, but not be limited to, sequential, turnkey, construction management, design/build procurement, and the phasing of such procurement, including approval of design and construction stages as separate or combined phases.[ Paragraph (A) of subsection (2) effective until July 1, 2024. For text effective July 1, 2024, see below.](A) Every contract or procurement for the construction, reconstruction, installation, demolition, maintenance or repair of a building by a public agency estimated to cost less than $10,000 shall be obtained through the exercise of sound business practices as defined in section 2 of chapter 30B. The public agency shall make and keep a record of each procurement that, at a minimum, shall include the name and address of the person from whom the services were procured. A public agency that utilizes a vendor on a statewide contract procured through the operational services division of the commonwealth, or a blanket contract procured by the public agency pursuant to this subsection, shall be deemed to have obtained the contract through sound business practices.[ Paragraph (A) of subsection (2) as amended by 2024, 140, Sec. 142 effective July 1, 2024. See 2024, 140, Sec. 264. For text effective until July 1, 2024, see above.](2)(A) Every contract or procurement for the construction, reconstruction, installation, demolition, maintenance or repair of a building by a public agency estimated to cost less than $10,000 shall be obtained through the exercise of sound business practices as defined in section 2 of chapter 30B. The public agency shall make and keep a record of each procurement that, at a minimum, shall include the name and address of the person from whom the services were procured. A public agency that utilizes a vendor on a statewide contract procured through the operational services division of the commonwealth, or a blanket contract procured by the public agency pursuant to this subsection, shall be deemed to have obtained the contract through sound business practices.(B) Every contract for the construction, reconstruction, installation, demolition, maintenance or repair of any building estimated to cost not less than $10,000 but not more than $50,000 shall be awarded to the responsible person offering to perform the contract at the lowest price. The public agency shall make public notification of the contract and shall seek written responses from no fewer than 3 persons who customarily perform such work. The solicitation shall include a scope-of-work statement that defines the work to be performed and provides potential responders with sufficient information regarding the objectives and requirements of the public agency and the time period within which the work shall be completed. The public agency shall record the names and addresses of all persons from whom written responses were sought, the names of the persons submitting written responses and the date and amount of each written response. A public agency may utilize a vendor list established through a statewide contract procured through the operational services division to identify 1 or more of the persons from whom it will seek written responses for purposes of this paragraph. A public agency may also procure a blanket contract to establish a listing of vendors in certain defined categories of work that are under contract to provide services for multiple individual tasks of not more than $50,000 each, and from whom written responses will be sought. Any such blanket contract procured by the awarding authority shall be procured pursuant to either section 39M of chapter 30 or sections 44A to 44J, inclusive, of chapter 149 which are applicable to projects over $50,000. For purposes of this paragraph, the term "public notification'' shall include, but not be limited to, posting at least 2 weeks before the time specified in the notification for the receipt of responses, the contract and scope-of-work statement: (1) on the website of the public agency, (2) on the COMMBUYS system administered by the operational services division, (3) in the central register published pursuant to section 20A of chapter 9 and (4) in a conspicuous place in or near the primary office of the public agency; provided, however, that if the public agency obtains a minimum of 2 written responses from a vendor list established through a blanket contract or a statewide contract procured through the operational services division, and the lowest of those written responses is deemed acceptable to the public agency, public notification is not required.(C) Every contract for the construction, reconstruction, installation, demolition, maintenance or repair of any building by a public agency estimated to cost more than $50,000 but not more than $150,000, except for a pumping station to be constructed as an integral part of a sewer construction or water construction project bid under the provisions of section 39M of chapter 30, shall be awarded to the lowest responsible and eligible bidder on the basis of competitive bids publicly opened and read in accordance with the procedure set forth in said section 39M of said chapter 30. The term "pumping station'' as used in this section shall mean a building or other structure which houses solely pumps and appurtenant electrical and plumbing fixtures.(D) Every contract for the construction, reconstruction, installation, demolition, maintenance or repair of any building by a public agency estimated to cost more than $150,000, except for a pumping station to be constructed as an integral part of a sewer construction or water construction project bid under the provisions of section 39M of chapter 30, shall be awarded to the lowest responsible and eligible general bidder on the basis of competitive bids in accordance with the procedure set forth in section 44A to 44H, inclusive.[ Paragraph (D1/2) of subsection (2) inserted by 2024, 140, Sec. 143 effective July 1, 2024. See 2024, 140, Sec. 264.](D1/2) Every maintenance service contract for any building by the division of capital asset management and maintenance estimated to cost more than $150,000 shall be awarded to the lowest responsible and eligible general bidder on the basis of competitive bids in accordance with the procedure set forth in sections 44A to 44H, inclusive; provided, however, that this paragraph shall not apply if a maintenance service contract is bid, at the option of the commissioner, pursuant to section 39M of chapter 30.