§196-21  Financing mechanisms.  (a) Agencies shall maximize their use of available alternative financingcontracting mechanisms, including energy-savings contracts, when life-cyclecost-effective, to reduce energy use and cost in their facilities and operations. Energy-savings contracts shall include:

(1)  Energy performance contracts;

(2)  Municipal lease and purchase financing; and

(3)  Utility energy-efficiency service contracts.

Energy-savings contracts shall provide significantopportunities for making state facilities more energy efficient at no net costto taxpayers.

(b)  Agencies that perform energy efficiencyand renewable energy system retrofitting may continue to receive budgetappropriations for energy expenditures at an amount that will not fall belowthe pre-retrofitting energy budget but will rise in proportion to any increasein the agency's overall budget for the duration of the performance contract orproject payment term.  A portion of the moneys saved through efficiency andrenewable energy system retrofitting shall be set aside to pay for any costsdirectly associated with administering energy efficiency and renewable energysystem retrofitting programs incurred by the agency.

(c)  Notwithstanding any law to the contraryrelating to the award of public contracts, any agency desiring to enter into anenergy performance contract shall do so in accordance with the followingprovisions:

(1)  The agency shall issue a public request forproposals, advertised in the same manner as provided in chapter 103D,concerning the provision of energy-efficiency services or the design,installation, operation, and maintenance of energy equipment.  The request forproposals shall contain terms and conditions relating to submission ofproposals, evaluation, and selection of proposals, financial terms, legalresponsibilities, and other matters as may be required by law and as the agencydetermines appropriate;

(2)  Upon receiving responses to the request forproposals, the agency shall select the most qualified proposal or proposals andmay base its determination on the basis of the experience and qualifications ofthe proposers, the technical approach, the financial arrangements, the overallbenefits to the agency, or other factors determined by the agency to berelevant and appropriate;

(3)  The agency thereafter may negotiate and enterinto an energy performance contract with the person or company whose proposalis selected as the most qualified based on the criteria established by theagency;

(4)  The term of any energy performance contractentered into pursuant to this section shall not exceed twenty years;

(5)  Any energy performance contract may provide thatthe agency ultimately shall receive title to the energy system being financedunder the contract; and

(6)  Any energy performance contract shall providethat total payments shall not exceed total savings. [L 2002, c 77, pt of §9; amL 2006, c 96, §7; am L 2007, c 157, §3]