OFFICIAL OPINION No. 34

OFFICIAL OPINION No. 34 Departrnent of Property and Supplies-Scheduled contr:acts-Ad'<Jertfaement 1. The Department of Property and Supplies may, consistent with the Ad· ministrative Code, group its scheduled contracts together in a single advertisement on an annual basis, listing all established schedules, the commodities established by each schedule and the bid opening date and time therefor. Honorable Frank C. Hilton Secretary Department of Property and Supplies Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Dear Secretary Hilton: Harrisburg. Pa. April 23, 1973 This will acknowledge receipt of your letter of March 30, 1973.' wherein you have requested a formal opinion interpreting Secho~ 2409 ~f The 1\dministrative Code ( 71 P .S. §639), inso- far as it contams requirements for the advertising of scheduled contracts. You have advised us that your present procedure is to adver- tise separately each individually scheduled contract but that you now propose, if it it permitted by The Administrative Code, to group your scheduled contracts together in a single advertise- ment on an annual basis, listing all established schedules the commodities established by each schedule and the bid op~ning date and time therefor. ' The sixth paragraph of Section 2409 provides as follows : "The department shall, not less than six weeks prior to OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL the termination of schedule contracts now existing or that may be made in the future, advertise the opening of bids for the annual, semi-annual, or quarterly sched- ules, by advertising inserted for at least three days, the first and last pu?lication to be at least ten days apart, in not less than six or more than twelve newspapers of extensive general circulation in different parts of the Commonwealth, not more than three of which shall be published in any one county, invite sealed proposals for contracts to furnish all stationery, supplies, paper, and fuel, used by the Senate and House of Represent- atives, the several departments, boards, and commis- sions of the State Government, and the Executive Man- sion, and for repairing, altering, improving, furnish- ing or refurnishing, and all other matters or things re- quired for the public grounds and buildings, legislative halls and rooms connected therewith, the rooms of the several departments, boards and commissions, and the buildings connected with the State Capitol and the Ex- ecutive Mansion. The advertisement shall contain a reference to the schedules so prepared by the depart- ment, and, as briefly as practicable, invite bids for the furnishing of articles named in the schedules, and give notice of the time and place where such bids will be received, and when they will be opened." 83 There is nothing in the above language which requires that each schedule be advertised individually, nor does there appear to be any compelling reason for requiring the schedules to be advertised separately. Moreover, a grouping of the schedules in one advertisement would result in some savings to the Common- wealth. For these reasons it is our opinion, and you are accordingly advised that the foreP-oing language of The Administrative Code permits' the grouping 0 of schedules in one advertisement on an annual basis provided that all of the requirements of the Code for advertising are met. Very truly yours, w. w. ANDERSON Deputy Attorney General ISRAEL P ACKEL Attorney General