(E) When the general court has approved the use of an alternative mode of procurement of construction for a project pursuant to section 7E of chapter 29, the awarding authority responsible for procuring construction services for the project shall follow the policies and procedures of this section and of section 44B to 44H, inclusive, to the extent compatible with the mode of construction procurement selected.(F) Notwithstanding paragraph (E), a public agency may undertake the procurement of modular buildings, in accordance with section 44E. A public agency may procure site work for modular buildings, including but not limited to, construction of foundations, installations, and attachment to external utilities, or any portion of site work, either in combination with the procurement of modular buildings pursuant to section 44E or on the basis of competitive bids pursuant to the paragraph (E). Notwithstanding the paragraph (E), a public agency may procure energy management services in accordance with section 11C of chapter 25A and regulations promulgated thereunder.(G) Every contract by a state agency or state assisted contract for design, construction, reconstruction, installation, demolition, maintenance or repair shall set forth the participation goals of minority and women workers to be employed on each such contract and the processes and procedures to ensure compliance with those workforce participation goals, including reporting and enforcement provisions.(3) The award of every such contract in connection with which approval by an officer, board or agency of the federal government is required shall be made within thirty days, Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays excluded, after such approval; and the award of every contract subject to this section in connection with which approval by an officer, board or agency of the federal government is not required shall be made within thirty days, Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays excluded, after the opening of the bids therefor. If the bidder selected as the general contractor fails to perform his agreement to execute a contract in accordance with the terms of his bid and furnish a performance bond and also a labor and materials or payment bond as stated in his bid in accordance with section forty-four E, an award shall be made to the next lowest responsible and eligible bidder, subject to the provisions of sections forty-four A to forty-four H, inclusive, of this chapter. The thirty-day time limit shall not be applicable to a second or subsequent award made after expiration of the time limit with the consent of said next lowest responsible and eligible bidder, and made because the original award made within the time limit was invalid, or because the bidder failed to execute the contract or to provide a performance bond and labor and materials or payment bond.(4) In cases of extreme emergency, the awarding authority may, with the prior approval of the commissioner, award a contract for that portion of the work necessary to preserve the health or safety of persons or property or to alleviate an imminent security threat on the basis of such competitive bids or proposals as it can obtain in time to care for the extreme emergency and without public opening of the bids or proposals.Where the nature of the emergency prevents the awarding authority from obtaining the prior approval of the commissioner, the awarding authority may contract for the necessary work without said prior approval; provided, however, that the approval of the commissioner shall still be sought at the earliest possible time; and provided, further, that if the commissioner at that time fails to approve the emergency determination the awarding authority shall promptly cease all work for which the emergency determination was denied. In such cases, the contractor shall be entitled to payment for the fair value of the labor and materials furnished prior to cessation of the work.The commissioner shall maintain a record of all contracts awarded pursuant to this subsection, containing a description of the circumstances and the reasons for the commissioner's determination.(5) (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section or any other general or special law to the contrary, a municipality may enter into a contract for proprietary environmental technology systems as defined in subsection (1) of this section without said contract being subject to the competitive bid process as set forth in sections thirty-eight A1/2 to thirty-eightO, inclusive, of chapter seven; this section and sections forty-four B to forty-four H, inclusive, of this chapter, and section thirty-nine M of chapter thirty; provided that the awarding authority meets the conditions set forth and receives the approvals required in paragraph (b) of this subsection.(b) Prior to the issuance of any request for proposal with respect to the awarding of any contract pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subsection, the awarding authority shall meet or obtain each of the following conditions or required approvals: (1) the municipality shall appoint qualified persons to conduct a thorough review of all available environmental technology, including both proprietary and non-proprietary environmental technology, and if the conclusion of this review is that a contract for proprietary environmental technology systems is in the public interest, such conclusion shall be supported by sound documented reasons in writing available for public inspection; (2) the city council, the board of selectmen, or the town meeting shall take a majority vote finding that it is in the public interest to enter into a contract for proprietary environmental technology systems, as defined in subsection (1) of this section, providing such vote is supported by the conclusion of the review conducted pursuant to condition (1); (3) both the attorney general and the commissioner of the department of environmental protection shall grant written approval; (4) said contract shall be subject to any limitation in the waiver of sections thirty-eight A1/2 to thirty-eightO, inclusive, of chapter seven, sections forty-four A to forty-four H of chapter one hundred and forty-nine, and section thirty-nine M of chapter thirty imposed by either the attorney general or the commissioner of the department of environmental protection as a condition for a grant of approval by said officers; and (5) every proprietary environmental technology systems contract shall be as compatible with sections thirty-eight A to thirty-eightO, inclusive, of chapter seven, sections forty-four A to forty-four H of chapter one hundred and forty-nine, and section thirty-nine M of chapter thirty as is feasible for the procurement of the proprietary environmental technology systems chosen.