Bill Allowing For No-Bid Contracts Unanimously Clears Tennessee Senate

Image Credit: capitol.tn.gov

The Tennessee Conservative [By Olivia Lupia] –

A bill allowing local governments to enter contracts without first completing a bidding process unanimously passed the Senate on Monday, Feb. 2 as part of the chamber’s consent calendar.

SB0795 is a carryover from last year which states that local governments may purchase “goods and services directly, without bid or quotations, from vendors awarded general services administration (GSA) schedule contracts at prices equal to the vendor’s current GSA schedule price.”

Per the legislation, “goods” are defined to include “all improvements to real property, including, but not limited to, buildings, structures, equipment, fixtures, and anything else permanently attached to real property, but does not include real property.”

According to bill sponsor Paul Bailey (R- Sparta-District 15) in an earlier committee meeting, “This bill allows local governments to be able to purchase buildings from the GSA contract that’s offered through the GSA program. Currently there are applications where local governments can buy through GSA contracts, but this bill would just add their ability to buy buildings through the GSA contract.”

It appears this process is already in place, at least for certain projects, for local governments, and this bill would just expand which no-bid contracts local entities could enter through the GSA program. Conservatives usually frown upon no-bid contracts as they generally reflect a disregard for the proper stewardship of taxpayer dollars.

Generally, the consent calendar consists of procedural measures that are usually considered non-controversial like honorific resolutions or extensions to committees or boards, but any member reserves the right to object to a consent calendar item and pull it to the floor for debate and a separate vote.

This was not the case with SB0795 during the Senate floor session on Monday, as it was unanimously passed along with the rest of the consent agenda items.

The House version of the bill, HB1173, made decent progress in the House before being objected to on the consent calendar and the sponsor requesting it be held on the clerk’s desk, meaning it has been temporarily paused, usually in the anticipation of further amendments or referral back to the consent calendar.

About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.