(a) Unless the context otherwise requires, the definitions set forth in this section govern the construction of this article.

(1) “Prequalified list” means a list of qualified firms established by the Department of General Services to perform specific types of plan review services.

(2) “Qualified plan review firm” means an individual, firm, or the building official of a city, a county, or a city and county, as defined in Section 18949.27 of the Health and Safety Code, or the authorized representative of the building official that is identified by the Department of General Services as having appropriate expertise and knowledge of the requirements that apply to school buildings under this article.

(b) The department shall establish and maintain a list of qualified plan review firms, and shall make that list available, upon request, to school districts and other interested parties.

(c) Notwithstanding Section 14952 of the Government Code, the Department of General Services shall contract with sufficient numbers of qualified plan review firms for assistance in performing the plan review required under the Field Act.

(d) At the discretion of the Department of General Services, contracts for a qualified plan review firm made pursuant to this article may be advertised and awarded in accordance with this section.

(e) (1) The Department of General Services may establish prequalified lists of qualified firms in accordance with this subdivision.

(2) (A) For each type of plan review for which the department elects to use the process established by this section for advertising and awarding contracts, the Department of General Services may request statements of qualifications from interested firms.

(B) The request for statements of qualifications shall be announced statewide through the California State Contracts Register and publications of relevant professional societies.

(C) Each announcement shall describe the general scope of services to be provided within each generic project category for plan review services that the Department of General Services anticipates may be awarded during the period covered by the announcement. For the purposes of this section, a generic project category shall be defined in a manner that each specific project to be awarded within that discipline meets all of the following requirements:

(i) The project is substantially similar to all other projects within that discipline.

(ii) The project is within the same size range and geographical area.

(iii) The project requires substantially similar skills and magnitude of professional effort as compared to every other project within that discipline.

(3) The Department of General Services shall evaluate the statements of qualifications, and develop a list of qualified plan review firms that meet the criteria established and published by the Department of General Services. Interviews may be held to determine a plan review firm’s qualifications. Lists of qualified plan review firms shall be maintained by the Department of General Services for not more than four years.

(4) During the term of a prequalified list, as specific projects are identified by the Department of General Services as being eligible for contracting, the Department of General Services shall contact a firm on the prequalified list, on a rotational basis, for both of the following purposes:

(A) To distribute the work in a fair and equitable manner.

(B) To determine that the firm has sufficient staff and is available for performance of the project.

(5) If the contacted firm is not available, the Department of General Services shall continue to contact firms on the prequalified list, on a rotational basis, until an available firm is identified.

(6) The Department of General Services shall negotiate a contract for the services with the identified firm, including a price and timeframe that it determines is fair and reasonable.

(7) If the identified plan review firm is unable to negotiate a satisfactory contract with the Department of General Services, the department shall terminate negotiations, and shall undertake new negotiations, on a rotational basis, with the next firm available for performance from the prequalified list until a successful negotiation is achieved. If the Department of General Services is unable to negotiate a satisfactory contract with a firm on two separate occasions, that firm may be removed from the prequalified list.

(f) Contracts for plan review services that the Department of General Services elects to advertise and award in accordance with this section are not subject to Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 4525) of Division 5 of Title 1 of the Government Code.

(Amended by Stats. 2006, Ch. 407, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 2007.)