PRINTER'S NO. 2870
No. 2185 Session of 1988
INTRODUCED BY TRELLO, MAYERNIK, VAN HORNE, KENNEY, CORRIGAN,
BURD, DALEY, DISTLER, R. C. WRIGHT, HOWLETT AND OLASZ,
FEBRUARY 22, 1988
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT, FEBRUARY 22, 1988
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of June 24, 1931 (P.L.1206, No.331), entitled
2 "An act concerning townships of the first class; amending,
3 revising, consolidating, and changing the law relating
4 thereto," further regulating contracts, advertisements,
5 specifications, and bids for certain contracts.
6 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
7 hereby enacts as follows:
8 Section 1. Subsection (a) and the first paragraph and clause
9 (2) of subsection (d) of the act of June 24, 1931 (P.L.1206,
10 No.331), known as The First Class Township Code, reenacted and
11 amended May 27, 1949 (P.L.1955, No.569) and amended December 22,
12 1981 (P.L.535, No.154) and December 17, 1986 (P.L.1682, No.195),
13 are amended to read:
14 Section 1802. General Regulations Concerning Contracts.--(a)
15 All contracts or purchases made by any township, involving the
16 expenditure of over [four thousand dollars] ten thousand
17 dollars, except those hereinafter mentioned, shall not be made
18 except with and from the lowest responsible bidder, shall be in
19 writing, and shall be made only after notice by the secretary,
1 published, in one newspaper of general circulation, published or
2 circulating in the county in which the township is situated, at
3 least two times at intervals of not less than three days where
4 daily newspapers of general circulation are employed for such
5 publication, or in case weekly newspapers are employed then the
6 notice shall be published once a week for two successive weeks.
7 The first advertisement shall be published not more than forty-
8 five days and the second advertisement not less than ten days
9 prior to the date fixed for the opening of bids. Advertisements
10 for contracts or purchases shall also be posted in a conspicuous
11 place within the township. All plans and specifications shall be
12 on file at least ten days in advance of opening bids. The amount
13 of the contract shall in all cases, whether of straight sale
14 price, conditional sale, bailment lease, or otherwise, be the
15 entire amount which the township pays to the successful bidder
16 or his assigns in order to obtain the services or property, or
17 both, and shall not be construed to mean only the amount which
18 is paid to acquire title or to receive any other particular
19 benefit or benefits of the whole bargain.
20 * * *
21 (d) The contracts or purchases made by the commissioners
22 involving an expenditure of over [four thousand dollars] ten
23 thousand dollars, which shall not require advertising or
24 bidding, as hereinbefore provided, are as follows:
25 * * *
26 (2) Those made for improvements, repairs and maintenance of
27 any kind made or provided by any township through its own
28 employes: Provided, however, That all materials used for street
29 improvement, maintenance, and/or construction in excess of [four
30 thousand dollars] ten thousand dollars be subject to the
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1 advertising requirements as contained herein.
2 * * *
3 Section 2. Sections 1802.1 and 1805 of the act, amended
4 December 22, 1981 (P.L.535, No.154), are amended to read:
5 Section 1802.1. Evasion of Advertising Requirements.--No
6 commissioner or commissioners shall evade the provisions of
7 section one thousand eight hundred two as to advertising for
8 bids, by purchasing or contracting for services and personal
9 properties piecemeal for the purpose of obtaining prices under
10 [four thousand dollars] ten thousand dollars upon transactions,
11 which transactions should, in the exercise of reasonable
12 discretion and prudence, be conducted as one transaction
13 amounting to more than [four thousand dollars] ten thousand
14 dollars. This provision is intended to make unlawful the evading
15 of advertising requirements by making a series of purchases or
16 contracts each for less than the advertising requirement price,
17 or by making several simultaneous purchases or contracts, each
18 below said price, when in either case, the transactions involved
19 should have been made as one transaction for one price. Any
20 commissioners who so vote in violation of this provision, and
21 who know that the transaction upon which they so vote is or
22 ought to be a part of a larger transaction, and that it is being
23 divided in order to evade the requirements as to advertising for
24 bids, shall be jointly and severally subject to surcharge for
25 ten per centum of the full amount of the contract or purchase.
26 Whenever it shall appear that a commissioner may have voted in
27 violation of this section, but the purchase or contract on which
28 he so voted was not approved by the board of commissioners, this
29 section shall be inapplicable.
30 Section 1805. Separate Specifications for Branches of
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1 Work.--In the preparation of specifications for the erection or
2 alteration of any public building, when the entire cost of such
3 work exceeds [four thousand dollars] ten thousand dollars, the
4 architect, engineer, or person preparing such specifications
5 shall prepare separate specifications for the plumbing, heating,
6 ventilating, and electrical work, and the township shall receive
7 separate bids upon each of such branches of work, and award the
8 contract for the same to the lowest responsible bidder.
9 Section 3. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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