SB 538                                           First Engrossed
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       2012538e1
       
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to preference to Florida businesses in
    3         procurement of personal property and services;
    4         providing a short title; amending s. 283.35, F.S.;
    5         requiring an agency, university, college, school
    6         district, or other political subdivision of the state
    7         to grant a specified preference to a vendor located
    8         within the state when awarding a contract for
    9         printing; specifying the percentage of preference to
   10         be granted; amending s. 287.057, F.S.; providing an
   11         exception to the requirement for competitive
   12         solicitation of contractual services and commodities
   13         for public service announcement programs provided by
   14         certain nonprofit corporations; amending s. 287.084,
   15         F.S.; requiring, rather than authorizing, an agency,
   16         university, college, school district, or other
   17         political subdivision of the state in making purchases
   18         of personal property through competitive solicitation
   19         to award a preference to the lowest responsible and
   20         responsive vendor having a principal place of business
   21         within this state under specified circumstances;
   22         specifying the percentage of preference to be granted;
   23         providing nonapplicability; prohibiting the preclusion
   24         of a vendor whose principal place of business is in
   25         this state from being an authorized reseller of
   26         information technology commodities of state
   27         contractors, under certain circumstances; providing an
   28         effective date.
   29  
   30  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   31  
   32         Section 1. This act may be cited as the “Buy Florida Act.”
   33         Section 2. Section 283.35, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   34  read:
   35         283.35 Preference given printing within the state.—Every
   36  agency shall give preference to vendors located within the state
   37  When awarding a contract contracts to have materials printed,
   38  the agency, university, college, school district, or other
   39  political subdivision of this state awarding the contract shall
   40  grant a preference to the lowest responsible and responsive
   41  vendor having a principal place of business within this state.
   42  The preference shall be 5 percent if the lowest bid is submitted
   43  by a vendor whose principal place of business is located outside
   44  the state and if the whenever such printing can be performed in
   45  this state done at no greater expense than the expense of
   46  awarding a contract to a vendor located outside the state and
   47  can be done at a level of quality comparable to that obtainable
   48  from the a vendor submitting the lowest bid located outside the
   49  state. As used in this section, the term “other political
   50  subdivision of this state” does not include counties or
   51  municipalities.
   52         Section 3. Paragraph (f) of subsection (3) of section
   53  287.057, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   54         287.057 Procurement of commodities or contractual
   55  services.—
   56         (3) When the purchase price of commodities or contractual
   57  services exceeds the threshold amount provided in s. 287.017 for
   58  CATEGORY TWO, no purchase of commodities or contractual services
   59  may be made without receiving competitive sealed bids,
   60  competitive sealed proposals, or competitive sealed replies
   61  unless:
   62         (f) The following contractual services and commodities are
   63  not subject to the competitive-solicitation requirements of this
   64  section:
   65         1. Artistic services. For the purposes of this subsection,
   66  the term “artistic services” does not include advertising or
   67  typesetting. As used in this subparagraph, the term
   68  “advertising” means the making of a representation in any form
   69  in connection with a trade, business, craft, or profession in
   70  order to promote the supply of commodities or services by the
   71  person promoting the commodities or contractual services.
   72         2. Academic program reviews if the fee for such services
   73  does not exceed $50,000.
   74         3. Lectures by individuals.
   75         4. Legal services, including attorney, paralegal, expert
   76  witness, appraisal, or mediator services.
   77         5.a. Health services involving examination, diagnosis,
   78  treatment, prevention, medical consultation, or administration.
   79         b. Beginning January 1, 2011, health services, including,
   80  but not limited to, substance abuse and mental health services,
   81  involving examination, diagnosis, treatment, prevention, or
   82  medical consultation, when such services are offered to eligible
   83  individuals participating in a specific program that qualifies
   84  multiple providers and uses a standard payment methodology.
