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DocuSign Envelope ID: B49FB256 -4ADF- 4759- AF63- 134AD44FC239 <br />11 SCHOOL <br />2014 Legislative Summary: <br />Public Purchasing and Contracting <br />The North Carolina General Assembly <br />adjourned the 2013 -14 legislative session <br />sine die (from the Latin "without day ") on <br />August 20, 2014. Unless recalled to Raleigh <br />for a special session, the General Assembly <br />will not meet again until January 14, 2015, <br />when a new session convenes following the <br />November 2014 general elections. Enacted <br />legislation affecting public purchasing and <br />contracting is summarized below. <br />I. Public Bills <br />Prequalification Requirements <br />S.L. 2014 -42 (1-11043) amends G.S. 143- <br />135.8 by establishing specific procedural <br />requirements for when and how local <br />governments may prequalify construction <br />contractors to bid on construction and <br />repair contracts. These new requirements <br />also apply to the prequalification of first -tier <br />subcontractors by a construction manager <br />at risk under G.S. 143- 128.1(c). The focus of <br />these new requirements is to ensure that a <br />prequalification process is conducted <br />transparently using criteria that relate to <br />the specific project being bid and which are <br />applied objectively and fairly to all bidders. <br />The new requirements also give bidders an <br />opportunity to learn why they were denied <br />prequalification and to appeal that denial. <br />The changes go into effect on October 1, <br />2014, and apply to all contracts awarded on <br />or after that date. <br />Norma R. Houston <br />UNC School of Government <br />Prequalification is defined under the <br />new G.S. 143- 135.8(f)(2) as "[a] process of <br />evaluating and determining whether <br />potential bidders have the skill, judgment, <br />integrity, sufficient financial resources, and <br />ability necessary to the faithful <br />performance of a contract for construction <br />or repair work." This definition is consistent <br />with the North Carolina Court of Appeals' <br />interpretation of who is a responsible <br />bidder under the lowest responsive, <br />responsible bidder standard of award <br />applicable to purchase and construction or <br />repair contracts in the informal and formal <br />bidding ranges.' <br />Under the new version of G.S. 143- <br />135.8, use of prequalification is limited to <br />construction or repair projects (regardless <br />of cost) that are bid under the single - prime, <br />separate -prime (multi - prime), or dual <br />bidding methods. Prequalification is <br />specifically prohibited on all contracts <br />subject to the Mini - Brooks Act (G.S. 143- <br />64.31), meaning prequalification cannot be <br />used when contracting for architectural, <br />engineering, or surveying services as well as <br />alternative construction delivery methods <br />(construction management at risk, design - <br />build, design -build bridging, and public - <br />private partnerships). <br />If a local government intends to <br />prequalify bidders, it must first adopt an <br />' Kinsey Contracting Co., Inc. v. City of Fayetteville, <br />106 N.C. App. 383, 385, 416 S.E.2d 607, 609 (1992). <br />2014 Legislative Summary — Public Purchasing and Contracting Page 1 <br />UNC School of Government <br />