SF 918

as introduced - 80th Legislature (1997 - 1998) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to corrections; placing conditions on and 
  1.3             limiting contracts for services between a state agency 
  1.4             and private vendors for the delivery of services at or 
  1.5             for a correctional facility; outlining terms of 
  1.6             contract review and status of public data in private 
  1.7             vendor's possession; barring placement of inmates 
  1.8             under the custody of the commissioner in a facility 
  1.9             that violates these limitations; setting standards for 
  1.10            allowing inmates to work in correctional industries or 
  1.11            private employment; proposing coding for new law in 
  1.12            Minnesota Statutes, chapter 241. 
  1.13  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.14     Section 1.  [241.266] [RESTRICTIONS ON PRIVATIZATION.] 
  1.15     (a) A state agency shall not enter into a contract with a 
  1.16  private vendor for the delivery of any of the following services:
  1.17     (1) security functions at any state correctional 
  1.18  institution; 
  1.19     (2) correctional institution food services and commissary 
  1.20  services that are being provided by the state as of the 
  1.21  effective date of this section; and 
  1.22     (3) food services and commissary services in any new 
  1.23  correctional institution. 
  1.24     (b) For the purposes of sections 241.266 to 241.269, 
  1.25  "private vendor" means an entity not owned or operated by a 
  1.26  state or political subdivision that delivers or offers to 
  1.27  deliver services. 
  1.28     Sec. 2.  [241.267] [CONTRACT REVIEW.] 
  1.29     Subdivision 1.  [REVIEW GUIDELINES.] (a) The commissioner 
  2.1   of corrections or a designee and the commissioner of 
  2.2   administration or a designee shall review all proposed contracts 
  2.3   between a state agency and a private vendor for the delivery of 
  2.4   services at or for a correctional facility that have a value of 
  2.5   $25,000 or more.  The commissioners of corrections and 
  2.6   administration shall not recommend approval of a contract unless 
  2.7   it determines that the requirements in paragraphs (b) to (h) are 
  2.8   met. 
  2.9      (b) The private vendor must provide audited financial 
  2.10  statements for the previous five years or for each of the years 
  2.11  the private vendor has been in operation, if fewer than five 
  2.12  years, and provide other financial information as requested. 
  2.13     (c) The private vendor must provide an adequate plan of 
  2.14  insurance, specifically including insurance for civil rights 
  2.15  claims, as determined by an independent risk management firm 
  2.16  with demonstrated experience in state government liability 
  2.17  issues.  The firm shall be selected by the commissioner of 
  2.18  commerce.  In determining the adequacy of the plan, the firm 
  2.19  shall determine whether the insurance is adequate: 
  2.20     (1) to protect the state from legal actions by a third 
  2.21  party against the private vendor or the state as a result of the 
  2.22  contract; 
  2.23     (2) to protect the state against claims arising as a result 
  2.24  of any occurrence during the term of the contract; 
  2.25     (3) to ensure the private vendor's ability to fulfill its 
  2.26  contract with the state in all respects, and to assure that the 
  2.27  private vendor is not limited in this ability because of 
  2.28  financial liability which results from judgments; and 
  2.29     (4) to satisfy such other requirements specified by the 
  2.30  independent risk management/actuarial firm. 
  2.31     (d) The commissioner of corrections and commissioner of 
  2.32  administration must compare the cost of continuing to operate 
  2.33  the service as a public function to the cost of contracting with 
  2.34  a private vendor for the service, and the comparison must show 
  2.35  that the bid of the private vendor will provide a substantial 
  2.36  cost savings.  The comparison must include in the cost of 
  3.1   contracting with a private vendor the amount of the bid plus 
  3.2   contract administration, monitoring, and transition costs. 
  3.3      (e) The commissioner of corrections and commissioner of 
  3.4   administration must determine that no current state employee is 
  3.5   able and available to perform the services called for by the 
  3.6   contract and no current state employee, with training or 
  3.7   retraining, is able and available to perform the services called 
  3.8   for by the contract. 
  3.9      (f) The commissioner of corrections must certify in writing 
  3.10  to the appropriate bargaining unit that the contract will not 
  3.11  result in the displacement of currently employed workers or 
  3.12  workers on seasonal layoff, including partial displacement such 
  3.13  as reduction in hours of nonovertime work, wages, or other 
  3.14  employment benefits. 
  3.15     (g) The commissioner of corrections and commissioner of 
  3.16  administration must determine that inmate labor is being 
  3.17  utilized to the greatest extent feasible, with consideration 
  3.18  given to the commissioner of corrections' authority to employ 
  3.19  all administrative, supervisory, and other skilled workers 
  3.20  necessary to the proper instruction of the inmates and the 
  3.21  profitable and efficient operation of the industrial and 
  3.22  commercial activities authorized by section 241.27. 
  3.23     (h) The commissioner of corrections and commissioner of 
  3.24  administration must determine that the private vendor provides 
  3.25  its employees with a total compensation package of equivalent 
  3.26  value to that provided by public employers to similarly situated 
  3.27  employees, including retirement benefits, health insurance 
  3.28  benefits, post-retirement health insurance benefits, sick leave 
  3.29  benefits, vacation benefits, compensation, and other financial 
  3.30  remuneration. 
  3.31     Subd. 2.  [BIDS.] If competitive bids must be sought under 
  3.32  section 16B.07 for the contract, public employees must be given 
  3.33  90 days advance notice that a contract will be advertised for 
  3.34  bid and public employees must be allowed to participate in the 
  3.35  bid process.  "Public employee" has the meaning given in section 
  3.36  179A.03, subdivision 14. 
