SB 490 — AN ACT CONCERNING LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, SHARED MUNICIPAL SERVICES AND REGIONAL FINANCING OPTIONS.

Municipalities shall apply for such grants in a manner to be determined by the Commissioner of Housing.

Said commissioner may contract with a nonprofit entity to administer the provisions of this section.

(b) In awarding such grants, the commissioner shall determine that an eligible project advances the municipality's or region's approved plan pursuant to subdivision (2) of subsection (d) of this section.

Such advancements may include, but need not be limited to, zoning and design guideline development, facade or awning improvements;

sidewalk improvements or construction;

street lighting;

building renovations, including mixed use of residential and commercial;

landscaping and development of recreational areas and greenspace;

bicycle paths;

and other improvements or renovations deemed by the commissioner to contribute to the economic success of the municipality.

(c) A grant received pursuant to this section shall be used for improvements to property owned by the municipality or participating municipalities, except the municipality or regional councils of governments may use a portion of the proceeds of such grant to provide a one-time reimbursement to owners of commercial private property for eligible expenditures that directly support and enhance an eligible project.

The maximum allowable reimbursement for such eligible expenditures to any such owner shall be fifty thousand dollars, to be provided at the following rates:

(1) Expenditures equal to or less than fifty thousand dollars shall be reimbursed at a rate of fifty per cent, and (2) any additional expenditures greater than fifty thousand dollars but less than or equal to one hundred fifty thousand dollars shall be reimbursed at a rate of twenty-five per cent.

(d) For the purposes of this section:

(1) "Eligible expenditures" include expenses for planning, cosmetic and structural exterior building improvements, signage, lighting and landscaping that is visible from the street, including, but not limited to, exterior painting or surface treatment, decorative awnings, window and door replacements or modifications, storefront enhancements, irrigation, streetscape, outdoor patios and decks, exterior wall lighting, decorative post lighting and architectural features, but do not include (A) any renovations that are solely the result of ordinary repair and maintenance, (B) improvements that are required to remedy a health, housing or safety code violation, or (C) nonpermanent structures, furnishings, movable equipment or other nonpermanent amenities.

Eligible expenditures also include reasonable administrative expenses incurred by a nonprofit entity or regional council of governments contracted with by the Department of Housing to implement the provisions of this section.

(2) "Eligible projects" means projects that are part of a plan previously approved by the governing body of the municipality or regional council of governments to develop or improve town commercial centers to attract small businesses, promote commercial viability, and improve aesthetics and pedestrian access.

Sec.

8.

Section 4-66m of the 2018 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):

(a) For the purposes described in subsection (b) of this section, the State Bond Commission shall have the power, from time to time to authorize the issuance of bonds of the state in one or more series and in principal amounts not exceeding in the aggregate four million nine hundred thirty-seven thousand one hundred forty-nine dollars.

(b) The proceeds of the sale of said bonds, to the extent of the amount stated in subsection (a) of this section, shall be used by the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management for the purpose of providing grants-in-aid under the intertown capital equipment purchase incentive program established pursuant to subsection (c) of this section.

(c) (1) There is established an intertown capital equipment purchase incentive program to provide grants to municipalities to jointly acquire or for regional councils of governments to acquire or jointly acquire, on and after October 1, 2011, by purchase or by lease, equipment and vehicles necessary to the performance or delivery of a required governmental function or service.

(2) Grant funds may be used for acquisition costs of (A) equipment with an anticipated remaining useful life of not less than five years from the date of purchase or entry into a lease, including, but not limited to, data processing equipment that has a unit price of less than one thousand dollars, that a municipality or region covered by a regional council of governments uses in the performance or delivery of a required governmental function or service, and (B) a maintenance vehicle, pick-up truck, tractor, truck tractor or utility trailer, as each said term is defined in section 14-1, or any other similar type of vehicle that a municipality or region covered by a regional council of governments uses in the performance or delivery of a required governmental function or service.

Each grant shall be not more than eighty per cent of the total acquisition cost of such equipment or vehicle, or three hundred seventy-five thousand dollars, whichever is less.

