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Senate committee hears bill to allow 10-year county ferry maintenance contracts
Summary
Supporters told the Senate Local Government Committee extending unit-price contract terms to 10 years would help small counties secure dry-dock time and lower costs for county-run ferries that serve islands such as Anderson Island.
March 13 — The Senate Local Government Committee reviewed House Bill 1054 on Wednesday, a bill that would allow counties with purchasing departments to use unit-price contracts of up to 10 years for maintenance and repair of county ferry vessels.
Committee staff said the bill is intended to let small ferry-operating counties negotiate longer contracts so they can compete for scarce dry-dock space and reduce emergency costs. "For counties with purchasing departments, unit price contracts for the maintenance or repair of a county ferry vessel or a county ferry district vessel may be for a term of up to 10 years rather than 1 year," staff summarized.
Supporters told the committee that the change is largely a procurement fix to address limited dry-dock availability and small bid pools. "Dry docks are really hard to…
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