AN ACT to make technical, clarifying, and substantive changes relating to the department of public safety and to eliminate the benchmark ceiling relating to purchases and contracts.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 143‑134 reads as rewritten:
"§ 143‑134.  Applicable to Department of Transportation and Department of Public Safety; exceptions; all contracts subject to review by Attorney General and State Auditor.
(a)	This Article applies to the Department of Transportation and the Department of Public Safety except in the construction of roads, bridges and their approaches; provided however, that whenever the Director of the Budget determines that the repair or construction of a building by the Department of Transportation or by the Department of Public Safety can be done more economically through use of employees of the Department of Transportation and/or prison inmates than by letting the repair or building construction to contract, the provisions of this Article shall not apply to the repair or construction.
(b)	Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this section, the Department of Transportation and the Department of Public Safety shall: (i) submit all proposed contracts for supplies, materials, printing, equipment, and contractual services that exceed one million dollars ($1,000,000) to the Attorney General or the Attorney General's designee for review as provided in G.S. 114‑8.3; and (ii) include in all contracts to be awarded by the Department of Transportation or the Department of Public Safety a standard clause providing that the State Auditor and internal auditors of the Department of Transportation or the Department of Public Safety may audit the records of the contractor during and after the term of the contract to verify accounts and data affecting fees and performance. Neither the Department of Transportation nor the Department of Public Safety shall award a cost plus percentage of cost agreement or contract for any purpose."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 143B‑600(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	There is established the Department of Public Safety. The head of the Department of Public Safety is the Secretary of Public Safety, who shall be known as the Secretary.
							"SECTION 3.  G.S. 143B‑602(8) reads as rewritten:
"(8)	Other powers and duties. – The Secretary has the following additional powers and duties:
…
h.	Being responsible for federal and State liaison activities, victim services, the Victim Services Warehouse, and the storage and management of evidence and other contents housed in the warehouse, and public affairs."
SECTION 4.  G.S. 143B‑710 is repealed.
SECTION 5.  G.S. 143B‑806 reads as rewritten:
"§ 143B‑806.  Duties and powers of the Division of Juvenile Justice of the Department of Public Safety.
	(b)	The head of the Division is the Commissioner of Juvenile Justice with the following powers and duties:
...."
SECTION 6.  G.S. 148‑132 reads as rewritten:
"§ 148‑132.  Distribution of products and services.
The Section of Correction Enterprises of the Division of Adult Correction is empowered and authorized to market and sell products and services produced by Correction Enterprises to any of the following entities:
(1)	Any public agency or institution owned, managed, or controlled by the State.
(2)	Any county, city, or town in this State.
(3)	Any federal, state, or local public agency or institution in any other state of the union.
(4)	An entity or organization that has tax‑exempt status pursuant to section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Products purchased by an entity pursuant to this subdivision may not be resold.
(5)	Any current employee or retiree of the State of North Carolina or of a unit of local government of this State, verified through State‑issued identification, or through proof of retirement status, but purchases by a State or local governmental employee or retiree may not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) during any calendar year. Products purchased by State and local governmental employees and retirees under this section may not be resold.
(6)	Private contractors when the goods purchased will be used to perform work under a contract with a public agency."
SECTION 7.  G.S. 143‑53(a)(2) reads as rewritten:
"(2)	Prescribing the routine, including consistent contract language, for securing bids on items that do not exceed the bid value benchmark established under the provisions of G.S. 143‑53.1, 115D‑58.14, or 116‑31.10. The bid value benchmark for securing offers for each State department, institution, and agency established under the provisions of G.S. 143‑53.1 shall be determined by the Director of the Division of Purchase and Contract following the Director's consultation with the State Budget Officer and the State Auditor. The Director for the Division of Purchase and Contract may set or lower the benchmark, or raise the benchmark upon written request by the agency, after consideration of their overall capabilities, including staff resources, purchasing compliance reviews, and audit reports of the individual agency. The routine prescribed by the Secretary shall include contract award protest procedures and consistent requirements for advertising of solicitations for securing offers issued by State departments, institutions, universities (including the special responsibility constituent institutions of The University of North Carolina), agencies, community colleges, and the public school administrative units."
SECTION 8.  G.S. 143‑53.1(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	On and after July 1, 2014, the procedures prescribed by G.S. 143‑52 with respect to competitive bids and the bid value benchmark authorized by G.S. 143‑53(a)(2) with respect to rule making by the Secretary of Administration for competitive bidding shall promote compliance with the principles of procurement efficiency, transparency, and fair competition to obtain the State's business. For a special responsibility constituent institution of The University of North Carolina, the benchmark prescribed in this section is as provided in G.S. 116‑31.10. For community colleges, the benchmark prescribed in this section is as provided in G.S. 115D‑58.14."
SECTION 9.  G.S. 20‑185 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:
"(a1)	Applicants for employment as a State Trooper shall be at least 21 years of age and not more than 39 years of age as of the first day of patrol school. Highway Patrol enforcement personnel hired on or after July 1, 2013, shall retire not later than the end of the month in which their 62nd birthday falls."
SECTION 10.  G.S. 20‑196.3 reads as rewritten:
"§ 20‑196.3.  Who may hold supervisory positions over sworn members of the Patrol.
Notwithstanding any other provision of the General Statutes, only the following individuals may hold a supervisory position over sworn members of the Patrol:
(1)	The Governor.
(2)	The Secretary of Public Safety or the Commissioner of the Law Enforcement Division.
(3)	A uniformed member of the North Carolina State Highway Patrol who has met all requirements for employment within the Patrol, including completion of the basic Patrol school."
SECTION 11.  G.S. 66‑25 reads as rewritten:
"§ 66‑25.  Acceptable listings as to safety of goods.
(a)	All electrical materials, devices, appliances, and equipment shall be evaluated for safety and suitability for intended use. Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section,  this evaluation shall be conducted in accordance with nationally recognized standards and shall be conducted by a qualified testing laboratory. The Commissioner of Insurance, through the Engineering Division of the Department of Insurance, shall implement the procedures necessary to approve suitable national standards and to approve suitable qualified testing laboratories. The Commissioner may assign his authority to implement the procedures for specific materials, devices, appliances, or equipment to other agencies or bodies when they would be uniquely qualified to implement those procedures.
In the event that the Commissioner determines that electrical materials, devices, appliances, or equipment in question cannot be adequately evaluated through the use of approved national standards or by approved qualified testing laboratories, the Engineering Division of the Department of Insurance shall specify any alternative evaluations which safety requires.
The Engineering Division of the Department of Insurance shall keep in file, where practical, copies of all approved national standards and resumes of approved qualified testing laboratories.
(b)	Electrical devices, appliances, or equipment used by the Division of Adult Correction of the Department of Public Safety shall be evaluated for safety and suitability by the Central Engineering Section of the Department of Public Safety. The evaluation shall be conducted in accordance with nationally recognized standards."
SECTION 12.  This act is effective when it becomes law.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 10th day of July, 2013.

	s/	 Daniel J. Forest
	 President of the Senate

	s/	 Thom Tillis
	 Speaker of the House of Representatives

	_____________________________________
		 Pat McCrory
	 Governor

Approved __________.m. this ______________ day of ___________________, 2013