(3) Not later than September 1, 2011, the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management shall develop guidelines to establish (A) the procedures to apply for and the administration of the intertown capital equipment purchase incentive program, (B) criteria for the expenditure of grant funds and the method of allocation of a grant among the municipalities or regional councils of governments that jointly acquire or lease equipment or a vehicle set forth in subdivision (2) of this subsection, and (C) prioritization for the awarding of grants pursuant to this section, including, but not limited to, any limits in a given time frame on (i) the number of times a municipality may apply, or (ii) the dollar amount of grant funds a municipality may receive, pursuant to this section.

(4) Not later than October 1, 2011, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management shall publish a notice of grant availability and solicit proposals for funding under the intertown capital equipment purchase incentive program.

Municipalities or regional councils of governments eligible for such funding pursuant to the guidelines developed under subdivision (3) of this subsection may file applications for such funding at such times and in such manner as the secretary prescribes.

The secretary shall review all grant applications and make determinations as to which acquisitions to fund and the amount of grants to be awarded in accordance with the guidelines developed under subdivision (3) of this subsection.

(d) All provisions of section 3-20, or the exercise of any right or power granted thereby, which are not inconsistent with the provisions of this section are hereby adopted and shall apply to all bonds authorized by the State Bond Commission pursuant to this section, and temporary notes in anticipation of the money to be derived from the sale of any such bonds so authorized may be issued in accordance with said section 3-20 and from time to time renewed.

Such bonds shall mature at such time or times not exceeding twenty years from their respective dates as may be provided in or pursuant to the resolution or resolutions of the State Bond Commission authorizing such bonds.

None of said bonds shall be authorized except upon a finding by the State Bond Commission that there has been filed with it a request for such authorization which is signed by or on behalf of the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management and states such terms and conditions as said commission, in its discretion, may require.

Said bonds issued pursuant to this section shall be general obligations of the state and the full faith and credit of the state of Connecticut are pledged for the payment of the principal of and interest on said bonds as the same become due, and accordingly and as part of the contract of the state with the holders of said bonds, appropriation of all amounts necessary for punctual payment of such principal and interest is hereby made, and the State Treasurer shall pay such principal and interest as the same become due.

Sec.

9.

Subsection (b) of section 29-5 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2019):

(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection shall appoint [a] resident state [policeman] policemen to serve in [a pilot program] an assignment for two or more towns lacking an organized police force or constabulary and located within the jurisdiction of the same state police troop pursuant to a memorandum of agreement with towns requesting participation.

[in the pilot program.

Towns participating in the pilot program] Participating towns shall be responsible for the costs and expenses of such resident state policeman as provided in subsection (a) of this section.

Sec.

10.

Section 10-241c of the 2018 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2019):

Notwithstanding any special act, municipal charter or home rule ordinance, the legislative body of a municipality and the local board of education for such municipality shall consult [when possible] regarding the joint purchasing of health insurance, property insurance, casualty insurance and workers' compensation insurance.

For the purpose of this section, "municipality" means any town, city, borough, consolidated town and city or consolidated town and borough.

Sec.

11.

Section 10-241d of the 2018 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2019):

Any local board of education for a municipality, after going out to bid for a good or service and receiving submissions, shall consult with the legislative body of such municipality if such municipality provides or uses such good or service, and, if the equivalent level of such good or service is provided by such municipality or through a municipal contract for a lower cost than the lowest qualified bid submission received by such local board of education, such board of education shall [consider] enter into a cooperative agreement with such municipality for the provision of such good or service.

For purposes of this section, "good or service" includes, but is not limited to, portable classrooms, motor vehicles or materials and equipment, such as telephone systems, computers and copy machines.

Sec.

12.

Section 10-241e of the 2018 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2019):

Each local board of education for a municipality shall, [consult] when possible, enter into a cooperative agreement with the legislative body of such municipality prior to purchasing payroll processing or accounts payable software systems.

[to determine whether such systems may be purchased or shared on a regional basis.] Sec.

13.

