Section 1606-S - Duties of authority.The authority shall have all of the following duties:
(1) Issue a request for proposals or initiate a competitive bidding process under 62 Pa.C.S. Pt. I (relating to Commonwealth Procurement Code) for the supply of a verified nutrient or sediment reduction toward the achievement of the Chesapeake Bay TMDL. The authority shall require that a response to the request for proposals or competitive bidding process shall include: (i) The legal name, address and contact information, including, where available, a telephone number and email address of the person submitting the proposal.(ii) A description of the project or practices to be used or implemented to achieve the proposed nutrient or sediment reduction, including an estimate of the amount of reduction in pounds per year for each year of the contract and the basis for estimates.(iii) The location where the projects or practices will be used or implemented.(iv) The expected life of each reduction that will be achieved as a result of the proposed projects or practices.(v) A description of the ownership, or written agreement with the owner, of each parcel of land or facility that will be used in implementing the projects or practices.(vi) A description of the measures to be used to quantify, by measurement or modeling, the amounts of the reductions of nutrients or sediment resulting from the proposed projects or practices, and a verification plan to verify the reductions, at such times or intervals as the authority or the department shall specify.(vii) A suggested payment schedule.(viii) A statement of the qualified bidder's qualification, experience and resources.(ix) A statement of the qualified bidder's proposed surety and other financial assurances.(2) Evaluate, in consultation with the department and the commission, the responses to the request for proposals or competitive bidding process under paragraph (1).(3) Execute a contract with a qualified bidder. A contract under this paragraph:(i) May not be for a term of more than 10 years.(ii) Shall require periodic submissions from a qualified bidder in accordance with a verification plan approved by the department.(iii) Shall require that payment be conditioned on the achievement of specific outcomes based on defined performance targets in accordance with a verification plan approved by the department.(iv) Shall specify measures that the authority will take in the event of a failure by the qualified bidder to meet or satisfy any performance obligation, or otherwise fail to comply with any term or condition of the contract, including the withholding of payments or portions of payments that would otherwise be made, the use of payment adjustments and time schedules, including the extension of any target date, if performance targets or schedules are not met, cancellation of the contract in the event of a substantial failure of performance that cannot be readily corrected or mitigated, and other measures as may be appropriate.(4) After the department has verified a nutrient or sediment reduction, purchase a verified nutrient or sediment reduction in accordance with the terms of a contract under paragraph (3). Added by P.L. TBD 2022 No. 54, § 16, eff. 7/11/2022.