REPORT TITLE:
Contracts and Procurement


DESCRIPTION:
Specifies that subcontractors provide evidence to contractors of
a valid union trust fund benefit payment bond,
performance/payment bond, other bond, or another mutually
agreeable form of collateral.  Imposes penalties on contractors
for failing to properly pay amounts owed to subcontractors.
Requires the policy board to adopt rules on prompt and retainage.
(HB2878 HD1)

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        2878
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES                H.B. NO.           H.D. 1
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO PUBLIC CONTRACTS AND PROCUREMENT.



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that after receiving
 
 2 payment for construction projects, prime contractors sometimes do
 
 3 not make timely payments to subcontractors.  One of the principal
 
 4 reasons for this is the prime contractors' liability for
 
 5 subcontractors union trust fund payments.  Often, the long delay
 
 6 in receiving full clearance from union trust funds results in
 
 7 corresponding delays in payments to subcontractors.
 
 8      The legislature also finds that earlier legislative action
 
 9 on the issue resulted in divisive conflict between construction
 
10 industry groups.  To avoid further rancor, representatives from
 
11 various construction industry organizations established an
 
12 informal task force to reconcile differences.  After many months
 
13 of open, sometimes heated debate, the members of the task force
 
14 acquired a new respect for the unique problems facing their
 
15 counterparts and managed to craft a partial solution to the
 
16 thorny issue of prompt payment.  The proposal provides that
 
17 contractors make timely payments to subcontractors who possess a
 
18 trust fund contribution bond or a performance/payment bond.  This
 
19 proposal makes significant progress toward addressing the
 

 
Page 2                                                     2878
                                     H.B. NO.           H.D. 1
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 subcontractors' concern for prompt payment, and the general
 
 2 contractors' concern regarding liability for union trust fund
 
 3 benefit payments.
 
 4      The purpose of this Act is to ensure prompt payment on state
 
 5 projects by contractors to subcontractors by:
 
 6      (1)  Specifying that subcontractors provide evidence to
 
 7           contractors of a valid union trust fund benefit payment
 
 8           bond, performance/payment bond, other bond, or another
 
 9           mutually agreeable form of collateral;
 
10      (2)  Imposing penalties on contractors for failing to
 
11           properly pay amounts owed to subcontractors; and
 
12      (3)  Requiring the policy board to adopt rules on prompt
 
13           payment and retainage.
 
14      SECTION 2.  Section 103-10.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
15 amended to read as follows:
 
16      "[[]§103-10.5[]]  Prompt payment.(a)  Any money, other
 
17 than retainage, paid to a contractor shall be dispersed to
 
18 subcontractors within ten days after receipt of the money in
 
19 accordance with the terms of the subcontract; provided that the
 
20 subcontractor has met all the terms and conditions of the
 
21 subcontract and there are no bona fide disputes[.] on which the
 
22 procurement agency has withheld payment.
 

 
 
 
Page 3                                                     2878
                                     H.B. NO.           H.D. 1
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1      (b)  Upon final payment to the contractor, full payment to
 
 2 the subcontractor, including retainage, shall be made within ten
 
 3 days after receipt of the money[,]; provided there are no bona
 
 4 fide disputes over the subcontractor's performance under the
 
 5 subcontract[.], and the subcontractor has provided evidence to
 
 6 the contractor of:
 
 7      (1)  A current trust fund contribution bond acceptable to
 
 8           the contractor in an amount no fewer than three months
 
 9           of the subcontractor's trust fund contribution;
 
10      (2)  A performance and payment bond for the project executed
 
11           by a surety company authorized to do business in the
 
12           State;
 
13      (3)  Any other bond acceptable to the contractor; or
 
14      (4)  Any form of collateral acceptable to the contractor may
 
15           be substituted for the trust fund contribution bond.
 
16      (c)  Where a contractor fails to pay in accordance with
 
17 subsection (b), there shall be imposed a penalty of one and one-
 
18 half per cent per month on the outstanding amounts due to the
 
19 subcontractor.  The penalty may be withheld from future payment
 
20 due to the contractor.  Where a contractor has violated
 
21 subsection (b), three or more times within two years of the first
 
22 violation, the contractor shall be referred to the contractor
 
23 license board by the procurement agency for action under section
 
24 444-17(14)."
 

 
Page 4                                                     2878
                                     H.B. NO.           H.D. 1
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1      SECTION 3.  Section 103D-501, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 2 amended by amending subsection (d) to read as follows:
 
 3      "(d)  The policy board shall adopt rules requiring the
 
 4 inclusion in contracts of clauses providing for appropriate
 
 5 remedies and covering the following subjects:
 
 6      (1)  Liquidated damages as appropriate;
 
 7      (2)  Specified excuses for delay or nonperformance;
 
 8      (3)  Termination of the contract for default; [and]
 
 9      (4)  Termination of the contract in whole or in part for the
 
10           convenience of the governmental body[.]; and
 
11      (5)  Prompt payment and retainage."
 
12      SECTION 4.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed.
 
13 New statutory material is underscored.
 
14      SECTION 5.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2000, and
 
15 shall apply to all public contracts entered into after June 30,
 
16 2000.