Esta ley enmienda la Ley de la Administración de Servicios Generales para establecer un Registro Exclusivo de Licitadores de carácter obligatorio para todas las agencias ejecutivas y corporaciones públicas. Define los conceptos de Certificado de Elegibilidad, Licitador y Registro Exclusivo de Licitadores, y detalla las responsabilidades de la Administración de Servicios Generales en la administración de dicho registro, incluyendo la evaluación de licitadores, la publicación de requisitos y la emisión de certificados.
(Approved June 18, 2002)
To add subsections
(f) ,
(g) and
(h) to Section 2; and add subsection
(v) to Section 14 of Act No. 164 of July 23, 1974, as amended, known as the "General Services Administration Act" in order to include an Exclusive Register for Bidders of mandatory nature as a power of the General Services Administration, and to define the concepts of Certificate of Eligibility, Bidder and Exclusive Register of Bidders.
Act No. 164 of July 23, 1974, as amended, known as the General Services Administration Act, empowers it to create the policies needed for the acquisition of goods and services for the agencies of the Executive Branch. Its purpose is to serve as support to the executive agencies in order to simplify and expedite the process of government purchases, improve the quality of services, and control the expenses incurred. This process comprises bidding procedures for those products of common use in the executive agencies.
The process for the acquisition of goods and services is carried out through contracting between the Government and bidders. The large amount of public funds destined for government purchases requires that the participants in this process be qualified and competent suppliers. With this in mind, it is necessary for persons who wish to bid with the Government to
show their suitability through the presentation of documents attesting to their compliance with the laws and regulations applicable to each of them.
At present, the General Services Administration maintains a register of bidders that has proven to be effective in expediting the process of searching for responsible suppliers to make Government purchases. One of the advantages of the register of bidders is the possibility of calling those previously qualified suppliers to bid, thus eliminating the process of having to publish notices for bids in the newspapers. At present, this register is used by those Executive Agencies compelled to make their purchases through the General Services Administration; however, there is no legal provision that requires the uniform use thereof. Said register, which includes some eight hundred registered bidders, is available at the offices of the General Services Administration as well as in its Internet website. Taking into consideration what is stated above, it is necessary to amend the General Services Administration Act to create an Exclusive Register of Bidders.
The General Services Administration shall have the power to maintain an Exclusive Register of Bidders, of mandatory nature for all the Executive Agencies, including those that through their enabling acts have been excluded from the Administration Act. Therefore, every supplier who wishes to participate in the purchasing process of the Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico shall be compelled to submit to the procedure to be established through regulations by the Administration, to be registered in the Exclusive Register of Bidders. Likewise, all the executive agencies of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico shall be compelled to use the Register to process the acquisition of goods and services.
The use of the Exclusive Register of Bidders prevents that each government agency has to individually devotes time and effort to the qualification of bidders. Likewise, in the measure that suppliers do not have to prove their qualifications to each agency, every time they wish to participate in the process of purchasing goods and services, simplifies the process. This encourages the participation of potential suppliers and broadens the accessible market of the Executive Agencies of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
The General Services Administration Act shall apply to public corporations solely for the purpose of their mandatory inclusion in the Exclusive Register of Bidders. The intention of said provision is to establish equality in the criteria to qualify bidders who intervene in government purchases, be it through Executive Agencies or public corporations. Furthermore, those persons who wish to bid with public corporations shall enjoy the advantages offered by the convenience of the Exclusive Register of Bidders.
Section 1.- Subsections
(f) ,
(g) and
(h) are hereby added to Section 2 of Act No. 164 of July 23, 1974, as amended, to read as follows: "Section 2.- Definitions
(a) $\ldots$
(f) Certificate of Eligibility - certificate issued by the General Services Administration accrediting compliance by the bidder of the requirements established through regulations to appear in the Exclusive Register of Bidders.
(g) Bidder - Any natural or juridical person registered in the Exclusive Register of Bidders of the General Services
Administration that is available and interested in contracting and appearing at the presentation of offers for Government bidding.
(h) Exclusive Register of Bidders - Register which lists the natural or juridical persons that are qualified by the Administration to contract with the Government for having met the requirements established by the Administrator."
