§ 4A — Departments and divisions

Section 4A. The executive office for administration and finance shall include a division of capital asset management and maintenance, which shall be headed by a commissioner as provided in section 2 of chapter 7C, and a department of revenue as provided in chapter 14. The executive office for administration and finance shall include the human resources division and the operational services division. The divisions, the offices and the department shall develop policies and standards to govern the conduct of the secretariats, departments, agencies, boards and commissions of the commonwealth in each of these areas and shall provide expertise and centralized processing to those secretariats, departments, agencies, boards and commissions and any other entities of state government.(a) The operational services division shall be headed by a state purchasing agent who shall also serve as assistant secretary for operational services. He shall be appointed by the secretary with the approval of the governor. The state purchasing agent shall give bond to the state treasurer in a sum fixed by the governor for the faithful performance of his duties and for the rendering of a proper account of all money entrusted to him for the use of the commonwealth. The purchasing agent may establish within the division such bureaus and other units as are deemed necessary from time to time by the commissioner of administration for the purpose of carrying out the functions of the division. Such functions shall include, but not be limited to, the management of the acquisition of all goods, supplies, equipment and services, excepting the acquisition of such goods, supplies, equipment and services as otherwise provided for in any general or special law or in any administrative rule or regulation promulgated by the secretary, the provision of assistance and advice for such acquisitions, the administration of the state and federal surplus property programs, the administration of the collective purchasing program for the political subdivisions of the commonwealth, the administration and management of reproduction facilities, the management of state acquired vehicles including the use and maintenance thereof and such other functions as the purchasing agent, with the approval of the secretary, may from time to time deem necessary for the efficient and economical administration of the work of said division. The operational services division may charge and collect from statewide contractors a statewide contract administrative fee, to be established by the executive office for administration and finance; provided, however, that such fee shall not exceed 1 per cent of the total value of a contract awarded to a statewide contractor.(b) The human resources division shall he headed by a personnel administrator who shall also serve as assistant secretary for human resources. He shall be appointed by the secretary with the approval of the governor. Such personnel administrator shall be a person familiar with the principles and experienced in the methods and practices of personnel administration. The personnel administrator shall serve for a term of four years, which term shall end on June thirtieth of the first year of the term of the governor, except that he may be removed by the secretary, with the prior approval of the governor. A person so appointed shall serve until the qualification of his successor; provided, however, that in the case of a person appointed to fill a vacancy occurring during the prescribed term by reason of death, resignation or otherwise, the term of the successor in said office shall end on the next succeeding June thirtieth of the first year of the term of the governor. Within the human resources division shall also be the state office of affirmative action, the office of employee relations, the office of dispute resolution and the office of workers' compensation administration.[There are no paragraphs (c) and (d).]

(e) The executive office for administration and finance shall promote and improve accountability and transparency throughout the executive department by operating a searchable website as required by section 14C, monitoring and reviewing federal grant applications made on behalf of the commonwealth, coordinating efforts to maximize federal revenue opportunities and providing oversight of compliance with federal reporting requirements. In promoting accountability and transparency, the office may also: (i) establish and maintain a central intake unit for reports of fraud, waste and abuse; (ii) establish and maintain an economic forecasting and analysis unit to coordinate all spending and revenue forecasting by state agencies and coordinate with the caseload and economic forecasting office established in section 4R; (iii) reduce and simplify paperwork of state agencies and departments through the adoption of uniform forms or corresponding short federal forms; (iv) implement and streamline electronic paperwork options to better facilitate public interaction with state agencies; and (v) collaborate with state agencies, authorities and other entities to carry out this subsection.

Except in the case of agencies named in section four G, the secretary may also from time to time establish within the executive office for administration and finance such other bureaus, sections and other administrative units not otherwise established by law as may be necessary for the efficient and economical administration of the work of said office and, when necessary for such purpose, he may abolish any bureau, section or other unit or he may merge any two or more of them. He shall prepare and keep current a general statement of the organization of said office and of the assignment of functions to its various administrative units, officials and employees. Such statement shall be known as the Description of Organization of said office and shall be kept on file in said office. A copy shall be kept on file in the office of the governor.

In the event a new governmental mandate effective on or after July 1, 2004 is imposed upon a contractor providing a social service program, as defined in section 274 of chapter 110 of the acts of 1993, to a governmental unit, as defined in said section 274 of said chapter 110, and compliance with such governmental mandate has or will have a material adverse financial impact on the contractor, except a contractor for goods or services related to special education as defined in section 1 of chapter 71B, the governmental unit shall negotiate a contract amendment with the contractor to increase the maximum obligation amount or unit price to offset the material adverse financial impact of the new governmental mandate; provided, that the contractor furnishes substantial evidence to the governmental unit of such material adverse financial impact along with a request to renegotiate based on a new governmental mandate.

For the purposes of this section, a ''new governmental mandate'' shall mean a statutory requirement, administrative rule, regulation, assessment, executive order, judicial order or other governmental requirement that was not in effect when the contract was originally entered into and directly or indirectly imposes an obligation upon the contractor to take any action or to refrain from taking any action in order to fulfill its contractual duties.

For the purposes of this section, a ''material adverse financial impact'' shall mean: (1) an increase in the reasonable costs to the contractor in performing the contract of the lesser of: (i) 3 per cent of the maximum obligation amount or unit price of the contract; or (ii) $5,000, in the aggregate as a result of all such mandates in effect during the contract year; or (2) an action that affects the core purpose and primary intent of the contract.

Any contractor aggrieved by a decision of a governmental unit denying or failing to negotiate a contract amendment to remedy a material adverse impact of a new governmental mandate pursuant to this section may appeal such adverse decision to the division of administrative law appeals in accordance with the section 4H for a hearing and decision de novo on all issues. A contractor's request for contract amendment shall, for purposes of appeal, be deemed to have been denied if a determination is not received within 30 days of the governmental unit's receipt of the request. A contractor or governmental unit may appeal an adverse decision of the division of administrative law appeals to the superior court, Suffolk division, pursuant to chapter 30A.