   85  Reimbursement of administrative costs for providers of services
   86  purchased in this manner shall also be exempt. For purposes of
   87  this sub-subparagraph, “providers” means health professionals,
   88  health facilities, or organizations that deliver or arrange for
   89  the delivery of health services.
   90         6. Services provided to persons with mental or physical
   91  disabilities by not-for-profit corporations which have obtained
   92  exemptions under the provisions of s. 501(c)(3) of the United
   93  States Internal Revenue Code or when such services are governed
   94  by the provisions of Office of Management and Budget Circular A
   95  122. However, in acquiring such services, the agency shall
   96  consider the ability of the vendor, past performance,
   97  willingness to meet time requirements, and price.
   98         7. Medicaid services delivered to an eligible Medicaid
   99  recipient unless the agency is directed otherwise in law.
  100         8. Family placement services.
  101         9. Prevention services related to mental health, including
  102  drug abuse prevention programs, child abuse prevention programs,
  103  and shelters for runaways, operated by not-for-profit
  104  corporations. However, in acquiring such services, the agency
  105  shall consider the ability of the vendor, past performance,
  106  willingness to meet time requirements, and price.
  107         10. Training and education services provided to injured
  108  employees pursuant to s. 440.491(6).
  109         11. Contracts entered into pursuant to s. 337.11.
  110         12. Services or commodities provided by governmental
  111  agencies.
  112         13. Statewide public service announcement programs provided
  113  by a Florida statewide nonprofit corporation under s. 501(c)(6)
  114  of the Internal Revenue Code, with a guaranteed documented match
  115  of at least $3 to $1.
  116         Section 4. Section 287.084, Florida Statutes, is amended to
  117  read:
  118         287.084 Preference to Florida businesses.—
  119         (1)(a) When an agency, university, college, county,
  120  municipality, school district, or other political subdivision of
  121  the state is required to make purchases of personal property
  122  through competitive solicitation and the lowest responsible and
  123  responsive bid, proposal, or reply is by a vendor whose
  124  principal place of business is in a state or political
  125  subdivision thereof which grants a preference for the purchase
  126  of such personal property to a person whose principal place of
  127  business is in such state, then the agency, university, college
  128  county, municipality, school district, or other political
  129  subdivision of this state shall may award a preference to the
  130  lowest responsible and responsive vendor having a principal
  131  place of business within this state, which preference is equal
  132  to the preference granted by the state or political subdivision
  133  thereof in which the lowest responsible and responsive vendor
  134  has its principal place of business. In a competitive
  135  solicitation in which the lowest bid is submitted by a vendor
  136  whose principal place of business is located outside the state
  137  and that state does not grant a preference in competitive
  138  solicitation to vendors having a principal place of business in
  139  that state, the preference to the lowest responsible and
  140  responsive vendor having a principal place of business in this
  141  state shall be 5 percent.
  142         (b) Paragraph (a) However, this section does not apply to
  143  transportation projects for which federal aid funds are
  144  available.
  145         (c) As used in this section, the term “other political
  146  subdivision of this state” does not include counties or
  147  municipalities.
  148         (2) If a solicitation provides for the granting of such
  149  preference as is provided in this section, Any vendor whose
  150  principal place of business is outside the State of Florida must
  151  accompany any written bid, proposal, or reply documents with a
  152  written opinion of an attorney at law licensed to practice law
  153  in that foreign state, as to the preferences, if any or none,
  154  granted by the law of that state to its own business entities
  155  whose principal places of business are in that foreign state in
  156  the letting of any or all public contracts.
  157         (3)(a) A vendor whose principal place of business is in
  158  this state may not be precluded from being an authorized
  159  reseller of information technology commodities of a state
  160  contractor as long as the vendor demonstrates that it employs an
  161  internationally recognized quality management system, such as
  162  ISO 9001 or its equivalent, and provides a warranty on the
  163  information technology commodities which is, at a minimum, of
  164  equal scope and length as that of the contract.
  165         (b) This subsection applies to any renewal of any state
  166  contract executed on or after July 1, 2012.
  167         Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.