NEW: Senate Bills Target State Contract Control
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Aiming to bring more oversight and accountability to the state's financial dealings, on Wednesday the RI Senate approved three bills which should provide better control over state contracts for services or construction.
“State contracts are paid for by taxpayers, and they should always be executed carefully and with transparency. Every effort should be made to contain costs, and there should be plenty of oversight to ensure that the public’s money is being spent wisely,” said Senate Oversight Committee Chairman Frank A. Ciccone III (D-Dist. 7, Providence, North Providence). “Our goals with these bills are to protect taxpayers from unexpected or undisclosed cost overruns.”
Among the bills passed is one (2011-S 0152A) sponsored by Chairman Ciccone to allow the Architectural, Engineering and Consultant Services Committee to consult with state employees or private consultants for advice in evaluating consultant proposals, as long as there is not a fee for the advice. The goal is to ensure that the committee has the technical advice it needs to properly evaluate proposals.
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Another bill (2011-S 0154Aaa) would define “construction management at-risk” services in the state purchases chapter of law. A construction manager at-risk is a person or business that provides consultation services during preconstruction and construction phases of building projects. The legislation also requires that state agencies, public corporations and quasi-public agencies conduct a financial and performance audit of any construction project which utilizes the construction at-risk method.
The third bill (2011-S 0153A) would require the chief purchasing officer, as well as all public corporations and quasi-public agencies, to monitor all state contracts worth more than $500,000 for change and to authorize any material-change modifications.
The bills, which will now advance to the House of Representatives. The work on the bills began in 2008 when the committee reviewed the construction contract for the Center for Biotechnology and Life Sciences at the University of Rhode Island as a case study on ways in which the state could improve its management of contracts. The committee issued a report concluding the project was managed in ways that did not provide a suitable level of oversight, public disclosure and documentation or protection from liability for the state, and began developing legislation to address the shortcomings the committee identified.
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