  4.1      Subd. 3.  [RECOMMENDATIONS.] (a) The commissioner of 
  4.2   corrections and commissioner of administration shall meet as 
  4.3   necessary for the purpose of reviewing contract proposals and 
  4.4   making recommendations.  Any recommendation to enter into a 
  4.5   contract shall be submitted by the commissioner of corrections 
  4.6   to the legislature by January 1 of any year in which the 
  4.7   commissioner of corrections wishes the contract to take effect.  
  4.8   A state agency may enter into the contract, effective on July 1 
  4.9   of that year, unless the legislature by law provides otherwise. 
  4.10     (b) On or before January 1 of each year, the commissioner 
  4.11  of corrections shall submit a written report to the committees 
  4.12  of the senate and the house of representatives with jurisdiction 
  4.13  over corrections policy that identifies and explains all 
  4.14  affirmative contract recommendations that are being submitted to 
  4.15  the legislature that year and all contract proposals that were 
  4.16  considered and rejected. 
  4.17     Subd. 4.  [EMERGENCY PROCEDURES.] The commissioner of 
  4.18  corrections and commissioner of administration are authorized to 
  4.19  adopt procedures under which the commissioner of corrections may 
  4.20  enter into a contract without prior approval in an emergency 
  4.21  situation to respond to public safety concerns.  
  4.22     Subd. 5.  [IMMUNITY.] Any immunity available to the state 
  4.23  does not apply to the private vendor.  Neither the private 
  4.24  vendor nor the insurer of the private vendor may plead the 
  4.25  defense of an immunity that is available to the state in any 
  4.26  action arising out of the performance of the contract. 
  4.27     Subd. 6.  [LIABILITY LIMITS.] Any limits on liability or 
  4.28  limits on damages that may be asserted by the state do not apply 
  4.29  to the private vendor or the insurer of the private vendor. 
  4.30     Subd. 7.  [CLASSIFICATION OF DATA.] When a state agency 
  4.31  enters into a contract with a private vendor for the delivery of 
  4.32  services at or for a correctional facility, that contract does 
  4.33  not affect the availability to the public of data that is 
  4.34  classified as public data while maintained by the commissioner 
  4.35  of corrections, and the data shall be available from the private 
  4.36  vendor as public data.  "Public data" has the meaning given in 
  5.1   section 13.02, subdivision 15. 
  5.2      Sec. 3.  [241.268] [PLACEMENT OF INMATES.] 
  5.3      Subdivision 1.  [PLACEMENT AT INSTITUTION.] The 
  5.4   commissioner of corrections shall not place any individual 
  5.5   committed to the commissioner's custody in a correctional 
  5.6   institution that violates any provision of sections 241.266 to 
  5.7   241.269. 
  5.8      Subd. 2.  [EMPLOYMENT.] The commissioner of corrections 
  5.9   shall not allow any individual committed to the commissioner's 
  5.10  custody to participate in an industrial or commercial activity 
  5.11  under section 241.27 or to work for a private employer, unless: 
  5.12     (1) security at the place of employment is provided by the 
  5.13  state; 
  5.14     (2) the private employer provides its noninmate employees 
  5.15  with a total compensation package of equivalent value to that 
  5.16  provided by public employers to similarly situated employees, 
  5.17  including retirement benefits, health insurance benefits, 
  5.18  postretirement health insurance benefits, sick leave benefits, 
  5.19  vacation benefits, compensation, and other financial 
  5.20  remuneration; 
  5.21     (3) the commissioner certifies in writing to the 
  5.22  appropriate bargaining unit that the inmate's work will not 
  5.23  result in the displacement of currently employed workers or 
  5.24  workers on seasonal layoff, including partial displacement such 
  5.25  as reduction in hours of nonovertime work, wages, or other 
  5.26  employment benefits; and 
  5.27     (4) the commissioner determines that the real estate, 
  5.28  buildings, fixtures, equipment, and materials that are necessary 
  5.29  to allow an inmate to participate in an industrial or commercial 
  5.30  activity under section 241.27 or to work for a private employer 
  5.31  are furnished by an entity not owned or operated by a state or 
  5.32  political subdivision. 
  5.33     This subdivision does not apply to those inmates seeking or 
  5.34  engaged in private employment under section 241.26. 
  5.35     Sec. 4.  [241.269] [RESTRICTIONS ON MANAGERIAL EMPLOYEES.] 
  5.36     (a) Managerial employees of the department of corrections 
  6.1   shall not: 
  6.2      (1) disclose or use confidential information for the 
  6.3   purpose of personal gain that the person obtained as an 
  6.4   employee, either during or following employment with the 
  6.5   department of corrections; or 
  6.6      (2) work for a private vendor, as defined in section 
  6.7   241.266, for one year following termination of the employee's 
  6.8   employment with the state. 
  6.9      (b) For the purposes of this subdivision, "managerial 
  6.10  employees" are employees described in section 43A.18, 
  6.11  subdivision 3. 
  6.12     Sec. 5.  [241.272] [SENTENCE TO SERVE.] 
  6.13     Whenever offenders are assigned for the purpose of work 
  6.14  under agreement with a state department or agency, local unit of 
  6.15  government, or other governmental subdivision, the state 
  6.16  department or agency, local unit of government, or other 
  6.17  government subdivision must certify in writing to the 
  6.18  appropriate bargaining agent that the work performed by the 
  6.19  inmates will not result in the displacement of currently 
  6.20  employed workers or workers on seasonal layoff or layoff from a 
  6.21  substantially equivalent position, including partial 
  6.22  displacement such as reduction in hours of nonovertime work, 
  6.23  wages, or other employment benefits. 
  6.24     Sec. 6.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  6.25     Sections 1 to 5 are effective the day following final 
  6.26  enactment.