Construction and Public Works Contracts Conducted by Department; Advertising Costs; Exceptions

  1. Law
  2. Georgia Code
  3. State Government
  4. Department of Administrative Services
  5. State Purchasing
  6. General Authority, Duties, and Procedure
  7. Construction and Public Works Contracts Conducted by Department; Advertising Costs; Exceptions

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  1. Notwithstanding any other provision of this part or any other law dealing with the subject matter contained in this Code section to the contrary, all construction or public works contracts, exceeding a total expenditure of $100,000.00, of any department, board, bureau, commission, office, or agency of the state government, except as provided in this Code section, shall be conducted and negotiated by the Department of Administrative Services in accordance with this part; provided, however, that any expenditure of less than $100,000.00 shall still be subject to review and approval by the Department of Administrative Services, which may approve noncompetitive expenditures of up to $100,000.00.
  2. All advertising costs incurred in connection with such contracts shall be borne by and paid from the funds appropriated to and available to the department, board, bureau, commission, office, or agency of the state government for which the contract is negotiated.
    1. Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b) of this Code section and to the extent permitted by law, the Department of Administrative Services shall not in its bid documents, specifications, project agreements, or other controlling documents for a public works construction contract:
      1. Require or prohibit bidders, offerors, contractors, subcontractors, or material suppliers to enter into or adhere to prehire agreements, project labor agreements, collective bargaining agreements, or any other agreement with one or more labor organizations on the same or other related construction projects; or
      2. Discriminate against, or treat differently, bidders, offerors, contractors, subcontractors, or material suppliers for becoming or refusing to become or remain signatories or otherwise to adhere to agreements with one or more labor organizations on the same or other related construction projects.
    2. Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit bidders, offerors, contractors, subcontractors, or material suppliers from voluntarily entering into agreements described in paragraph (1) of this subsection.
    3. The head of a governmental entity may exempt a particular public works construction contract from the requirements of any or all of the provisions of paragraph (1) of this subsection if the governmental entity finds, after public notice and a hearing, that special circumstances require an exemption to avert an imminent threat to public health or safety. A finding of special circumstance under this paragraph shall not be based on the possibility or presence of a labor dispute concerning the use of contractors or subcontractors who are nonsignatories to, or otherwise do not adhere to, agreements with one or more labor organizations or concerning employees on the particular project who are not members of or affiliated with a labor organization.
  4. The commissioner of administrative services is authorized and directed to promulgate such rules and regulations as shall carry out the additional duties and responsibilities placed upon the department by this Code section.
  5. Nothing contained in this Code section shall apply to or affect the Department of Transportation, the several public authorities of this state, including the Stone Mountain Memorial Association and the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, or the expenditure of money credited to the account of this state in the Unemployment Trust Fund by the secretary of the treasury of the United States pursuant to Section 903 of the Social Security Act and appropriated as provided in Code Section 34-8-85. No contract in existence on March 18, 1964, shall be affected by this Code section, and such contract may continue to be utilized.

(Ga. L. 1964, p. 693, § 1; Ga. L. 1991, p. 139, § 3; Ga. L. 1996, p. 885, § 7; Ga. L. 2013, p. 628, § 9/SB 179.)

The 2013 amendment, effective May 6, 2013, designated the existing provisions as subsections (a), (b), (d), and (e), added subsection (c), and inserted a comma following "Code section" near the end of subsection (e).

Cross references.

- Liquidated damages provisions in public works contract, § 13-10-70.

Letting of Department of Transportation construction and maintenance contracts by public bid, § 32-2-64 et seq.

Editor's notes.

- Ga. L. 1996, p. 885, § 1, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: "This Act shall be known and may be cited as the 'Purchasing Reform Act of 1996.'"

Ga. L. 1996, p. 885, § 2, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: "The General Assembly declares and finds that many of the laws establishing guidelines and requirements for the purchasing of supplies, materials, and equipment by and for state departments and agencies were developed decades earlier and prior to the increase in available sources of supply and the expansion of technology. It is the intent of the General Assembly that these laws be amended to reflect these changes in order to provide greater flexibility for state agencies to make their purchases and to eliminate unnecessary bureaucracy which can result in purchase delays and increased administrative costs."

U.S. Code.

- Section 903 of the Social Security Act, referred to in this Code section, is codified as 42 U.S.C. § 1103.

OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

Public works contracts.

- Contract entered into by the environmental protection division for reclamation and rehabilitation of land subjected to surface mining constitutes a public works contract, and is subject to the provisions of Ga. L. 1939, p. 160, § 3 and Ga. L. 1964, p. 693, § 1 (see O.C.G.A. §§ 50-5-67 and50-5-72). 1976 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 76-98.

Contracts for demolition of building would constitute public works contracts. 1967 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 67-271.

Obligating other agency's funds.

- This section only provides express authority to conduct and negotiate; there is no express authority to execute contracts. Thus, the Department of Administrative Services does not have the authority to obligate the funds of another state agency for construction or public works contracts. 1980 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 80-99.

Georgia State Financing and Investment Commission is not required to obtain bids on construction contracts. 1975 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 75-58.

RESEARCH REFERENCES

ALR.

- Determination of amount involved in contract within statutory provision requiring public contracts involving sums exceeding specified amounts to be let to lowest bidder, 53 A.L.R.2d 498.

Waiver of competitive bidding requirements for state and local public building and construction contracts, 40 A.L.R.4th 968.


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