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House OKs five-year change to bid threshold for water and sewer projects to ease procurement delays
Summary
The House passed a committee substitute to House Bill 352 reducing the statutory minimum competitive bids for certain water and sewer construction projects from three to two for a five-year trial period, aiming to address a statewide shortage of qualified contractors; the bill passed and will be sent to the Senate.
Representative Perez (Wake), sponsor for House Bill 352, told the House the bill responds to municipalities that cannot routinely obtain the three required competitive bids under G.S. 143-132 for large water and sewer projects. Perez said some localities effectively have only about 10 contractors statewide capable of such projects, which forces rebidding, delays and higher taxpayer costs.
The sponsor said the bill — converted from a local vehicle into a public bill after conversations with several municipalities — would reduce the statutory requirement from at least three bids to at least two for eligible water and sewer projects for a limited period of five years. She said municipalities that prefer to seek three bids may continue to do so.
Representative Arp (Union) thanked Perez and called the measure a practical fix; members noted the change is temporary and will allow time to evaluate industry capacity. The House recorded a second-reading roll-call in favor and later passed the bill on third reading; the committee substitute will be sent to the Senate.
Why it matters: The bill temporarily lowers the competitive-bid threshold to help localities complete necessary infrastructure when qualified contractors are limited, potentially reducing delay and cost escalation for water and wastewater projects. Municipalities retain the option to seek more bids if they choose.
Votes at a glance
- House Committee Substitute to House Bill 352 — second reading recorded 115 yes, 0 no; passed third reading and ordered to the Senate.
Speakers quoted in this article are listed in the speakers section below.
