Item 2C: Ratification of IGR Minutes

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Title: Provides that employee who separates from contracting agency, under specified conditions and for period of one year, may not seek or gain employment with contractor with which contracting agency entered into public contract. Prohibits contracting agency from awarding public contract to bidder or proposer that will perform services at or from location outside United States. Requires contracting agency to include statement of prohibition in all invitations to bid, requests for proposals and contracts. Requires bidder or proposer to certify that bidder or proposer will perform services within United States. Prohibits contracting agency, under specified conditions, from accepting bid or proposal from bidder or proposer that advised or assisted contracting agency concerning solicitation documents or materials related to public contract. Requires bidder or proposer to make certain disclosures to federal or state agencies for purposes of equivalent price, rate and total cost of goods or services. Permits employee, group of employees or labor organization that represents employees of contracting agency to seek judicial review under certain conditions for alleged violation of requirements for goods and services procurements. Requires state agencies and education service districts to make certain additional information concerning public contracts available on Oregon transparency website. Requires Oregon University System to make solicitation documents for public contracts available on same electronic system Oregon Department of Administrative Services uses. Becomes operative January 1, 2013. Declares emergency, effective on passage. Sponsored by: Sponsored by Representative KOTEK; Representatives BAILEY, BARNHART, BUCKLEY, DEMBROW, DOHERTY, FREDERICK, HOLVEY, HOYLE, KOMP, MATTHEWS, NATHANSON, READ, WITT (Presession filed.) URL: http://www.leg.state.or.us/12reg/measpdf/hb4100.dir/hb4130.intro.pdf Contact Respondent Dept Updated Priority Recommendation Jamie Garner CS-FIN 1/27/2012 Pri 3 Oppose Comments: This bill straddles multiple, largely unrelated, issues in public contracting and it seems that it would be more acceptable if it were to be broken up. The first change surrounds a public employee's employment after separating from a contracting agency. This issue is already detailed elsewhere in ORS (244) though the existing provision is more specific on the positions that restrictions apply to. Additionally the Oregon Government Ethics Commission has issued Staff and Advisory opinions on this ("Post employment restrictions" category) as each circumstance has different ethical considerations. This seems unnecessarily restrictive as written because there are numerous people in the organization that work "...in a field closely related to the public contract..." but have absolutely no decision-making authority when selecting the vendor for award. Priority 3 oppose here because I don't know that this would have significant negative impact on the City other than dissatisfied employees that might stay on with the City because their employment options are limited due to the nature of their work. Next provision is requiring a contractor to hire a displaced public employee if the contractor's work causes the separation. I can see this increasing contract amounts significantly due to the requirement that the contractor extend "...employment terms that are similar to the employment terms under which the contracting agency employed the employee...". Contractors may not have room for the employee or may not think that the public employee has the skills to perform the work. This could substantially limit the 5 | Page February 8, 2012 IGR Committee Meeting