(a) There is established a Contracting and Purchasing Advisory Council to consist of all covered agency heads or their designee and 1 additional member representing all public school districts. The Administrator of the Section shall be a nonvoting member of the Council.
(b) The Director of the Office shall be the Council Chair.
(c) The purpose of the Council is to advise as to the effectiveness of and make recommendations for changes to the State's procurement laws, policies and practices to the Director of the Office and the Administrator of the Section.
(d) The Council shall be responsible for:
(1) Recommending procurement policy and administrative procedures to the Director. The Director shall elicit the Council's comments before issuing policy statements, policy changes, administrative procedures or administrative changes regarding this chapter;
(2) Reporting annually to the Governor by December 31 of each year concerning the effectiveness of the State's procurement processes. This report shall include recommended changes to the State's procurement laws as may be necessary to improve the State's overall effectiveness;
(3) Reviewing vendor concerns regarding the overall procurement process and recommending appropriate action relating to these concerns; and
(4) Setting the dollar amount thresholds required in this chapter. When setting these dollar amount thresholds, the Council shall take into consideration operational issues and inflation. Nothing in this subsection shall affect the amounts set in § 6960 of this title.
(e) A Contracting and Purchasing Committee shall also be established. The Section Administrator shall appoint representatives to the Committee, with the approval of the Council. The Section Administrator shall chair the Committee. The Committee shall staff the Council, monitor the effectiveness of the State's procurement process, recommend changes to the procurement process, policies and procedures and any other duties deemed necessary by the Council.