This bill mandates the Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) to annually adjust the monetary threshold for the pay-to-play prohibition related to contracts with State, county, municipal, school board, and fire district entities. The adjustment must align with the public bidding threshold established for counties and municipalities, which is currently set at $44,000 and is reviewed every five years. The new thresholds will apply to entities that have designated a qualified purchasing agent, while those without such an agent will remain subject to the existing threshold of $17,500.

Additionally, the bill amends several sections of existing law to incorporate the new threshold values. Specifically, it modifies the language to reflect that contracts exceeding the adjusted threshold will not be permitted if the business entity has made campaign contributions to relevant candidate committees within a specified timeframe. The bill aims to enhance transparency and accountability in public contracting by ensuring that contributions do not influence contract awards, thereby promoting fair competition in the procurement process.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 19:44A-20.3, 19:44A-20.4, 19:44A-20.5, 19:44A-20.14, 19:44A-20.15, 19:44A-20.26