Florida Senate - 2013                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SPB 7018
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Barcode 439236                          
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                  Comm: FAV            .                                
                  03/07/2013           .                                
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       The Committee on Banking and Insurance (Richter) recommended the
       following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with directory and title amendments)
    2  
    3         Between lines 1851 and 1852
    4  insert:
    5         Section 9. Effective October 1, 2013, paragraph (e) of
    6  subsection (6) of section 627.351, Florida Statutes, is amended
    7  to read
    8         627.351 Insurance risk apportionment plans.—
    9         (6) CITIZENS PROPERTY INSURANCE CORPORATION.—
   10         (e) The corporation is subject to s. 287.057 for the
   11  purchase of commodities and contractual services except as
   12  otherwise provided in this paragraph. Services provided by
   13  tradepersons or technical experts to assist a licensed adjuster
   14  in the evaluation of individual claims are not subject to the
   15  procurement requirements of this section. Additionally, the
   16  procurement of financial services providers and underwriters
   17  must be made pursuant to s. 627.3513 Purchases that equal or
   18  exceed $2,500, but are less than $25,000, shall be made by
   19  receipt of written quotes, written record of telephone quotes,
   20  or informal bids, whenever practical. The procurement of goods
   21  or services valued at or over $25,000 shall be subject to
   22  competitive solicitation, except in situations where the goods
   23  or services are provided by a sole source or are deemed an
   24  emergency purchase; the services are exempted from competitive
   25  solicitation requirements under s. 287.057(3)(f); or the
   26  procurement of services is subject to s. 627.3513. Justification
   27  for the sole-sourcing or emergency procurement must be
   28  documented. Contracts for goods or services valued at or more
   29  than over $100,000 are subject to approval by the board.
   30         1. The corporation is an agency for the purposes of s.
   31  287.057, except for subsection (22) of that section for which
   32  the corporation is an eligible user.
   33         a. The authority of the Department of Management Services
   34  and the Chief Financial Officer under s. 287.057 extends to the
   35  corporation as if the corporation were an agency.
   36         b. The executive director of the corporation is the agency
   37  head under s. 287.057, except for resolution of bid protests for
   38  which the board would serve as the agency head.
   39         2. The corporation must provide notice of a decision or
   40  intended decision concerning a solicitation, contract award, or
   41  exceptional purchase by electronic posting. Such notice must
   42  contain the following statement: “Failure to file a protest
   43  within the time prescribed in this section constitutes a waiver
   44  of proceedings.”
   45         a. A person adversely affected by the corporation’s
   46  decision or intended decision to award a contract pursuant to s.
   47  287.057(1) or s. 287.057(3)(c) who elects to challenge the
   48  decision must file a written notice of protest with the
   49  executive director of the corporation within 72 hours after the
   50  corporation posts a notice of its decision or intended decision.
   51  For a protest of the terms, conditions, and specifications
   52  contained in a solicitation, including any provisions governing
   53  the methods for ranking bids, proposals, replies, awarding
   54  contracts, reserving rights of further negotiation, or modifying
   55  or amending any contract, the notice of protest must be filed in
   56  writing within 72 hours after the posting of the solicitation.
   57  Saturdays, Sundays, and state holidays are excluded in the
   58  computation of the 72-hour time period.
   59         b. A formal written protest must be filed within 10 days
   60  after the date the notice of protest is filed. The formal
   61  written protest must state with particularity the facts and law
   62  upon which the protest is based. Upon receipt of a formal
   63  written protest that has been timely filed, the corporation must
   64  stop the solicitation or contract award process until the
   65  subject of the protest is resolved by final board action unless
   66  the executive director sets forth in writing particular facts
   67  and circumstances that require the continuance of the
   68  solicitation or contract award process without delay in order to
   69  avoid an immediate and serious danger to the public health,
   70  safety, or welfare. The corporation must provide an opportunity
   71  to resolve the protest by mutual agreement between the parties
   72  within 7 business days after receipt of the formal written
   73  protest. If the subject of a protest is not resolved by mutual
   74  agreement within 7 business days, the corporation’s board must
   75  place the protest on the agenda and resolve it at its next
   76  regularly scheduled meeting. The protest must be heard by the
   77  board at a publicly noticed meeting in accordance with
   78  procedures established by the board.
   79         c. In a protest of an invitation-to-bid or request-for
   80  proposals procurement, submissions made after the bid or
   81  proposal opening which amend or supplement the bid or proposal
   82  may not be considered. In protesting an invitation-to-negotiate
   83  procurement, submissions made after the corporation announces
   84  its intent to award a contract, reject all replies, or withdraw
   85  the solicitation that amends or supplements the reply may not be
   86  considered. Unless otherwise provided by law, the burden of
   87  proof rests with the party protesting the corporation’s action.
   88  In a competitive-procurement protest, other than a rejection of
   89  all bids, proposals, or replies, the corporation’s board must
   90  conduct a de novo proceeding to determine whether the
   91  corporation’s proposed action is contrary to the corporation’s
   92  governing statutes, the corporation’s rules or policies, or the
   93  solicitation specifications. The standard of proof for the
   94  proceeding is whether the corporation’s action was clearly
   95  erroneous, contrary to competition, arbitrary, or capricious. In
   96  any bid-protest proceeding contesting an intended corporation
   97  action to reject all bids, proposals, or replies, the standard
   98  of review by the board is whether the corporation’s intended
   99  action is illegal, arbitrary, dishonest, or fraudulent.
  100         d. Failure to file a notice of protest or failure to file a
  101  formal written protest constitutes a waiver of proceedings.
  102         3. Contract actions and decisions by the board under this
  103  paragraph are final. Any further legal remedy must be made in
  104  the Circuit Court of Leon County.
  105         Section 10. The purchase of commodities and contractual
  106  services by Citizens Property Insurance Corporation commenced
  107  before October 1, 2013, is governed by the law in effect on
  108  September 30, 2013.
  109  
  110  ====== D I R E C T O R Y  C L A U S E  A M E N D M E N T ======
  111         And the directory clause is amended as follows:
  112         Delete line 633
  113  and insert:
  114  Section 8. Paragraphs (a), (b), (c), (e), (m), and (q) of
  115  
  116  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
  117         And the title is amended as follows:
  118         Delete line 59
  119  and insert:
  120         secured by a surplus note; revising provisions
  121         relating to purchases by the corporation; providing
  122         that the corporation is subject to state agency
  123         purchasing requirements; requiring the corporation to
  124         provide notice of purchasing decisions; providing
  125         procedures for protesting such decisions; providing
  126         applicability; revising the corporation’s