PRINTER'S NO. 2171

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

No.

1646

Session of

2019

INTRODUCED BY M. K. KELLER, EVERETT, BERNSTINE, BROWN, DOWLING,

GLEIM, JONES, KAUFFMAN, KEEFER, MACKENZIE, MILLARD,

B. MILLER, MOUL, PYLE, RADER, SAYLOR AND ZIMMERMAN,

increasing the minimum bid requirement; and providing for

evasion of requirements.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. Section 1 of the act of May 1, 1913 (P.L.155,

No.104), referred to as the Separations Act, is amended to read:

Section 1. (a) Be it enacted, &c., That hereafter in the

preparation of specifications for the erection, construction,

and alteration of any public building, when the entire cost of

such work shall exceed [four thousand dollars] two hundred fifty

construction, or alteration of such public buildings to receive

separate bids upon each of the said branches of work, and to

award the contract for the same to the lowest responsible bidder

for each of said branches.

Every contract for the construction, reconstruction,

alteration, repair, improvement or maintenance of public works

shall comply with the provisions of the act of March 3, 1978

(P.L.6, No.3), known as the "Steel Products Procurement Act."

(b) Adjustments to the threshold specified under subsection

(a) shall be made as follows:

thereafter.

(2) If the Department of Labor and Industry determines that

there is no positive percentage change, no adjustment to the

threshold amount shall occur for the relevant time period.

(3) (i) If the Department of Labor and Industry determines

that there is a positive percentage change in the first year the

determination is made under paragraph (1), the positive

percentage change shall be multiplied by the threshold amount,

and the product shall be added to the base threshold amount,

and the sum shall be the preliminary adjusted amount.

percentage change in the CPI-U for the United States City

Average, the positive percentage change shall be multiplied by

the most recent threshold amount, and the product shall be added

to the threshold amount of the prior year to calculate the

preliminary adjusted amount for the current year. The sum shall

be rounded to the nearest one hundred dollars to determine the

new final adjusted threshold amount for purposes of subsection

(a).

(5) The determinations and adjustments required under this

subsection shall be made in the period between October 1 and

is made.

(7) The Department of Labor and Industry shall transmit

notice to the Legislative Reference Bureau for publication in

the Pennsylvania Bulletin prior to January 1 of each calendar

year of the annual percentage change determined under paragraph

(1) and the final adjusted threshold amount for the calendar

year beginning the first day of January after publication of the

notice. The notice shall include a written and illustrative

explanation of the calculations performed by the Department of

Labor and Industry in establishing the unadjusted or final

properties piecemeal to obtain prices under the required

advertising price, subject to annual adjustment under section

1(b). This section is intended to make unlawful the making of a

series of purchases or contracts each for less than the price to

which section 1 applies, or by making several simultaneous

purchases or contracts, each for less than the advertising

requirement price, when in either case, the transactions

involved should have been made as one transaction for one price.

A person who violates this provision, and who knows that the

transaction in question is or ought to be a part of a larger

Section 4. This act shall take effect in 60 days.