Request By:
Mr. James A. Nelson
State Librarian and Commissioner
Office Of The State Librarian
300 Coffee Tree Road
Frankfort, Kentucky 40601
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; By: Charles W. Runyan, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
You have a question concerning General Services Administration (GSA) Contracts.
Question: "Is there anything to prevent a political subdivision from purchasing through a GSA contract directly? In this scenario, the political subdivision has not adopted the model procurement code, and the GSA contract is not a state price contract. Is there any statute besides KRS 424.260 and Model Procurement which apply to purchasing by political subdivisions?"
KRS 45.360(2) provides as follows, in connection with state purchasing:
(2) "Nothing in this section shall deprive the finance and administration cabinet from negotiating with vendors who maintain a general service administration price agreement with the United States of America or any agency thereof, provided, however, that no contract executed under this provision shall authorize a price higher than is contained in the contract between the general service administration and the vendor affected."
KRS 45.365(1) reads in part:
"Any political subdivision may purchase materials and supplies pursuant to a contract for such supplies and materials entered into by the department of finance for the Commonwealth, including those contracts negotiated by the Department of Finance with vendors who maintain a general service administration price agreement as provided in subsection (2) of KRS 45.360." (Emphasis added).
Thus any political subdivision may effect purchases of materials and supplies through a contract negotiated by the Department for Finance with a vendor who maintains a General Service Administration price agreement with the United States of America, or with any of its agencies. However, no such purchases can involve a price higher than is contained in the contract between the General Service Administration and the affected vendor. A political subdivision has this option of purchasing through GSA contracts, regardless of whether or not it has adopted this Model Procurement Code. Thus there is no legal nor statutory authority for a political subdivision's purchasing directly from a vendor who maintains a GSA price agreement with the United States Government.
In answer to the second part of your question, purchases of a political subdivision are usually governed by KRS 424.260 or by adopting provisions of KRS 45A.345 through 45A.460 of the Model Procurement Code. See KRS 45A.343.
Here the literal provisions of KRS 45.360 and 45.365 are dispositive of your major question. H.O. Hurley Co. v. Martin, 267 Ky. 182, 101 S.W.2d 657 (1937).