ENROLLED ORIGINAL
DC Bill 12-366
D. C. ACT 12-249
AN ACT IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
JANUARY 8, 1998
To amend the District of Columbia Procurement Practices Act of 1985 to clarify the
procurement experience required of the Chief Procurement Of 12-366 require that the Chief
Procurement Officer be provided with a list of personnel whose procurement functions fall
under the authority of the Chief Procurement Officer, to require the transfer to the
Office of Contracting and Procurement of all employees under its authority along with the
assets and budget authority associated with those functions, and to clarify that the
provisions of the act do not apply to the operations of the Health and Hospitals Public
Benefit Corporation.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this act may be cited as
the "Chief Procurement Officer Qualification Amendment Act of 1997".
Sec. 2. The District of Columbia Procurement Practices Act of 1985, effective February
21, 1986 (D.C. Law 6-85; D.C. Code §1-1181.1 et seq.), is amended as follows:
(a) Section 105e(d) (D.C. Code §1-1181.5e(d)) is amended to read as follows:
"(d) The Chief Procurement Officer shall have not less than 7 years of
senior-level experience in procurement and shall have demonstrated, through his or her
knowledge and experience, the ability to administer a public procurement system of the
size and complexity of the program established by this act.".
(b) Section 207 (D.C. Code §1-1182.7) is amended as follows:
(1) Subsection (a) is amended to read as follows:
"(a) Within 15 days of the effective date of the Chief Procurement Officer
Qualification Amendment Act of 1997, all agencies, boards, commissions, and entities whose
procurement functions fall under the authority of the CPO shall provide the CPO with a
list of personnel who spend a majority of their time on procurement duties. The Director
of Personnel shall review the lists to ensure that they include all the employees who
primary responsibility is to perform procurement duties.(2) Subsection (b) is amended to read as follows:
"(b) Within 30 days of the effective date of the Chief Procurement Officer
Qualification Amendment Act of 1997, employees listed as performing procurement duties in
subsection (a) of this section shall be transferred to the OCP along with the assets and
budget authority associated with those functions.".
(c) Section 320 (D.C. Code §1-1183.20) is amended by adding a new subsection (j) to
read as follows:
"(j) Nothing in this act shall affect the operations of the District of Columbia
Health and Hospitals Public Benefit Corporation pursuant to the Heath and Hospitals Public
Benefit Corporation Act of 1996, effective April 19, 1997 (D.C. Law 11-212; D.C. Code
§32-261.1 et seq).".
Sec. 3. Fiscal impact statement.
The fiscal impact of Bill 12-366 will be positive. The legislation supports the
centralization of procurement functions under the Chief Procurement Officer, as
recommended by the Procurement Task Force of the Committee on Government Operations, and
by Pegasus/Langford, the consultants hired by the District of Columbia Financial
Responsibility and Management Assistance Authority to advise the District on procurement
policy and practices. Both the Procurement Task Force and Pegasus/Langford concluded that
centralization saves money, improves the quality of procurement, and promotes
accountability. In particular, centralization can yield significant cost reductions
through bulk purchases of goods and services used by multiple agencies. Pegasus/Langford
estimated that common purchases of goods and services, which is only one of the benefits
of centralization, could save the District $5.2 million annually. This projection is based
on a conservative estimate of a 2 percent cost reduction in the District’s annual spending
of $260 million for goods and services needed by multiple agencies.
Sec. 4. This act shall take effect following approval by the Mayor (or in the event of
veto by the Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), approval by the Financial
Responsibility and Management Assistance Authority as provided in section 203(a) of the
District of Columbia Financial Responsibility and Management Assistance Authority Act of
1995, approved April 17, 1995 (109 Stat. 116; D.C. Code §47-392.3(a), a 30-day period of
Congressional review as provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home
Rule Act, approved December 24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Code §1-233(c)(1), and
publication in the District of Columbia Register.