Senate passes Sen. DiPalma’s legislative package that reforms state purchasing processes

 

            STATE HOUSE – The Senate today passed two bills sponsored by Sen. Louis P. DiPalma (D-Dist. 12, Middletown, Little Compton, Newport, Tiverton) that would reform the state’s purchasing policies and processes.  The two bills are a result of numerous hours of work conducted by the Senate Rules, Government Ethics and Oversight Committee, which Senator DiPalma leads.

            “As we have seen with recent controversial state contracts and purchases, there is a distinct need for reform of our state purchasing processes and policies.  The public deserves transparency and assurances that every state contract or purchase agreement is made with the sole best-interests of Rhode Island residents in mind and these bills will provide the administrative framework to ensure that state contracts and purchases are conducted fairly, cost-effectively and without any inference or evidence of impropriety,” said Senator DiPalma.

            The first bill (2022-S 2586A) would require that no request for proposal shall change to a master-price agreement unless the request for proposal is cancelled and reissued as a master price agreement.  It also would provide certain criteria required of vendors, parent corporations, subsidiaries, affiliates and subcontractors of state vendors when bidding on requests for proposals.

            In particular, no vendor, parent corporation, subsidiary, affiliate or subcontractor of any state vendor may bid on a request for proposal if that person or entity has or had any contractual, financial, business or beneficial interest with the state or with any official, officer or agency in charge of the request or if they participated or were consulted with respect to the requirements, technical aspects or any other part of the formation and promulgation of the request for proposals.

            The second bill (2022-S 2601) passed would establish requirements with respect to requests for proposals submitted to the chief purchasing officer for review and ensure that the chief purchasing officer confirms that there are no conflicts or appearances of conflicts of interest between the interests of any individual appointed to the technical evaluation committee and the interests of the state.

            The bills now head to the House of Representatives for consideration where Rep. Patricia A. Serpa (D-Dist. 27, West Warwick, Coventry, Warwick) has introduced the legislation (2022-H 8101, 2022-H 8102).

 

President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump arrive in Kerrville, Texas today to assess the aftermath of last week's deadly floods. The President plans to meet with first responders, receive a briefing from local officials, and speak with families impacted by the disaster. Trump said he delayed the visit to avoid interfering with rescue efforts following the sudden, intense rainfall that caused the historic flooding.        At least five people were sent to the hospital after protesters clashed with federal immigration agents at a Southern California cannabis farm. The standoff happened Thursday as agents raided the state-licensed facility in Ventura County. Video posted on social media shows agents using less-lethal ammunition and tear gas on a crowd of protesters.        Five Democratic state lawmakers have filed a lawsuit against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and the state's emergency management director after being blocked from visiting the migrant detention facility known as Alligator Alcatraz. The legislators argue the denial of access oversteps executive authority. While the state now invites lawmakers for a tour tomorrow, some Democrats remain skeptical they'll see the facility's true conditions.        YouTube is updating its monetization policy to crack down on inauthentic content, aiming to limit earnings from mass-produced or repetitive videos created with AI. The platform now emphasizes that only original material qualifies for ad revenue. A full breakdown of the new rules is expected Tuesday, when YouTube releases its updated policy.        Justin Bieber's seventh studio album is out now. The hype started yesterday when he posted a picture of a billboard with a track list on social media. The new project is called "Swag" and marks Bieber's first album since 2021's "Justice."        A worn black leather Birkin bag once owned by British actress Jane Birkin fetches ten-million dollars at auction, setting a record. Designed for Birkin by Hermès in 1984, the iconic handbag was used daily for nearly a decade. A private collector from Japan placed the winning bid Thursday at Sotheby's.