Subsection (b) of section 10-287 of the 2018 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):

(b) (1) All orders and contracts for school building construction receiving state assistance under this chapter, except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection, shall be awarded to the lowest responsible qualified bidder [only] through a cooperative purchase contract available through a regional educational service center or regional council of governments, or after a public invitation to bid, which shall be advertised on the Department of Administrative Services' Internet web site or in a Connecticut newspaper, [having circulation in the town in which construction is to take place,] except for (A) school building projects for which the town or regional school district is using a state contract pursuant to subsection (d) of section 10-292, and (B) change orders, those contracts or orders costing less than ten thousand dollars and those of an emergency nature, as determined by the Commissioner of Administrative Services, in which cases the contractor or vendor may be selected by negotiation, provided no local fiscal regulations, ordinances or charter provisions conflict.

(2) All orders and contracts for architectural or construction management services shall be awarded from a pool of not more than the four most responsible qualified proposers after a public selection process.

Such process shall, at a minimum, involve requests for qualifications, followed by requests for proposals, including fees, from the proposers meeting the qualifications criteria of the request for qualifications process.

Public advertisements shall be required in a newspaper having circulation in the town in which construction is to take place, except for school building projects for which the town or regional school district is using a state contract pursuant to subsection (d) of section 10-292.

Following the qualification process, the awarding authority shall evaluate the proposals to determine the four most responsible qualified proposers using those criteria previously listed in the requests for qualifications and requests for proposals for selecting architectural or construction management services specific to the project or school district.

Such evaluation criteria shall include due consideration of the proposer's pricing for the project, experience with work of similar size and scope as required for the order or contract, organizational and team structure for the order or contract, past performance data, including, but not limited to, adherence to project schedules and project budgets and the number of change orders for projects, the approach to the work required for the contract and documented contract oversight capabilities, and may include criteria specific to the project.

Final selection by the awarding authority is limited to the pool of the four most responsible qualified proposers and shall include consideration of all criteria included within the request for proposals.

As used in this subdivision, "most responsible qualified proposer" means the proposer who is qualified by the awarding authority when considering price and the factors necessary for faithful performance of the work based on the criteria and scope of work included in the request for proposals.

Sec.

14.

Subsection (a) of section 4b-91 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2019):

(a) (1) As used in this section, "prequalification classification" means the prequalification classifications established by the Commissioner of Administrative Services pursuant to section 4a-100, "public agency" has the same meaning as provided in section 1-200, "awarding authority" means the Department of Administrative Services, except "awarding authority" means (A) the Joint Committee on Legislative Management, in the case of a contract for the construction of or work on a building or other public work under the supervision and control of the joint committee, (B) a constituent unit of the state system of higher education, in the case of a contract for the construction of or work on a building or other public work under the supervision and control of such constituent unit, or (C) the Military Department, in the case of a contract for the construction of or work on a building or other public work under the supervision and control of said department and "community court project", "downtown Hartford higher education center project", "correctional facility project", "juvenile detention center project" and "priority higher education facility project" have the same meanings as provided in section 4b-55.

(2) Except as provided in subdivision (3) of this subsection, every contract for the construction, reconstruction, alteration, remodeling, repair or demolition of any public building or any other public work by the state that is estimated to cost more than five hundred thousand dollars shall be awarded to the lowest responsible and qualified general bidder who is prequalified pursuant to section 4a-100 on the basis of competitive bids in accordance with the procedures set forth in this chapter, after the awarding authority has invited such bids by posting notice on the State Contracting Portal.

The awarding authority shall indicate the prequalification classification required for the contract in such notice.

(3) The requirements set forth in subdivision (2) of this subsection shall not apply to (A) a public highway or bridge project or any other construction project administered by the Department of Transportation, or (B) a contract awarded by the Commissioner of Administrative Services for (i) any public building or other public works project administered by the Department of Administrative Services that is estimated to cost one million five hundred thousand dollars or less, (ii) a community court project, (iii) the downtown Hartford higher education center project, (iv) a correctional facility project, (v) a juvenile detention center project, or (vi) a student residential facility for the Connecticut State University System that is a priority higher education facility project.

