§ 902. Duties of Commissioner of Buildings and General Services

(a) The Commissioner of Buildings and General Services shall contract for and make all purchases, including all fuel, supplies, materials, equipment, for all departments, offices, institutions, and other agencies of the State and counties. However, he or she may delegate authority to those governmental agencies to purchase directly individually approved types and classes of items when the interests of the State are best served thereby. He or she shall also contract for and purchase materials for the repair and for the construction and equipment of new buildings to be erected by the State, unless otherwise provided. He or she may purchase such supplies, materials, and equipment as are requisitioned by the supervisors of the natural resources conservation districts. He or she may also cooperate with and advise officials of any political subdivision of the State or any institution of higher education chartered in Vermont and accredited or holding a certificate of approval from the State Board of Education in their purchase of any of the supplies, materials, and equipment needed by the political subdivision or institution of higher education, and may act as the agent of the political subdivision at the request of the authorized officials or agent thereof in the purchase of supplies, materials, and equipment.

(b) [Repealed.]

(c) The Commissioner of Buildings and General Services may establish, in consultation with the heads of the governmental agencies, quality standards for all items specified in subsection (a) of this section.

(d) The Commissioner of Buildings and General Services may prescribe forms to be used in all purchasing, warehousing, and inventory functions set forth in this section; and when he or she so prescribes, the forms shall be used by all departments and agencies affected by this section.

(e) [Repealed.]

(f) The Commissioner of Buildings and General Services may also:

(1) establish and supervise inventory methods to be used by all government agencies;

(2) [Repealed.]

(3) maintain and operate the office supply service;

(4) receive, warehouse, manage, and distribute all State property and commodities, except alcoholic beverages purchased by the Board of Liquor and Lottery; and all surplus federal property and commodities;

(5) maintain central inventory of all State property and equipment other than lands and buildings; and

(6) maintain and operate the State’s Fleet Management System.

(g) The Commissioner of Buildings and General Services may establish substitute practices and exceptions from practices in requisitioning and purchasing that do not violate the spirit and intent of the general procedures; and he or she may direct, subject to the right of appeal by the head of the governmental agency to the Governor, the purchase of specified items to be made under the substitute practices and exceptions from practices.

(h) The Commissioner of Buildings and General Services may employ a standards and specifications engineer who shall under the supervision and direction of the Commissioner of Buildings and General Services:

(1) develop standards;

(2) assist the buyers and requisitioning agencies in formulating specifications;

(3) work on the continued expansion of the testing program;

(4) cooperate with departments and other agencies in the improvement of inspection practices;

(5) perform such other duties relative to the duties of the Commissioner of Buildings and General Services as the Commissioner of Buildings and General Services may direct.

(i) Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this section, all alcoholic beverages sold by the Board of Liquor and Lottery shall be purchased by the Board as set forth in 7 V.S.A. §§ 104 and 107. (Added 1959, No. 328 (Adj. Sess.), § 13; amended 1961, No. 31, § 1; 1963, No. 79, § 1(b), eff. May 7, 1963; 1965, No. 125, § 16, eff. July 2, 1965; 1967, No. 303 (Adj. Sess.), § 15(b); 1987, No. 243 (Adj. Sess.), § 38, eff. June 13, 1988; 1991, No. 87, § 3; 1995, No. 148 (Adj. Sess.), § 4(a), eff. May 6, 1996; 2005, No. 147 (Adj. Sess.), § 29, eff. May 15, 2006; 2013, No. 50, § E.101.8; 2017, No. 83, § 158; 2018, No. 1 (Sp. Sess.), § 88.)