Relates to procurements by the New York city transit authority and the metropolitan transportation authority

Summary of provisions

Sections one and two of the bill would amend Public Authorities Law (PAL) § 1265-a(1) and 1209(6) to extend the sunset of various procurement rules from June 30, 2011 to June 30, 2015.

Section three of the bill would provide for an immediate effective date.

Existing law

PAL § 1209 (applicable to NYCT) currently has a sunset date of June 30, 2011 for subdivisions 7 through 13, and PAL § 1265-a (applicable to MTA) currently contains a sunset date of June 30, 2011 that applies to the entire section.

Legislative history

The applicable provisions of law have been extended, for various periods of time, by prior legislation. See Chapter 135 of the Laws of 2008; Chapter 136 of the Laws of 2005; Chapter 745 of the Laws of 2004; Chapter 334 of the Laws of 2001; Chapter 256 of the Laws of 1998; Chapter 637 of the Laws of 1996.

Statement in support

Extending the sunset dates for PAL §§ 1265-a and 1209 will permit MTA and NYCT to continue to use procurement methods, such as competitive Requests for Proposal (RFP), that are critical to procuring complex systems and major construction contracts. MTA and NYCT use competitive RFPs on projects that require extensive dialog with proposers prior to the completion of contract terms and pricing. RFPs are useful for projects that incorporate new technology such as rolling stock, communications, signaling systems and communication based train control. Continuing innovations in these fields require the flexibility provided by the competitive negotiation that is not available when employing sealed bidding. Many of the new products will be used to improve MTA's and NYCT's ability to monitor passenger facilities and react to emergencies. RFPs allow the MTA

and NYCT to evaluate the products that best meet project requirements by accepting proposals from suppliers and then determining the merits. If the existing provisions of the statutes are not extended, MTA and NYCT would be forced to procure these projects via sealed bidding - a method that provides no room for evaluating the innovative and complex products that would best meet the needs of the public, If the agencies were limited to the sealed bidding method they would effectively be precluded from procuring these new technologies.

This extension will also allow NYCT to continue to procure subway cars by competitive RFP rather than sealed bids. When such procurements are not federally funded, New York State-content may be one of the criteria for selection of the awardee.

This extension would also allow MTA to consider a party's status as a Minority and Woman owned Business Enterprises (MWBE) as one of the criteria for selection of the awardee.

This extension will also allow MTA and NYCT to continue using Qualified Products Lists (QPLs), which permits various materials, supplies, and equipment to be standardized to achieve efficiency, economy, compatibility, and/or maintenance reliability. Placing an item on a QPL allows MTA and NYCT to quickly obtain critical material and equipment that meet exact specifications. When all item is placed on the QPL, only pre-qualified products of specified manufacturers may be offered in response to bids for that item. Items on a QPL generally require extensive testing to determine that they will be compatible with existing equipment and/or be able to withstand the rigors of the subway environment. For example, NYCT has determined that it requires as much as a year and-a-half to identify hidden defects in subway car wheels. Without pre-qualification, it would be almost impossible to assure a consistent supply of wheels if the agency must take the time required to both test and procure a required product. Pre-qualification also permits MTA and NYCT to carefully review suppliers' manufacturing and quality control procedures to ensure the safety of our passengers. The use of pre-qualified product lists also provides savings in the operating budget because it enables MTA and NYCT to standardize maintenance materials and equipment to ensure compatibility thereby reducing the amount of material that must be purchased and held in inventory and reducing the amount of maintenance work that must be performed.

Finally, this extension will maintain the existing threshold above which MTA and NYCT must solicit purchases via sealed bids at $15,000. If this law were not extended, the threshold would revert to $10,000. Permitting the threshold to be reduced would delay certain MT A and NYCT procurements due to the additional administrative requirements of procuring by sealed bid.

This legislation will effect a critical extension that will ensure that, among other things, that NYCT can continue to properly negotiate procurements and to use QPLs. Extending the current statutes to June 2015 will allow the MTA to use consistent procurement methods throughout its 2010-2015 capital program.

Budget implications

This bill has no budgetary implications, but will offer cost savings to the MTA and NYCT.

Effective date

This bill would take effect immediately.