AN ACT providing that a minimum of three competitive bids shall not be required for contracts for dredging services in the state's coastal waters to allow for the completion of dredging projects in a more timely and cost‑efficient manner.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 143‑132 reads as rewritten:
"§ 143‑132.  Minimum number of bids for public contracts.
(a)	No contract to which G.S. 143‑129 applies for construction or repairs shall be awarded by any board or governing body of the State, or any subdivision thereof, unless at least three competitive bids have been received from reputable and qualified contractors regularly engaged in their respective lines of endeavor; however, this section shall not apply to contracts which are negotiated as provided for in G.S. 143‑129 or to contracts for dredging services in the State's coastal waters. Provided that if after advertisement for bids as required by G.S. 143‑129, not as many as three competitive bids have been received from reputable and qualified contractors regularly engaged in their respective lines of endeavor, said board or governing body of the State agency or of a county, city, town or other subdivision of the State shall again advertise for bids; and if as a result of such second advertisement, not as many as three competitive bids from reputable and qualified contractors are received, such board or governing body may then let the contract to the lowest responsible bidder submitting a bid for such project, even though only one bid is received.
…."
SECTION 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies to bids received on or after that date.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 15th day of July, 2021.

	s/	 Carl Ford
	 Presiding Officer of the Senate

	s/	 Tim Moore
	 Speaker of the House of Representatives

	_____________________________________
		 Roy Cooper
	 Governor

Approved __________.m. this ______________ day of ___________________, 2021