News  Inspector General Shapiro Supports Legislation for Updating Chapter 30B Law

Inspector General Jeffrey S. Shapiro sent three letters to the Chairs of the Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight last week in support of bills that make changes to Chapter 30B of the Massachusetts General Laws (Chapter 30B), the Uniform Procurement Act. The bills, H7, H3039, H3127 and S2019, make changes to the state procurement law that will provide consistency for municipalities. The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) advocates for transparency and fairness in public procurement. We recognize that procuring certain services under Chapter 30B can, at times, present challenges for governmental entities. The Inspector General believes these bills will address some of these challenges while preserving the transparency and fairness required by the law.

House 3127, An Act Relative to Chapter 30B Procurement Parity, and Senate 2019, An Act Relative to Chapter 30B Procurement, would raise the thresholds in Section 4 of Chapter 30B, making the thresholds for municipal government procurements the same as those for school districts. Download a PDF version of the letter.

House 3039, An Act Relative to Snow Hauling and Removal, would amend Section 1 of Chapter 30B to add snow hauling and removal to Chapter 30B’s current exemption for snow plowing. Including snow hauling and removal under the current snow plowing exemption makes sense from a procurement standpoint since the services naturally fit together. Download a PDF version of the letter.

House 7, An Act Relative to Technical Corrections in Chapter 30B, updates Chapter 30B to correct statutory references rendered inaccurate by amendments to other statutes. The language of this bill is identical to House 3037 sponsored by Representative Denise Garlick. Download a PDF version of the letter and the redline document with the proposed changes to Chapter 30B.