(4) Every contract for the construction, reconstruction, alteration, remodeling, repair or demolition of any public building or any other public work by a public agency that is paid for, in whole or in part, with state funds and that is estimated to cost more than five hundred thousand dollars shall be awarded to a bidder that is prequalified pursuant to section 4a-100 after the public agency has invited such bids by posting notice on the State Contracting Portal, unless such agency is utilizing a cooperative bid contract offered through a regional educational service center or regional council of governments, and except for (A) a public highway or bridge project or any other construction project administered by the Department of Transportation, or (B) any public building or other public works project administered by the Department of Administrative Services that is estimated to cost one million five hundred thousand dollars or less.

The awarding authority or public agency, as the case may be, shall indicate the prequalification classification required for the contract in such notice.

(5) (A) The Commissioner of Administrative Services may select contractors to be on lists established for the purpose of providing contractor services for the construction, reconstruction, alteration, remodeling, repair or demolition of any public building or other public works project administered by the Department of Administrative Services involving an expense to the state of one million five hundred thousand dollars or less.

The commissioner shall use the prequalification classifications established pursuant to section 4a-100 to determine the specific categories of services that contractors may perform after being selected in accordance with this subparagraph and subparagraph (B) of this subdivision and awarded a contract in accordance with subparagraph (C) of this subdivision.

The commissioner may establish a separate list for projects involving an expense to the state of less than five hundred thousand dollars for the purpose of selecting and utilizing the services of small contractors and minority business enterprises, as such terms are defined in section 4a-60g.

(B) The commissioner shall invite contractors to submit qualifications for each specific category of services sought by the department by posting notice of such invitation on the State Contracting Portal.

The notice shall be in the form determined by the commissioner, and shall set forth the information that a contractor is required to submit to be considered for selection.

Upon receipt of the submittal from the contractor, the commissioner shall select, for each specified category, those contractors who (i) are determined to be the most responsible and qualified, as such terms are defined in section 4b-92, to perform the work required under the specified category, (ii) have demonstrated the skill, ability and integrity to fulfill contract obligations considering their past performance, financial responsibility and experience with projects of the size, scope and complexity required by the state under the specified category, and (iii) for projects with a cost exceeding five hundred thousand dollars, have the ability to obtain the requisite bonding.

The commissioner shall establish the duration that each list remains in effect, which in no event may exceed three years.

(C) For any public building or public works project involving an expense to the state of one million five hundred thousand dollars or less, the commissioner shall invite bids from only those contractors selected pursuant to subparagraphs (A) and (B) of this subdivision for the specific category of services required for the particular project.

The commissioner shall determine the form of bid invitation, the manner of, and time for, submission of bids, and the conditions and requirements of such bids.

The contract shall be awarded to the lowest responsible and qualified bidder, subject to the provisions of sections 4b-92 and 4b-94.

In the event that fewer than three bids are received in response to an invitation to bid under this subdivision, or that all the bids are in excess of the amount of available funds for the project, the commissioner may negotiate a contract with any of the contractors submitting a bid, or reject the bids received and rebid the project in accordance with this section.

3 July 1, 2018 8-3(e)29-297 Sec.

4 July 1, 2018 10-158a(a)New section Sec.

5 July 1, 2018 29-297New section Sec.

6 JulyJanuary 1, 20182019 New4-66g(b) section Sec.

7 Julyfrom 1,passage 20184-66h NewSec. section Statement of Purpose:

To8 makefrom certainpassage changes4-66m toSec. the composition and duties of the Connecticut Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations;

specify9 thatJanuary the1, chief2019 executive29-5(b) officerSec. of a municipality shall provide for the manner in which zoning regulations are enforced;

specify10 thatJanuary a1, committee2019 established10-241c pursuantSec. to a cooperative arrangement agreed to by two or more boards of education shall be a local education agency;

specify11 thatJanuary the1, chief2019 executive10-241d officerSec. of a municipality shall serve as the appointing authority for the local fire marshal;

permit12 localJanuary and1, regional2019 school10-241e districtsSec. to develop school transportation services plans;

and13 requirefrom thepassage Secretary10-287(b) ofSec. the Office of Policy and Management to develop guidelines governing the processes of municipal consolidation and merger.

[Proposed14 deletionsJanuary are1, enclosed2019 in4b-91(a) brackets.PD Joint Favorable Subst.

Proposed  additionsFIN areJoint indicatedFavorable by  underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]