A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT directing the legislative research commission to study municipal partnerships with military installations in this state and municipal partnerships with universities as a means of reducing the cost to operate those installations.
Whereas, North Carolina has a proud tradition of mutually beneficial cooperation with the military; and
Whereas, North Carolina is home to many military installations; and
Whereas, some of those installations may be vulnerable to closure as part of the federal Base Realignment and Closure initiative; and
Whereas, those military installations that operate efficiently and cheaply are less likely to be closed as part of the initiative; and
Whereas, municipalities that are adjacent to military installations in this State may be able to enter into agreements with the installations that can help reduce the cost of operating those facilities; and
Whereas, reducing the cost of operating military installations through such agreements may reduce participating installations' vulnerability to closure under the Base Realignment and Closure initiative; and
Whereas, reducing the vulnerability of military installations to closure leads adjacent municipalities to be more economically dynamic and stable; and
Whereas, universities and municipalities frequently enter into various forms of contracts; and
Whereas, the larger an order of goods or services under a particular contract is, the greater discount the entity letting the contract is likely to obtain; and
Whereas, there is substantial overlap between the types of contracts that universities and municipalities enter into; and
Whereas, partnerships between universities and municipalities for the purpose of letting contracts would likely yield greater savings to both than either could get when contracting on their own; Now, therefore,
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  The Legislative Research Commission (LRC) shall study agreements between military installations and municipalities that are adjacent to them as a means of reducing the operating costs of military installations. As part of its study, the LRC shall examine all of the following:
(1)	Efforts undertaken in other states, including those undertaken by the city of Monterey, California.
(2)	The types of agreements that can be entered into and the potential effect that such agreements may have on the operating costs of participating military installations and on the municipalities that are adjacent to them.
(3)	Any obstacles that stand in the way of entering those agreements.
(4)	Any other matter that the Commission deems relevant.
SECTION 2.  The Legislative Research Commission (LRC) shall study agreements between universities and municipalities for purposes of jointly letting contracts as a means of reducing the cost of contracting for each type of entity. As part of its study, the LRC shall examine all of the following:
(1)	Efforts undertaken between universities and municipalities in this and other states.
(2)	The types of agreements that can be entered into and the potential effect that such agreements are likely to have on the contracting costs of universities and municipalities.
(3)	Any obstacles that stand in the way of entering those agreements.
(4)	Any other matter that the Commission deems relevant.
SECTION 3.  The LRC shall report its findings, together with any proposed legislation, to the 2016 Regular Session of the 2015 General Assembly upon its convening.
SECTION 4.  This act is effective when it becomes law.