The State Contracting Standards Board chairman said Friday that, with two recent steps taken by legislative committees, he is "cautiously hopeful" that the board will make a lot of progress this year, but he added that it's not yet a done deal.

Chairman Lawrence Fox began to look to the future at Friday's board meeting and said that — while the outcome is not yet decided — if the watchdog agency secures funding for additional staff positions, it will have to determine what it wants to "proactively prioritize."

"The mode that we have been in is to try to respond to complaints and to issues that we become aware of, but if we are able to have resources, there’s a number of things that we can proactively do and we can’t do everything all at once," Fox said. The board has 13 members and one vacancy; members are appointed by the governor and legislative leaders. The agency currently has two employees — an executive director and an intern — and has requested funding for a chief procurement officer, accounts examiner, trainer, staff attorney and research analyst to its staff.

The mission of the State Contracting Standards Board, created by the General Assembly in 2007, is "to require that state contracting and procurement requirements are understood and carried out in a manner that is open, cost effective, efficient and consistent with State and Federal statutes, rules and regulations."

Fox said it will be important to begin a strategic planning process, if the state approves additional resources.

He updated the board on two actions by legislative committees and said he will know more at May's board meeting, as the legislature is slated to adjourn in early May. The board's meetings typically are held on the second Friday of each month.

As part of a budget proposal, the General Assembly's Appropriations Committee this week approved $454,355 for the five positions requested by the State Contracting Standards Board, the Associated Press reported. "Along with a tax package that passed Wednesday, it will become the basis for closed-door negotiations between the General Assembly and Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont, who unveiled his budget proposal in February," the AP article stated.

The Government Administration and Elections Committee passed out of committee a proposed bill, which has not yet gone to the legislative floor, that calls for a number of provisions for the agency, including that it have oversight of quasi-public agencies, Fox said. 

Fox said the proposal would put into state statute that agencies, when they issue a request for proposals, inform every potential contractor of the right to appeal to the State Contracting Standards Board if the contractor thinks something is problematic about the process and that the contractor also has the right to appeal once a contract decision is made. He said he thought it would be very helpful to put into state statute that this is a responsibility of any contracting agency, including the Office of Policy and Management and Department of Administrative Services.

Gov. Ned Lamont's budget proposal in February had included $218,770 for three additional auditors for the separate agency Auditors of Public Accounts, which would "improve the State Auditors' ability to review state agency contracting in a non-partisan manner while providing efficiency and cost savings to the state," a Lamont spokesman had said. The proposal had status quo funding for the State Contracting Standards Board, which would be able to refer cases to auditors.

Legislators proposed bills regarding the State Contracting Standards Board, and Lamont told The Day's Editorial Board last month that “I’ve got to figure it out,” and he ultimately wouldn’t “stand in the way” of legislation for full funding of the board.

Strategic planning

If the funding is approved, Fox said a priority will be to set up personnel committees with board members to expedite the hiring process for future staff.

State Contracting Standards Board Executive Director David Guay has planned to retire at the end of June, but Fox said he is going to begin discussions with the administration for approval for Guay to stay on for a period during the transition.

Fox proposed holding a strategic retreat, on the day of the board's meeting in June, to discuss the board's priorities.

Guay also reported at Friday's meeting that the Connecticut Port Authority has adopted a procurement manual developed in consultation with the State Contracting Standards Board, which Fox called "a good outcome" from the board's investigation of the authority.

Board member Lauren Gauthier provided an update on two motions the board passed last month to request opinions from the state Attorney General's Office about the port authority's ability to enter into public–private partnerships and the legitimacy of the harbor development agreement that involves the redevelopment project at State Pier, which will be used by the offshore wind industry, in New London. She said she sent the requests, and the Attorney General's Office asked for information. She said Guay sent the information to the office, and the board is awaiting a response. 

k.drelich@theday.com