No officer of the Town shall, in his/her official capacity,
make or pass upon or participate in making or passing upon, any sale,
contract, agreement, or the terms or amount of any payment in which
the Town is interested and in which such officer has any personal
financial interest, direct or indirect, other than union or employment
contracts.
All contracts entered into by the Town which are subject to
federal or state procurement requirements shall be awarded only after
there has been full compliance with such requirements. No contract
shall be split, separated or divided for the purpose of reducing the
amount thereof in order to avoid the procurement requirements. When
federal or state requirements necessitate the solicitation of quotes,
the Town officer shall seek said quotes in writing from at least three
or more reliable parties, regularly engaged or employed in such work
or business. So far as practicable, contracts for less than the applicable
state or federal threshold for soliciting quotes shall be made or
awarded in such a manner as to secure the benefit of reasonable competition,
utilizing sound business practices.
The provisions of § 49-2 shall not apply:
A.
In cases of special emergency requiring immediate action for the
preservation of life or the protection of property.
B.
In the case of work or service of a specialized nature for which
fair and reasonable competition cannot be obtained.
C.
In the case of a collective bid as defined by M.G.L. ch. 7, § 22B.
If a contract or purchase is made without competitive bids under the exceptions allowed in § 49-3A and B, such contract or purchase shall have attached to it, previous to its audit by the Chief Financial Officer, a certificate by the officer, board, or committee authorizing the same, setting forth the reason why competitive bids were not obtained.
A.
Invitation
to bid. Competitive bids shall be invited as follows:
(1)
All competitive bids shall be invited by advertisement, in accordance
with the applicable federal or state procurement requirements.
(2)
In all cases of competitive bids, by the sending of letters of invitation,
all bearing the same date in each instance, to a sufficient number
of vendors, contractors, or other qualified persons to insure fair
competition.
B.
Contents
of invitation to bid. Every invitation for competitive bids shall
have the time and place where plans and specifications of proposed
work, materials, supplies, or equipment may be obtained, and the time
and place at which bids will be opened, and shall reserve to the Town
the right to reject any or all such bids.
C.
Bid opening;
split bid. All proposals shall be opened in public at the time and
place specified therefor. No purchase, and no service or work for
which a contract is proposed, shall be split or divided for the purpose
of evading the provisions of this section.
No contract involving an obligation of the Town in excess of
$500 shall be binding upon the Town unless it is in writing and is
signed by at least a majority of the board or committee duly authorized
or having control of the appropriation against which such obligation
is incurred.
No board or officer shall make any contract in behalf of the
Town, the execution of which shall necessarily extend beyond three
years from the date thereof, except as otherwise provided by law,
unless specific authority to do so has been given by vote of Town
Meeting.
