WEST virginia
legislature
2017 regular session
By
[
to the Committee on Government Organizations then the Judiciary.
A BILL to amend the Code
of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated
§5A-3-10f, relating generally to
purchasing; defining terms; prohibiting the award and renewal of contracts
worth over $2 million to vendors owned, in whole or in part, by state officials
or by family members of state officials; requiring an affidavit of compliance
with this section to accompany bids, contract proposals and contracts with the
state; and providing for Ethics Commission review and approval of exceptions to
this prohibition.
Be it enacted by the
Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended by adding thereto a new section,
designated §5A-3-10f, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. PURCHASING
DIVISION.
§5A-3-10f.
Prohibition on awarding contracts to vendors owned by state officials or
by family members of state officials.
(a) Unless the context
clearly requires a different meaning, for the purposes of this section, the
following terms are defined as follows:
(1) "Family member of a state official" means a person who is the spouse, father, mother,
son, daughter, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece of any state
official, or who is the spouse of any such person so related to a state
official.
(2) "State office" means:
(A) The Office of the Governor;
(B) The Office of the
Secretary of State;
(C) The Office of the
State Treasurer;
(D) The Office of the
State Auditor;
(E)The Office of the Attorney General;
(F) The Office of the
Commissioner of Agriculture;
(G) The office of any
member of the State Board of Education;
(H) The office of any
member of the West Virginia Senate;
(I) The office of any
member of the West Virginia House of Delegates;
(J) The Office of a
Justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals
of West Virginia; and
(K) The office of a
judge of any state circuit court.
(3) "State official" means any person who is elected to or appointed by
the Governor to a state office.
(4) "Vendor"
means any sole-proprietorship, corporation, partnership, association, limited liability
company or any other form or business association which is a for-profit entity.
(b) No contract or
renewal of any contract over $2 million in value may be awarded by the state to
any vendor or prospective vendor when the vendor or prospective vendor is
related to any state official by blood, marriage, ownership or a contract
through which the state official or the family member of a state official has a
relationship of ownership or other interest with the vendor and where the state
official or family member of a state official has an ownership interest of
greater than five percent in the vendor.
(c) All bids, contract
proposals or contracts with the state submitted or approved under the
provisions of this code shall include an affidavit that the vendor, prospective
vendor or a related party to the vendor or prospective vendor is not in
violation of this section.
(d) Upon request, the
Ethics Commission may review bids, contract proposals or contracts with the
state submitted or approved under the provisions of this code and may approve
exceptions to the provisions of subsection (b) of this section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is
to prohibit awarding or renewing state contracts of over $2 million to vendors
owned, in whole or part, by state officials or by family members of state
officials. The bill also requires an
affidavit of compliance with the prohibition to accompany bids, contract
proposals and contracts with the state, and provides for Ethics Commission
review and approval of exceptions to this prohibition.
Strike-throughs indicate language
that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring
indicates new language that would be added.