Presentation Transcript

1. The Structure of Oregon Law Lloyd Rain Associates www.rainassoc.com PSU ISQA 440, Spring, 2012 Governmental Procurement
2. Oregon Law Structure Oregon law is structured under Federal laws and regulations and the Oregon Constitution Laws are referred to as statutes In Oregon the laws are entitled Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS) Rules support and clarify laws In Oregon the rules are entitled Oregon Administrative Rules (OAR).
3. Federal Laws and Regulations Federal laws and regulations almost always supersede state laws State laws usually add to federal requirements, but may not conflict with, waive, or challenge federal laws. Example: Davis Bacon wage laws
4. Oregon Constitution The Oregon Constitution is the highest form of Oregon Law The Constitution consists of a few pages of permanent laws that are very conceptual All laws of the Legislative Assembly and all decisions of the courts and public agencies must conform to Federal or Oregon constitutional laws The Constitution can only be changed by a vote of the people Statutes can be promulgated and changed by the Oregon legislature
5. Oregon Revised Statutes Laws are passed by the Legislative Assembly --- these laws are more specific than the general laws of the Constitution The Legislative Administration Committee organizes the statutes into sets of law books Persons, groups, agencies and companies to which laws pertain must follow these statutes to the "letter of the law."
6. Case Law (Common Law) Judges of the appellate courts make these laws Publishers collect them in growing sets of thousands of indices and law books Oregon courts publish their decisions in a set called the Oregon Digest Generally, these laws must be followed by all lower courts until they are revised by appellate decisions or by legislation These laws are usually interpreted and explained by lawyers They are a very large part of commercial and contract law
7. Oregon Administrative Rules After obtaining public input, the Secretary of State publishes the administrative rules Agencies, authorized by statue, adopt administrative rules (OAR) The rules expand upon the statutes (ORS) and typically apply to the public, not just state government Rules provide specific details, terms, conditions, and requirements and are enforced by administrative hearings and by the courts Like statutes, they must be strictly followed PSU ISQA 410, Spring, 2011 Governmental Procurement
8. Management Directives(Policies, Guidelines) Management directives are guidelines or rules issued by agencies mostly for internal use only Policies are issued without public input Policies help apply consistent standards of operations and public policy within state government Some include specific procedures to follow For some persons, such as employees, they carry the weight of a law or administrative rule.
9. Internal Agency Guidelines Internal procedures are those written guidelines that serve the in-house operation of a particular agency, division, section, or other work group Typically, these procedures describe the approved or most effective ways to operate internally They affect only the employees in the work group but may affect users of agency transactions
10. Oregon’s Public Contracting Code
11. Governmental Procurement Public Sector That sector of society which is essential for the operation of a caring and orderly society, usually financed with public funds; deals with the delivery of goods and services by and for various governments. Private Sector That sector of society which is comparatively unregulated, is usually operated by private entities, is usually financed with private funds, and is primarily concerned with profit; deals with the delivery of goods and services by and for private ownership. Public vs. Private Sector Procurement
12. Oregon’s Public Contracting Code ORS 279 = Oregon Revised Statute to administer ALL public procurement in the state OAR 125 = Oregon Administrative Rules governing ALL state agencies through the State Procurement Office (SPO) which is now part of Department of Administrative Services (DAS)
13. Oregon’s Public Contracting Code OAR 137 = Attorney General’s Public Contract Rules governing ALL state agencies through the Department Of Justice (DOJ) All public agencies except those which write and adopt their own procurement rules OAR 137 is also (affectionately) known as the Attorney General’s Model Public Contracting Rules
14. Procurement Rules Designed To... Protect taxpayer’s funds from misuse & abuse Protect governmental agencies from adverse publicity Protect all governmental agencies from negative audit findings Conserve funds for maximum efficiency (most bang for buck) Ensure accountability throughout all processes and agencies Achieve socioeconomic goals
15. Purposes of the Procurement Code Provide the policies and processes for procurement of all goods, services and construction by public funds in Oregon. Provide the authority for expenditure of public funds Provide methodologies for a variety of procurement processes such as Source Selection, Protests, Solicitations, Judicial Review, and many others
16. Key Policies in ORS 279 Construct public improvement at the least cost to the public agency Encourage public contracting competition that supports openness and impartiality to the maximum extent possible General rule; full, open and fair competition among all interested bidders/proposers
17. Key Issues in ORS 279 “B” Source Selection Methods Request for Bid (lowest bid) Request for Proposal (best value) Request for Qualifications (not cost)
18. Key Issues in ORS 279 “B”Source Selection Methods (1) Small Procurements (not exceeding $5,000 Intermediate Procurements (not exceeding $150,000) Competitive Sealed Bids (exceeding $150,000) Competitive Sealed Proposals(exceeding $150,000)
19. Key Issues in ORS 279 “B”Source Selection Methods Sole Source Procurements (goods or services only available from one source) Emergency Procurements (circumstances which could not have been reasonably foreseen) Special Procurements(do not require bidding)
20. Key Issues in ORS 279 “C” Most construction remained unchanged Performance and Payment bonds now must be separated (used to be combined) Some alternative processes for Special Procurements such as CMGC, Design-Build, BAFOs and Negotiated Construction Contracts are now defined and approved Use of Competitive Proposals can be authorized for public improvements under certain conditions
21. Key Issues in ORS 279 “C” Definitions and procedural requirements are given for Architects, Engineers, Land Surveyors and Related Services Qualifications Based Selection processes must be used for A/E/LS by public agencies (State and local)
22. Other ORSs of Interest ORS 192: Public Records ORS 244: Ethics Laws ORS 656: Workers Comp ORS 701: Construction Contracting ORS 839: BOLI (Labor & PWR)