Section 2.- Subsection
(v) is hereby added to Section 14 of Act No. 164 of July 23, 1974, as amended to read as follows: "Section 14.- The Administrator shall have the following powers, in addition to those conferred by this Chapter, or by other laws.
(a) $\ldots$
(v) Shall have the responsibility to prepare, administer and manage an Exclusive Register of Bidders for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, which shall be compulsory for all bidders who wish to participate in the acquisition and purchase processes of the Executive Agencies and Public Corporations of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The Register shall be available in an Internet website and its data shall be open and available for use by the Executive Agencies and Public Corporations of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The Administration shall have the obligation to publish notices, at least twice (2) a year, in the written press, radio and the Internet, to convoke for registration, once every two (2) years in the Administration's Exclusive Register of Bidders, those natural or juridical persons who wish to enter the market for the acquisition of goods and service of the Executive Agencies and the public corporations of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
Every Executive Agency of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is compelled to use said register as a prior step for the acquisition of goods and services and to furnish the Administration information on contractors or bidders that appear in said Register, and on every matter regarding probable noncompliance by said contractors or bidders. The Administration is bound to furnish to every Executive Agency or public corporation of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico information of the contractual background of any bidder and contractor, when the Acquisitions Office of the Administration thus requires it.
The Administrator shall have the responsibility to: (1) Evaluate, under objective criteria to be determined through Regulations, every bidder who wishes to establish a contractual relationship with the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico through his/her appearance in the Register, to the effect of ensuring that the Executive Agencies and the Public Corporations of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico shall only contract with natural or juridical persons of proven moral and financial integrity and who have not incurred in acts of corruption against the State. These Regulations shall be prepared by the General Services Administration, and filed in those agencies required by law, no later than thirty (30) days after the effectiveness of this Act. (2) Ascertain that all persons must have the same requirements to appear in the Exclusive Register of Bidders.
(3) Ensure that all bidders comply, truly and effectively, with the necessary requirements to validate their contracting with the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, so that a bidder shall not be required, several times during the same period, to comply with the same requirements by different government bodies. If, as part of the registration process, a bidder is required to present documents issued by government agencies, such as certificates of incorporation, or of government debt, the bidder shall have the option to obtain and produce said documents or authorize the Administration to obtain them, by advancing, through a check, the amount of the fees or costs that the different agencies will require for the issuing of said documents. Said authorization shall be equivalent to having filed said documents on time. (4) Maintain the data of the Exclusive Register up-to-date. (5) Make public the requirements to be satisfied by the persons who are interested in appearing in the Exclusive Register of Bidders, both the general requirements to bid with the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, as well as the specific ones, as provided by the Executive Agencies and the Public Corporations of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico on the basis of their specific needs. (6) Monitor the contractual measures of the bidders with the Government to ascertain that they comply with the formalities, requirements and obligations that are mandatory by law.
(7) Reduce the costs of the public bidding process, by having the option to use the notification system by invitation rather than the notice in the newspaper. (8) Issue "Certificates of Eligibility" to any bidder, Executive Agency of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico to accredit the eligibility of a bidder to participate in the acquisition and purchasing processes of an Executive Agency or Public Corporation of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. (9) Approve, amend and repeal regulations to structure the Exclusive Register of Bidders. (10) Impose, collect and fix fair and reasonable rates, fees, rents and other charges for the annual registration in the Exclusive Registers of Bidders and for the issuing of the Certificate of Eligibility, which shall at least cover the related expenses incurred by the Administration."
Section 3.- This Act shall take effect sixty (60) days after its approval.
I hereby certify to the Secretary of State that the following Act No. 85 (H.B. 2449) of the $\underline{3}^{ ext {rd }}$ Session of the $\underline{14}^{ ext {th }}$ Legislature of Puerto Rico:
AN ACT to add subsections
(f) ,
(g) and
(h) to Section 2; and add subsection
(v) to Section 14 of Act No. 164 of July 23, 1974, as amended, known as the "General Services Administration Act" in order to include an Exclusive Register for Bidders of mandatory nature as a power of the General Services Administration, and to define the concepts of Certificate of Eligibility, Bidder and Exclusive Register of Bidders, has been translated from Spanish to English and that the English version is correct.
In San Juan, Puerto Rico, today $8^{ ext {th }}$ of November of 2002.
Elba Rosa Rodríguez-Fuentes Director