The 2018 legislative session brought about several significant changes to public school funding, including school capital projects funded with lottery proceeds. Section 5.3(e2) of the 2018 Appropriations Act (S.L. 2018-5) authorizes counties (not local school boards) that receive Needs-Based Public School Building Grant funds from the Department of Public Instruction [DPI] to enter into a […]
Posts Tagged ‘building construction’
Companies that Boycott Israel – New Contracting Limitation But No Action Required Yet!
Thursday, August 17th, 2017During the final week of the recently adjourned 2017 legislative session, the General Assembly enacted S.L. 2017-193 (H161), “Divestment from Companies that Boycott Israel.” This legislation created a new Article 6G of Chapter 147 prohibiting the investment of state funds in or governmental contracting with any company that boycotts or is involved in a boycott […]
Beyond Bathrooms – Special Session Legislation Impacts City and County Contracts
Thursday, March 24th, 2016UPDATE March 2017: See this post for a discussion of the impact of HB2’s repeal on city and county contracting authority. UPDATED April 2016: See Trey Allen’s blog post update for information on a recent 4th Circuit ruling that has bearing on HB2 (Title IX discrimination claim involving a transgender student’s use of bathrooms in […]
New Construction Contractor Prequalification Requirements
Tuesday, July 29th, 2014Since 1995, local governments have had express statutory authorization to prequalify bidders for public construction contracts under G.S. 143-135.8. If you look to this statute for guidance on the criteria or process to be used for prequalifying bidders, you will find the following: “Bidders may be prequalified for any public construction project.” That’s it? That’s […]
New Construction Delivery Methods – Public-Private Partnerships (P3)
Wednesday, March 5th, 2014In my last two posts, I described the new design-build and design-build bridging construction delivery methods authorized by the General Assembly during the 2013 legislative session. This post completes our discussion of the new delivery methods by outlining the third method authorized in S.L. 2013-401/H857 – public-private partnerships (P3).
New Design-Build Bridging Construction Method – Design-Build “Lite”
Thursday, February 6th, 2014My last post discussed the new design-build construction method authorized by the General Assembly during the 2013 Session. S.L. 2013-401/H857 created not only a design-build construction contracting process, but also a construction contracting process called design-build bridging. Enacted as G.S. 143-128.1B, design-build bridging might be thought of as design-build “lite,” meaning it is a somewhat […]
New Design-Build Construction Method – No Local Act Required
Wednesday, January 29th, 2014Those familiar with local government construction contracting know the drill – put out an RFQ to hire an architect or engineer to design the project and then bid the construction work. But what if a local government wants to hire both its design professional and its contractor at the beginning of the project to work […]
2013 Public Purchasing and Contracting Legislative Update – What’s Hot and What’s Not
Thursday, June 6th, 2013The General Assembly’s crossover deadline has come and gone, so now is a good time to pause and take stock of pending legislation affecting public purchasing and contracting. Bills proposing changes to our state’s public contracting statutes include authorizing design-build and public private partnership construction contracts, authorizing local preferences, and requiring E-Verify by construction contractors. […]
When is That Guy Going to Finish His Remodeling Job??
Wednesday, February 27th, 2013The story goes something like this: Jones, who is something of an eccentric guy anyway, lives in a relatively good neighborhood. But his house has never really fit into the area. His house looks like a work in progress with no clear design plan. He apparently is in the process of remodeling and expanding the […]
New SOG Publication on HUB Participation Requirements . . . And Other SOG Purchasing and Contracting Resources
Wednesday, February 20th, 2013Which of the following statements is true? A local government can reject a construction bid if the bidder does not list enough HUB subcontractors to meet the local government’s HUB participation goals. If a bidder forgets to identify on his bid the HUB subcontractors he plans to use on a project, he can submit this […]
Mini-Brooks Act FAQ’s
Wednesday, September 28th, 2011NOTE: This post has been updated to reflect changes enacted by the General Assembly in 2013 and 2014. In North Carolina, the procurement of professional services performed by architects, engineers, surveyors, and construction managers at risk is governed by G.S. 143-64.31, sometimes referred to as the “Mini-Brooks Act.” Following are some frequently asked questions about […]
Does the Board Have to Approve This?
Thursday, August 18th, 2011A frequently asked question if there ever was one. It would be nice if the statutes that govern local government activities were consistent and clear about what specific decisions or activities require governing board approval. No such luck. But there are a few key pieces of information that can help answer the question. This blog […]
New Requirements for “Owner-Contractor” Building Projects
Wednesday, July 27th, 2011One of the bills enacted by the General Assembly this session imposed new requirements for “owner-contractor” building construction projects. S.L. 2011-376 (HB 648) is summarized in the Purchasing and Contracting Legislative Wrap-up blog post and the 2011 Purchasing and Contracting Legislative Summary. Since the law’s enactment, a number of questions arose about these new requirements. […]
2011 Purchasing and Contracting Legislative Wrap-Up
Friday, July 1st, 2011The North Carolina General Assembly adjourned on June 18, 2011 and will reconvene next month on July 13th. When it reconvenes in July, the legislature will only consider a narrow list of bills, namely redistricting, election laws, legislative appointments to boards and commissions, bills vetoed by the governor, and bills already in conference (Res. 2011-9). So, unless the […]
Emergency Procurement – When is an emergency really an emergency?
Tuesday, June 7th, 2011A tornado has ripped through Coatesville, damaging its water and sewer system, tearing the roof off of town hall, destroying the police department’s vehicles, and leaving tons of debris in its wake. The town declares a state of emergency and immediately begins mobilizing to recover from the disaster. Citizens are without water and sewer, town […]
Good Faith Efforts? Prove It!
Wednesday, July 7th, 2010Your local government has just received single-prime bids on the construction of a new civic center. After evaluating the bids you’ve received, you determine that Crafty Contractor Construction Company (“Crafty”) is the apparent lowest responsive, responsible bidder. Crafty identified four historically underutilized businesses (HUBs, that is, minority and women-owned businesses) that it will use on […]
Contracting Without a License? Beware.
Tuesday, October 13th, 2009You’ve just received bids on a construction project costing $50,000, and discovered that the lowest bidder is not a licensed general contractor. When you bring this to the bidder’s attention, she tells you that she will be licensed by the time the project is scheduled to start. Can you accept her bid?
Are You Certified? Part II: More Information About The New Statewide Uniform HUB Certification Program
Tuesday, August 25th, 2009My post on the Statewide Uniform HUB Certification Program from two weeks ago prompted some follow-up questions through email. I thought it might be helpful to post those questions and my answers to those questions here.
Are You Certified? The New Statewide Uniform HUB Certification Program
Tuesday, August 11th, 2009On July 1, 2009, a new Statewide Uniform Certification Program for Historically Underutilized Businesses (commonly abbreviated as “HUBs” and formerly referred to as “minority- and women-owned businesses”) went into effect. North Carolina state agencies and local governments may now count only those businesses that are certified as HUBs through the new statewide program to determine […]