SB 344 — AN ACT CONCERNING STATE CONTRACTING PRICE PREFERENCES FOR VETERAN-OWNED BUSINESSES.

Senate General Assembly RaisedFile Bill No.

344224 February Session, 2022 LCOSenate Bill No.

2642344 ReferredSenate, toMarch 30, 2022 The Committee on VETERANS'Veterans' AFFAIRSAffairs Introducedreported by:through SEN.

(VA)CABRERA ANof ACTthe CONCERNING17th STATEDist., CONTRACTINGChairperson PRICEof PREFERENCESthe FORCommittee VETERAN-OWNEDon BUSINESSES.the part of the Senate, that the bill ought to pass.

AN ACT CONCERNING STATE CONTRACTING PRICE PREFERENCES FOR VETERAN-OWNED BUSINESSES.

(c) (1) All open market orders or contracts shall be awarded to [(1)] (A) the lowest responsible qualified bidder, the qualities of the articles to be supplied, their conformity with the specifications, their suitability to the requirements of the state government and the delivery terms being taken into consideration and, at the discretion of the Commissioner of Administrative Services, life-cycle costs and trade-in or resale value of the articles may be considered where it appears to be in the best interest of the state, [(2)] (B) the highest scoring bidder in a multiple criteria bid, in accordance with the criteria set forth in the bid solicitation for the contract, or [(3)] (C) the proposer whose proposal is deemed by the awarding authority to be the most advantageous to the state,SB344 in/ accordanceFile with the criteria set forth in the request for LCO 2642 \\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2022SB-00344-R01 of 4 SB.docx Raised Bill No.

344224 proposals,1 includingSB344 priceFile andNo. evaluation factors.

224 state, in accordance with the criteria set forth in the request for proposals, including price and evaluation factors.

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LCO(B) 2642Except {\\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2022SB-003443with ofregard 4to R01-SB.docxcontracts }that Raisedmay Billbe paid for with United SB344 / File No.

344224 (B)3 ExceptSB344 withFile regardNo. to contracts that may be paid for with United StatesDepartment ofTransportationfunds,if any such proposer refuses to accept, within ten days, a contract awarded to such proposer, such contract shall be awarded to the next most advantageous proposer, and so on until the contract is awarded and accepted.

224 StatesDepartment ofTransportationfunds,if any such proposer refuses to accept, within ten days, a contract awarded to such proposer, such contract shall be awarded to the next most advantageous proposer, and so on until the contract is awarded and accepted.

Section 1 October 1, 2022 4a-59(c) VA Joint Favorable LCOSB344 2642/ {\\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2022SB-00344-4File ofNo. 4 R01-SB.docx }

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224 The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose.

In general, fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional knowledge.

Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.

OFA Fiscal Note State Impact:

Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 23 $ FY 24 $ Various All Funds - See Below See Below Potential Cost Note:

All Funds=All Funds Municipal Impact:

None Explanation This bill allows the Department of Administrative Services (DAS) to give up to a 10% price preference to veteran-owned businesses when awarding open market orders or contracts to buy goods or services.

(A price preference is the percentage by which a bid may be reduced when awarding a contract to the lowest qualified bidder.) A 10% price preference for veteran-owned businesses may increase the cost of certain contracts (or goods or services) if contracts that would otherwise be awarded to the lowest qualified bidder are awarded to veteran-owned businesses instead.

The Out Years The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would continue into the future subject to inflation.

SB344 / File No.

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224 OLR Bill Analysis SB 344 AN ACT CONCERNING STATE CONTRACTING PRICE PREFERENCES FOR VETERAN-OWNED BUSINESSES.

SUMMARY This bill allows the Department of Administrative Services (DAS) to give up to a 10% price preference to veteran-owned businesses when awarding open market orders or contracts to buy goods or services.

Under it, a “veteran-owned business” is any business in which at least 51% ownership is held by one or more veterans.

(A price preference is the percentage by which a bid may be reduced when awarding a contract to the lowest qualified bidder.) Existing law, unchanged by the bill, allows DAS to give a price preference of up to 15% for veteran-owned micro businesses (i.e., those with gross revenues of up to $3 million).

The bill also makes technical changes.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

October 1, 2022 BACKGROUND Eligible Veterans By law, a “veteran” is anyone who was honorably discharged, released under honorable conditions, or released with an other than honorable discharge based on a qualifying condition from active service in the armed forces.

A “qualifying condition” is a diagnosis of post- traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injury, a disclosed military sexual trauma, or a determination that sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression was more likely than not the primary reason for the other than honorable discharge (CGS § 27-103, as amended by PA 21-79).

SB344 / File No.

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224 COMMITTEE ACTION Veterans’ Affairs Committee Joint Favorable Yea 16 Nay 0 (03/15/2022) SB344 / File No.

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