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![handle is hein.nyscompop/nyscomo2007 and id is 1 raw text is: Opinion 2007- 1
Opinion 2007 - 1
This opinion represents the views of the Office of the State Comptroller at the
time it was rendered. The opinion may no longer represent those views if, among
other things, there have been subsequent court cases or statutory amendments
that bear on the issues discussed in the opinion.
PUBLIC CONTRACTS -- Contracts Not Requiring Bidding (paratransit
services) -- Policies and Procedures (request for proposals process for
paratransit services) -- Professional Services (paratransit services)
GENERAL MUNICIPAL LAW §§103, 104-b: County contracts with private
bus companies to provide paratransit services in connection with a program in
compliance with the American with Disabilities Act of 1990 fall within the
professional services exception to competitive bidding requirements and may be
procured through a request for proposals process in accordance with the
county's procurement policies and procedures.
You ask whether the procurement of paratransit services by a county falls
within the professional services exception to the competitive bidding
requirements of General Municipal Law § 103. You indicate that, in lieu of
competitive bidding, the county wishes to utilize a request for proposals
(RFP) process under its procurement policies and procedures adopted
pursuant to General Municipal Law § 104-b.
You state that the county contracts with private bus companies to provide
paratransit services in connection with a program in compliance with the
American with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) (42 USCS § 12101 et seq.).
This program operates seven days per week and is a demand-responsive,
advance reservation, curb to curb service for eligible customers. The eligible
customers do not have the functional capability to ride fixed-route buses due to
a disability. The bus companies would provide trained drivers, dispatchers and
other personnel, and would be responsible for, among other things,
investigating customer complaints and maintaining certain records.
You indicate that, given the special nature of paratransit services, in particular
the vulnerability of the disabled passengers that use this service, the county
desires a high level of trust and confidence in the bus companies that provide
paratransit services. You also indicate that procuring these services through an
RFP process would allow the county to evaluate the bus companies for these
attributes and give the appropriate weight to these attributes in the selection
process.
General Municipal Law (GML) § 103 provides, inter alia, that except as
otherwise provided by the State Legislature, all contracts for public work
involving an expenditure in excess of $20,000 shall be awarded to the lowest
responsible bidder after public advertisement. In addition to the exceptions
established by the State Legislature (see, e.g., GML §§ 103 [3],[4)], 104), there
are several well-established common law exceptions to the competitive bidding
requirements of GML § 103. One such common law exception is for the
procurement of professional services. The primary rationale for this exception is
that these services are not the type of work that may be properly the subject
Opinion 2007 - 1](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.nyscompop/nyscomo2007&div=1&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)