21.02.01.04

.04 Delegation of Procurement and Contracting Authority.

A. Notwithstanding the following delegations in §B of this regulation, a contract funded with general obligation bond proceeds must be approved by the Board regardless of amount in accordance with State Finance and Procurement Article, §8-301, Annotated Code of Maryland.

B. The Department of General Services. The Board hereby delegates authority to the Secretary of General Services for the approval and award of the following procurement contracts within the Department’s jurisdiction:

(1) Except for insurance, insurance related, banking, investment, and financial services, the following contracts, contract actions, and awards: Capital construction contracts, construction-related services contracts, information technology contracts, including information processing equipment, cloud computing equipment and associated services, and information technology system modernization, as provided in State Finance and Procurement Article, Title 3.5, Subtitle 3, Annotated Code of Maryland, telecommunication equipment systems or services as provided in State Finance and Procurement Article, Title 3.5, Subtitle 4, Annotated Code of Maryland, service contracts, architectural and engineering contracts, maintenance contracts, contracts for rental vehicles supplied to using agencies in accordance with COMAR 21.02.05.08, secondary competition awards, renewal options, and modifications in accordance with COMAR 21.05.13.06, capital construction change orders, capital construction-related service change orders, information processing equipment and associated services change orders, cloud computing services change orders, and information technology system and cybersecurity upgrades change orders in accordance with State Finance and Procurement Article, Title 3.5, Subtitle 3, in the amount of $200,000 or less;

(2) All contracts for the purchase of commodities or supplies, except as provided in §B(3) of this regulation and except for insurance and insurance-related services.

(3) Contracts or Leases that Include any Single Item of Equipment That is $200,000 or Less. Contracts or leases including any single item of equipment that is more than $200,000 must be approved by the Board.

(4) Invoices necessary for the administration of capital improvement contracts;

(5) Contract modifications, excluding construction contract change orders, that:

(a) Do not materially change the scope of the original contract;

(b) Individually do not change the amount of the contract, or any cost component of the contract, by more than $50,000; or

(c) Exercise by a using agency a contract option of $200,000 or less;

(6) Contracts in the amount of $100,000 or less resulting from sole source procurement;

(7) Contracts in the amount of $50,000 or less resulting from competitive [procurement] sealed bidding or competitive sealed proposals procurements in which only one bid or offer was received;

(8) Leases for agency-supplied employee housing;

(9) Purchasing, leasing, and rental contracts for the acquisition of motor vehicles for use by State officials and employees, pursuant to State Finance and Procurement Article, Title 3, Subtitle 5, Annotated Code of Maryland;

(10) Procurements by the Department for the purpose of modernizing cybersecurity infrastructure for the State valued below $1,000,000; and

(11) Energy Performance Contracts.

(a) A procurement agency shall consult with the Department of General Services during the development phase of a project that will require an energy performance contract.

(b) Before issuing a request for proposals for an energy performance contract, a procurement agency shall consult with the Department of General Services and the Chief Procurement Officer.

(c) The Department of General Services shall review the proposed request to ensure that it meets with the State energy standards and preserves the State’s flexibility to investigate and use economically justifiable new technologies.

(d) A procuring agency pursuing an energy contract must receive final approval from the Department of General Services before submitting the proposed contract to the Board of Public Works for approval.

(e) Notwithstanding any other provision of law and subject to the approval and control of the Board of Public Works and the Chief Procurement Officer, a unit of State government is authorized to enter into energy performance contracts of up to 30 years’ duration.

C. The Department of Transportation.

(1) The Board hereby delegates authority to the Secretary of Transportation and to the Maryland Transportation Authority for the approval and award of the following procurement contracts within their respective jurisdictions:

(a) Transportation-related construction contracts and change orders in the amount of $200,000 or less;

(b) Capital construction-related service contracts and change orders in the amount of $200,000 or less;

(c) Architectural and engineering contracts in the amount of $200,000 or less;

(d) Maintenance contracts in the amount of $200,000 or less;

(e) All contracts for transportation-related commodities and supplies, including equipment contracts and leases, but excluding equipment contracts and leases including any single item of equipment that is more than $200,000;

(f) Contract modifications, excluding construction contract change orders, that:

(i) Do not materially change the scope of the original contract;

(ii) Individually do not change the amount of the contract, or any cost component of the contract, by more than $50,000; or

(iii) Exercise a contract option of $200,000 or less;

(g) Contracts in the amount of $100,000 or less resulting from sole source procurement;

(h) Contracts in the amount of $50,000 or less resulting from competitive sealed bidding or competitive sealed proposals procurements in which only one bid or offer was received;

(i) All procurements for aeronautics related services, commodities and supplies, including equipment contracts and leases, but excluding banking, insurance, insurance-related, investment, and financial services; and

(j) Secondary competition awards, renewal options, and modifications in accordance with COMAR 21.05.13.06 in the amount of $200,000 or less.

(2) The Secretary of Transportation and the Maryland Transportation Authority have procurement and contracting authority for capital expenditure contracts in connection with State roads, bridges, or highways.

D. Repealed.

E. The Treasurer. The Board hereby delegates authority to the Treasurer for the approval and award of the following procurement contracts within the Treasurer’s jurisdiction:

(1) Banking, investment, and other financial services contracts authorized by State Finance and Procurement Article, §12-107, Annotated Code of Maryland;

(2) Contracts for insurance and insurance-related services obtained pursuant to State Finance and Procurement Article, Title 9 and §12-107, Annotated Code of Maryland.

F. Maryland Port Commission. The Board hereby delegates authority to the Chairman of the Maryland Port Commission for the approval and award of the following procurement contracts within the Maryland Port Commission’s jurisdiction:

(1) Construction contracts and change orders for Port facilities in the amount of $200,000 or less;

(2) Construction-related service contracts and change orders for Port facilities in the amount of $200,000 or less;

(3) Port-related architectural services and engineering services contracts in the amount of $200,000 or less;

(4) Port-related maintenance contracts in the amount of $200,000 or less;

(5) Except as provided in §F(6) of this regulation, contracts for the purchase of commodities and supplies, including motor vehicles and information technology supplies, but excluding insurance and insurance-related services;

(6) Contracts or leases within the procurement authority of the Maryland Port Commission that include any single item of equipment that is $200,000 or less, and contracts or leases that include any single item of equipment that is more than $200,000 must be approved by the Board.

(7) Contract modifications, excluding construction contract change orders, that:

(a) Do not materially change the scope of the original contract;

(b) Individually do not change the amount of a contract, or any cost component of the contract, by more than $50,000;

(c) Exercise a contract option of $200,000 or less; or

(d) Change cargo and equipment handling rates in stevedoring or terminal services contracts approved by the Board when the contract modification, either individually or in combination with previous contract modifications, does not change the price of the original contract by more than 20 percent.

(8) Service contracts for the Maryland Port Administration in the amount of $200,000 or less, including information technology services, but excluding banking, insurance, insurance-related, investment, and financial services;

(9) Contracts in the amount of $100,000 or less resulting from sole source procurement;

(10) Contracts in the amount of $50,000 or less resulting from competitive sealed bidding or competitive sealed proposals procurements in which only one bid or offer was received; and

(11) Leases of real property for Port-related activities having a value of $50,000 or less per year, and provided the lease payments, in whole or in part, are not paid from the General Fund. (The real property leases governed by this regulation shall be reported to the Board on the Maryland Port Commission Procurement Agency Activity Report (PAAR) at the earliest practicable time.)

G. Repealed.

H. Repealed.

I. A unit may not artificially divide a procurement contract or contract modification to avoid obtaining Board approval.