SB 1041 - This act makes several changes to the Office of Administration with regards to purchasing products and services from Missouri based businesses and prohibits those who have served as chief information officer and have had the capacity to influence computer purchases in that department from receiving gratuities or employment from businesses who contract with the state for a period of two years.

This act makes various changes to the state purchasing law. The act:

(1) Requires purchasers for the state to enter into, renew, or extend state contracts to Missouri based businesses. If products or services are not available through a Missouri based business, a purchaser may purchase from another source. The Commissioner of Administration must adopt rules for distributing potential bids to Missouri based businesses;

(2) Requires the State Auditor to annually audit cost-plus contracts to determine if the state is receiving the best price;

(3) Allows an open contract which is considered to be any contract that is let, renewed, or extended which is based on cost plus a fixed guaranteed profit to be supplied by any willing provider who meets the technical requirements for the product, except in the event of a state disaster emergency;

(4) Expands the ability of the Commissioner of Administration to participate in cooperative purchasing agreements and purchase supplies from the federal governmental services administration;

(5) Expands the purchase preference the Commissioner must give to include products assembled in the state;

(6) Requires the state to give a 30% preference, to Missouri based firms when awarding contracts; and

(7) Requires the Office of Administration to annually audit minority business participation reports.

The act also makes submitting a false report to the state the crime of making a false declaration. The penalty for making a false declaration is increased from a Class B to a Class A misdemeanor. The Attorney General is given authority to prosecute the crime of making a false declaration.

Those provisions are similar to the ones contained in HB 1728 (2000).

This act also prohibits a current or any former Chief Information Officer of the Office of Administration or a person who served in a similar position and who has had the capacity to influence computer-related purchases, either during the Information Officer's employment or for a period of 2 years after leaving the position, from receiving any gift, honoraria, meals, lodging, travel, speaking fees, or reimbursement, or from being employed or retained by any computer vendor, manufacturer, supplier, wholesaler, or retailer which has contracted with the state of Missouri.

Persons violating this prohibition are guilty of a Class D felony. Entities that have employed or given gifts to the Information Officer over the past 5 years must report all expenditures to the Missouri Ethics Commission by October 1, 2000, or be excluded from the state procurement process.

These provisions are similar to those contained in HB 1627 (2000).

This act contains penalty provisions.
STEPHEN WITTE