Florida Senate - 2009                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SB 2666
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Barcode 758386                          
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                  Comm: FAV            .                                
                  03/31/2009           .                                
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       The Committee on Governmental Oversight and Accountability
       (Haridopolos) recommended the following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Between lines 73 and 74
    4  insert:
    5         Section 2. Paragraphs (a), (c), and (g) of subsection (2)
    6  and subsection (3) of section 287.055, Florida Statutes, are
    7  amended to read:
    8         287.055 Acquisition of professional architectural,
    9  engineering, landscape architectural, or surveying and mapping
   10  services; definitions; procedures; contingent fees prohibited;
   11  penalties.—
   12         (2) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section:
   13         (a) “Professional services” means those services within the
   14  scope of the practice of architecture, professional engineering,
   15  landscape architecture, or registered surveying and mapping, as
   16  defined by law; the laws of the state, or those performed by any
   17  architect, professional engineer, landscape architect, or
   18  registered surveyor and mapper in connection with his or her
   19  professional employment or practice; or construction or program
   20  management services, as described in s. 255.103, performed by a
   21  design-build, construction management, or program management
   22  firm.
   23         (c) “Firm” means any individual, firm, partnership,
   24  corporation, association, or other legal entity permitted by law
   25  to practice architecture, engineering, or surveying and mapping
   26  in the state, or any design-build, construction management, or
   27  program management firm providing construction or program
   28  management services as described in s. 255.103.
   29         (g) A “continuing contract” is a contract for professional
   30  services entered into in accordance with all the procedures of
   31  this act between an agency and a firm whereby the firm provides
   32  professional services to the agency for projects in which
   33  construction costs for each project under the contract do not
   34  exceed $2 $1 million, for study activity if when the fee for
   35  such professional services for each study under the contract do
   36  service does not exceed $200,000 $50,000, or for work of a
   37  specified nature as outlined in the contract required by the
   38  agency, with no time limitation or limit on the aggregate values
   39  under the contract, except that the contract must provide a
   40  termination clause. Firms providing professional services under
   41  continuing contracts do not have shall not be required to bid
   42  against one another.
   43         (6) PROHIBITION AGAINST CONTINGENT FEES.—
   44         (a) Each contract entered into by the agency for
   45  professional services must contain a prohibition against
   46  contingent fees as follows: “The architect (or registered
   47  surveyor and mapper, or professional engineer, or construction
   48  or program manager, as applicable) warrants that he or she has
   49  not employed or retained any company or person, other than a
   50  bona fide employee working solely for the architect (or
   51  registered surveyor and mapper, or professional engineer, or
   52  construction or program manager, as applicable) to solicit or
   53  secure this agreement and that he or she has not paid or agreed
   54  to pay any person, company, corporation, individual, or firm,
   55  other than a bona fide employee working solely for the architect
   56  (or registered surveyor and mapper, or professional engineer, or
   57  construction or program manager, as applicable) any fee,
   58  commission, percentage, gift, or other consideration contingent
   59  upon or resulting from the award or making of this agreement.”
   60  For the breach or violation of this provision, the agency may
   61  shall have the right to terminate the agreement without
   62  liability and, at its discretion, to deduct from the contract
   63  price, or otherwise recover, the full amount of such fee,
   64  commission, percentage, gift, or consideration.
   65         (b) Any individual, corporation, partnership, firm, or
   66  company, other than a bona fide employee working solely for an
   67  architect, professional engineer, or registered land surveyor
   68  and mapper, or construction or program manager, who offers,
   69  agrees, or contracts to solicit or secure agency contracts for
   70  professional services for any other individual, company,
   71  corporation, partnership, or firm and to be paid, or is paid,
   72  any fee, commission, percentage, gift, or other consideration
   73  contingent upon, or resulting from, the award or the making of a
   74  contract for professional services commits a shall, upon
   75  conviction in a competent court of this state, be found guilty
   76  of a first degree misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as
   77  provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
   78         (c) Any architect, professional engineer, or registered
   79  surveyor and mapper, or construction or program manager, or any
   80  group, association, company, corporation, firm, or partnership
   81  thereof, who offers to pay, or pays, any fee, commission,
   82  percentage, gift, or other consideration contingent upon, or
   83  resulting from, the award or making of any agency contract for
   84  professional services commits a shall, upon conviction in a
   85  state court of competent authority, be found guilty of a first
   86  degree misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided
   87  in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
   88         (d) Any agency official who offers to solicit or secure, or
   89  solicits or secures, a contract for professional services and to
   90  be paid, or is paid, any fee, commission, percentage, gift, or
   91  other consideration contingent upon the award or making of such
   92  a contract for professional services between the agency and any
   93  individual person, company, firm, partnership, or corporation
   94  commits a shall, upon conviction by a court of competent
   95  authority, be found guilty of a first degree misdemeanor of the
   96  first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s.
   97  775.083.
   98         Section 3. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section
   99  1001.74, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  100         1001.74 Powers and duties of university boards of
  101  trustees.—
  102         (2) POWERS AND DUTIES RELATING TO ORGANIZATION AND
  103  OPERATION OF STATE UNIVERSITIES.—
  104         (a) Each board of trustees constitutes the contracting
  105  agent of the university. Each university shall comply with the
  106  provisions of s. 287.055 for the procurement of professional
  107  services and may approve and execute all contracts for planning,
  108  construction, and equipment. For the purpose of a university’s
  109  contracting authority, a “continuing contract” for professional
  110  services under the provisions of s. 287.055 is one in which
  111  construction costs for each project under the contract do not
  112  exceed $2 $1 million or in which the fee for study activity does
  113  not exceed $200,000 for each study under the contract, with no
  114  limit on the aggregate values under the contract $100,000.
  115  Contracts executed pursuant to this paragraph are subject to the
  116  requirements of s. 1010.62.
  117  
  118  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
  119         And the title is amended as follows:
  120         Delete line 14
  121  and insert:
  122  adopt rules; amending s. 287.055, F.S.; revising provisions
  123  relating to state agency acquisition of certain construction or
  124  landscaping-related services to include construction or program
  125  management services; revising the dollar caps for continuing
  126  contracts for related services; amending s. 1001.74, F.S.;
  127  revising the dollar caps for state university continuing
  128  contracts for construction-related services; providing an
  129  effective date.