On January 18, 2000, Governor Whitman enacted P.L.1999, c.440, the first significant revision to local government and State contracting laws in many years. The law took effect on April 17, 2000.

Originally known as Assembly Bill 30 (A-30), by the time the legislative process was concluded, its final reference was A-3519. With its origin in a State Treasury T ask Force on Procurement in 1995, it evolved over the last five years into a comprehensive review of the Local Public Contracts Law, the Public School Contracts Law, amendments to State and State independent authority procurement laws, and changes to State criminal law regarding public procurement.

A major purpose of the law is to bring a common set of laws and rules to local government and public school procurement practices. To this end, N.J.S.A. 40A:11-1 (Local Public Contracts Law) and N.J.S.A. 18A:18A-1 (Public School Contracts Law) were revised to resolve differences and to add compatibility. One important element of this effort will be a common set of rules in the New Jersey Administrative Code that cover both laws. The rules will be promulgated by the Division of Local Government Services, with consultation from the Commissioner of Education. These rules are being drafted, will be reviewed by local government and public school procurement practitioners and are expected to be proposed by the middle of the year.

This web site will provide information resources to local government and public school officials on a range of public procurement issues. Please check back often; the site will be updated with new information regularly. If you have questions on the procurement laws, please check our Frequently Asked Questions first, it will be regularly updated with new information.