School Districts’ and BOCES’ Ability to Purchase Via Piggyback Contract Law Has Been Extended

On April 6, 2021 Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a law that enables local governments, including school districts and BOCES to “piggyback” on contracts until July 31, 2023. This law was set to expire on July 31, 2021, but has been extended by Chapter 95 of the Laws of 2021.

Cooperative purchasing (commonly referred to as “piggybacking”) is permitted under General Municipal Law (“GML”) §103(16) and is an exception to the competitive bidding requirements set forth in GML §103(1). This purchasing method permits school districts to piggyback on contracts previously entered into through a public solicitation process by another entity. In general, the law requires that piggyback purchases must satisfy the following criteria:

#1: The purchaser’s board policies must authorize use of the piggyback purchasing method;

#2: The initial contract being piggybacked upon must have been let by the U.S. or an agency of the U.S., any state, or any other political subdivision or district of a state;

#3: The initial contract must have been advertised in a manner consistent with competitive bidding laws;

#4: The initial contract must be made available for use by other governmental entities;

#5: The initial contract must have been awarded to the lowest responsible bidder or on the basis of best value; and

#6: The agreement must contain only equipment/services within the scope of the initial contract piggybacked upon, and include only equipment/services authorized by law.

School districts have recently expanded the use of piggyback to capital construction work. This approach is possible, but there are many pitfalls which school districts must be certain to avoid. We are glad to work through these issues with you and your architects on a contract-by-contract basis. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our office.