1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to municipal contracting; authorizing 
  1.3             ambulance services to participate in shared service 
  1.4             purchasing; amending Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 
  1.5             471.345, subdivision 10. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 471.345, 
  1.8   subdivision 10, is amended to read: 
  1.9      Subd. 10.  [HOSPITAL AND AMBULANCE SERVICE SHARED SERVICE 
  1.10  PURCHASING.] Supplies, materials, or equipment to be used in the 
  1.11  operation of a hospital licensed under sections 144.50 to 144.56 
  1.12  or an ambulance service licensed under chapter 144E that are 
  1.13  purchased or leased under a shared service purchasing 
  1.14  arrangement whereby more than one hospital or ambulance service 
  1.15  purchases supplies, materials, or equipment with one or more 
  1.16  other hospitals or ambulance services either through one of the 
  1.17  hospitals or ambulance services or through another entity, may 
  1.18  be purchased without regard to the competitive bidding 
  1.19  requirements of this section, if the following conditions are 
  1.20  met: 
  1.21     (1) the hospital's or ambulance service's governing 
  1.22  authority authorizes the arrangement; 
  1.23     (2) the shared services purchasing program purchases items 
  1.24  available from more than one source on the basis of competitive 
  1.25  bids or competitive quotations of prices; and 
  2.1      (3) the arrangement authorizes the hospital's or ambulance 
  2.2   service's governing authority or its representatives to review 
  2.3   the purchasing procedures to determine compliance with these 
  2.4   requirements.