By Mr. Walsh of Boston, petition of Martin J. Walsh other members of the General Court and another for legislation to ensure compliance with certain health and safety standards by bidders on public construction projects. State Administration.

AN ACT TO ENSURE HEALTH AND SAFETY ON PUBLIC CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS.

      Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. Section 39M of Chapter 30 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2000 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the fourth paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:—
(c) The term “lowest responsible and eligible bidder� shall mean the bidder: (1) whose bid is the lowest of those bidders possessing the skill, ability and integrity necessary for the faithful performance of the work; (2) who shall certify, that he is able to furnish labor that can work in harmony with all other elements of labor employed or to be employed in the work; (3) who shall certify that all employees to be employed at the worksite will have successfully completed a course in construction safety and health approved by the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration that is at least ten hours in duration at the time the employee begins work and who shall furnish documentation of successful completion of said course with the first certified payroll report for each employee; (4) who, where the provisions of section eight B of chapter twenty-nine apply, shall have been determined to be qualified hereunder; and (5) who obtains within ten days of the notification of contract award the security by bond required under section twenty-nine of chapter one hundred and forty-nine; provided that for the purposes of this section the term “security by bond� shall mean the bond of a surety company qualified to do business under the laws of the commonwealth and satisfactory to the awarding authority.

SECTION 2. Section 44E (2)(E) of Chapter 149 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2000 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the second paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:—
The undersigned hereby certifies that he is able to furnish labor that can work in harmony with all other elements of labor employed or to be employed on the work; that all employees to be employed at the worksite will have successfully completed a course in construction safety and health approved by the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration that is at least ten hours in duration at the time the employee begins work and who shall furnish documentation of successful completion of said course with the first certified payroll report for each employee; and that he will comply fully with all laws and regulations applicable to awards made subject to section forty-four A.

SECTION 3. Section 44F (2)(J) of Chapter 149 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2000 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the first paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:—
The undersigned hereby certifies that he is able to furnish labor that can work in harmony with all other elements of labor employed or to be employed on the work; that all employees to be employed at the worksite will have successfully completed a course in construction safety and health approved by the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration that is at least ten hours in duration at the time the employee begins work and who shall furnish documentation of successful completion of said course with the first certified payroll report for each employee; and that he will comply fully with all laws and regulations applicable to awards of subcontracts subject to section forty-four F.

SECTION 4. Any person submitting a bid for, or signing a contract to work on, the construction, reconstruction, alteration, remodeling or repair of any public work by the commonwealth, or political subdivision thereof, or by any county, city, town, district, or housing authority, and estimated by the awarding authority to cost more than ten thousand dollars, and any person submitting a bid for, or signing a contract to work on, the construction, reconstruction, installation, demolition, maintenance or repair of any building by a public agency, estimated to cost more than ten thousand dollars, shall certify on such bid, or contract, under penalties of perjury, as follows:
(1) that he is able to furnish labor that can work in harmony with all other elements of labor employed or to be employed in the work; (2) that all employees to be employed at the worksite will have successfully completed a course in construction safety and health approved by the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration that is at least ten hours in duration at the time the employee begins work and who shall furnish documentation of successful completion of said course with the first certified payroll report for each employee;
The undersigned certifies under penalties of perjury that all employees to be employed in the work subject to this bid have successfully completed a course in construction safety and health approved by the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration that is at least ten hours in duration.
As used in this paragraph the word “person� shall mean any natural person, joint venture, partnership, corporation or other business or legal entity.
___________________________________
(Name of person signing bid)
___________________________________
(Company)

SECTION 5. Any employee found on the worksite without documentation of successful completion of a course in construction safety and health approved by the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration that is at least ten hours in duration shall be subject to immediate removal.

SECTION 6. The office of the attorney general of the commonwealth, or his designee, shall have the power to enforce the provisions of this act. Said attorney general, or his designee, shall have all the necessary powers to require compliance therewith including the power to institute and prosecute proceedings in the superior court to restrain the award of contracts and the performance of contracts in all cases where, after investigation of the facts, he, or his designee, has made a finding that such award or performance has resulted in violation, directly or indirectly, of the provisions of section 5 herein, and that he, or his designee, shall not be required to pay the clerk of the court any entry fee in connection with the institution of any such proceeding.

SECTION 7. This act shall become effective two years from the date of its enactment.