O.C.G.A. § 50-27-14 — Participation by minority businesses

It is the intent of the General Assembly that the corporation encourage participation by minority businesses. Accordingly, the board of 581 50-27-15 directors shall adopt a plan which achieves to the greatest extent possible a level of participation by minority businesses taking into account the total number of all retailers and vendors, including any subcontractors. The corporation is authorized and directed to undertake training programs and other educational activities to enable such minority businesses to compete for contracts on an equal basis. The board shall monitor the results of minority business participation and shall report the results of minority business participation to the Governor at least on an annual basis. History. — Code 1981, § 50-27-14, enacted by Ga. L. 1992, p. 3173, § 2. 50-27-15. Investigation of vendors; disclosure requirements; restrictions on entry into procurement contracts. (a) The corporation shall investigate the ﬁnancial responsibility, security, and integrity of any lottery system vendor who is a ﬁnalist in submitting a bid, proposal, or offer as part of a major procurement. At the time of submitting such bid, proposal, or offer to the corporation, the corporation may require the following items: (1) A disclosure of the vendor’s name and address and, as applicable, the names and addresses of the following: (A) If the vendor is a corporation, the officers, directors, and each stockholder in such corporation; provided, however, that in the case of owners of equity securities of a publicly traded corporation, only the names and addresses of those known to the corporation to own beneﬁcially 5 percent or more of such securities need be disclosed; (B) If the vendor is a trust, the trustee and all persons entitled to receive income or beneﬁts from the trust; (C) If the vendor is an association, the members, officers, and directors; and (D) If the vendor is a partnership or joint venture, all of the general partners, limited partners, or joint venturers; (2) A disclosure of all the states and jurisdictions in which the vendor does business and the nature of the business for each such state or jurisdiction; (3) A disclosure of all the states and jurisdictions in which the vendor has contracts to supply gaming goods or services, including, but not limited to, lottery goods and services, and the nature of the goods or services involved for each such state or jurisdiction; (4) A disclosure of all the states and jurisdictions in which the vendor has applied for, has sought renewal of, has received, has been 582 50-27-15 denied, has pending, or has had revoked a lottery or gaming license of any kind or had ﬁnes or penalties assessed to his license, contract, or operation and the disposition of such in each such state or jurisdiction. If any lottery or gaming license or contract has been revoked or has not been renewed or any lottery or gaming license or application has been either denied or is pending and has remained pending for more than six months, all of the facts and circumstances underlying the failure to receive such a license shall be disclosed; (5) A disclosure of the details of any ﬁnding or plea, conviction, or adjudication of guilt in a state or federal court of the vendor for any felony or any other criminal offense other than a traffic violation; (6) A disclosure of the details of any bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, or corporate or individual purchase or takeover of another corporation, including bonded indebtedness, or any pending litigation of the vendor; and (7) Such additional disclosures and information as the corporation may determine to be appropriate for the procurement involved. If at least 25 percent of the cost of a vendor’s contract is subcontracted, the vendor shall disclose all of the information required by this Code section for the subcontractor as if the subcontractor were itself a vendor. (b) A lottery procurement contract shall not be entered into with any lottery system vendor who has not complied with the disclosure requirements described in subsection (a) of this Code section, and any contract with such a vendor is voidable at the option of the corporation. Any contract with a vendor who does not comply with such requirements for periodically updating such disclosures during the tenure of contract as may be speciﬁed in such contract may be terminated by the corporation. The provisions of this Code section shall be construed broadly and liberally to achieve the ends of full disclosure of all information necessary to allow for a full and complete evaluation by the corporation of the competence, integrity, background, and character of vendors for major procurements. (c) A major procurement contract shall not be entered into with any vendor who has been found guilty of a felony related to the security or integrity of the lottery in this or any other jurisdiction. (d) A major procurement contract shall not be entered into with any vendor if such vendor has an ownership interest in an entity that had supplied consultation services under contract to the corporation regarding the request for proposals pertaining to those particular goods or services. (e) No lottery system vendor nor any applicant for a major procurement contract may pay, give, or make any economic opportunity, gift, 583 50-27-16 loan, gratuity, special discount, favor, hospitality, or service, excluding food and beverages having an aggregate value not exceeding $100.00 in any calendar year, to the chief executive officer, any board member, or any employee of the corporation or to a member of the immediate family residing in the same household as any such person. History. — Code 1981, § 50-27-15, enacted by Ga. L. 1992, p. 3173, § 2. 50-27-16. Bonding requirements for vendors; qualiﬁcations of vendors; competitive bid requirement. (a)(1) Each vendor shall, at the execution of the contract with the corporation, post a performance bond or letter of credit from a bank or credit provider acceptable to the corporation in an amount as deemed necessary by the corporation for that particular bid or contract. In lieu of the bond, a vendor may, to assure the faithful performance of its obligations, deposit and maintain with the corporation securities that are interest bearing or accruing and that are rated in one of the three highest classiﬁcations by an established nationally recognized investment rating service. Securities eligible under this Code section are limited to: (A) Certiﬁcates of deposit issued by solvent banks or savings associations approved by the corporation and which are organized and existing under the laws of this state or under the laws of the United States; (B) United States bonds, notes, and bills for which the full faith and credit of the government of the United States is pledged for the payment of principal and interest; and (C) Corporate bonds approved by the corporation. The corporation which issued the bonds shall not be an affiliate or subsidiary of the depositor. Such securities shall be held in trust and shall have at all times a market value at least equal to the full amount estimated to be paid annually to the lottery vendor under contract. (2) Because of certain economic considerations, minority businesses may not be able ﬁnancially to comply with the bonding, deposit of securities, or letter of credit requirements of paragraph (1) of this subsection. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this subsection, in order to assure minority participation in major procurement contracts to the most feasible and practicable extent possible, the chief executive officer is authorized and directed to waive the bonding, deposit of securities, and letter of credit requirements of paragraph (1) of this subsection for a period of ﬁve years 584 50-27-17 from the time that a minority business enters into a major procurement contract for any minority business which substantiates ﬁnancial hardship pursuant to the policies and procedures established by the board. (b) Each vendor shall be qualiﬁed to do business in this state and shall ﬁle appropriate tax returns as provided by the laws of this state. All contracts under this Code section shall be governed by the laws of this state. (c) No contract shall be let with any vendor in which a public official, as deﬁned by Code Section 45-10-20, has an ownership interest of 10 percent or more. (d) All major procurement contracts must be competitively bid pursuant to policies and procedures approved by the board unless there is only one qualiﬁed vendor and that vendor has an exclusive right to offer the service or product. History. — Code 1981, § 50-27-16, enacted by Ga. L. 1992, p. 3173, § 2.