It shall be the duty of the Department of Administrative Services to formulate, adopt, establish, and modify standard specifications applying to state contracts. In the formulation, adoption, and modification of any standard specifications, the Department of Administrative Services shall seek the advice, assistance, and cooperation of any state department, institution, or agency to ascertain its precise requirements in any given commodity. Each specification adopted for any commodity shall insofar as possible satisfy the requirements of a majority of the state departments, institutions, or agencies which use the same in common. After its adoption each standard specification shall until revised or rescinded apply alike in terms and effect to every state purchase of the commodity described in such specifications. In the preparation of any standard specifications, the Department of Administrative Services shall have power to make use of any state laboratory for chemical and physical tests in the determination of quality.
(Ga. L. 1937, p. 503, § 14; Ga. L. 1939, p. 160, § 7.)
OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
Establishment of specifications applicable to purchases.
- It is evident from Ga. L. 1937, §§ 2 and 14 (see O.C.G.A. §§ 50-5-51 and50-5-56) that the department is authorized to establish certain specifications which shall apply to purchases which are to be used by the various state departments; however, it is a practical and physical impossibility to set up specifications for every one of the thousands of different articles which are used by the state departments. 1948-49 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 570.
Responsibilities of department.- Ultimate responsibility for determining whether a product complies with a standard specification lies with department as does the responsibility for making all ultimate determinations as to acceptability insofar as necessary to award a contract. 1974 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 74-16.