Pennsylvania

Plain-language summary

Pennsylvania's cooperative purchasing framework is broadly construction-friendly and well-developed. The Commonwealth Procurement Code (62 Pa.C.S. Title 62), Chapter 19 (Intergovernmental Relations), Section 1902 is the operative cooperative purchasing authority: 'A public procurement unit may either participate in, sponsor, conduct or administer a cooperative purchasing agreement for the procurement of any supplies, services or construction with one or more public procurement units or external procurement activities.' The explicit inclusion of 'construction' in this list places Pennsylvania alongside Alaska, Hawaii, Texas, Colorado, Kentucky, and South Carolina as states that directly authorize cooperative construction. Pennsylvania's definitions are notable: 'External procurement activity' means a buying organization not located in Pennsylvania that would qualify as a public procurement unit if located there, AND any agency of the U.S. 'Local public procurement unit' is defined broadly to include political subdivisions, public authorities, tax-exempt nonprofit educational or public health institutions, nonprofit fire/rescue/ambulance companies, councils of governments, and 'any other entity, including a council of governments or an area government, which expends public funds for the procurement of supplies, services and construction.' Pennsylvania's COSTARS program (Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Cooperative Purchasing Program) is administered by the Department of General Services (DGS) under §1902 authority, and Acts 142 (2002) and 77 (2004) further expanded the program. The Pennsylvania Constitution Article IX, §5 (Intergovernmental Cooperation) provides additional constitutional foundation. Where a public procurement unit administering a cooperative purchase complies with its own procurement requirements, participating units are deemed to have complied with their own requirements. The Pennsylvania Prevailing Wage Act (1961), Steel Products Procurement Act (1978), and Trade Practices in Public Works Procurement Act (1968) continue to apply separately to public works construction regardless of cooperative pathway.

Key requirements

• →62 Pa.C.S. §1902 explicitly authorizes cooperative purchasing for 'any supplies, services or construction' — construction directly named.
• →Cooperative purchasing may be conducted with public procurement units or external procurement activities.
• →'External procurement activity' is broadly defined: any buying organization not located in Pennsylvania that would qualify as a public procurement unit (if located in PA), AND any agency of the United States.
• →'Local public procurement unit' definition expressly includes entities expending public funds for procurement of 'supplies, services and construction.'
• →Where a public procurement unit administering the cooperative purchase complies with its own procurement requirements, participating units are deemed to have complied with their requirements.
• →Cooperative purchasing may include joint or multiparty contracts and open-ended purchasing agency contracts made available to local public procurement units.
• →62 Pa.C.S. §1904: cooperative use of supplies or services authority (independent of source selection chapters).
• →Pennsylvania Constitution Article IX, §5 provides constitutional foundation for intergovernmental cooperation.
• →COSTARS Program (Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Cooperative Purchasing Program) administered by DGS under §1902 authority.
• →Pennsylvania Prevailing Wage Act (1961) continues to apply to public works construction regardless of cooperative pathway.
• →Steel Products Procurement Act (1978) and Trade Practices in Public Works Procurement Act (1968) continue to apply.
• →Public procurement units may not enter cooperative purchasing agreements for the purpose of circumventing the Commonwealth Procurement Code (62 Pa.C.S. §1902).

Construction services

Pennsylvania is broadly construction-friendly for cooperative purchasing. 62 Pa.C.S. §1902 explicitly names 'construction' in the cooperative purchasing authority — placing Pennsylvania alongside Alaska, Hawaii, Texas, Colorado, Kentucky, and South Carolina as states that directly authorize cooperative construction in statute. The 'external procurement activity' definition is broadly drafted to include both out-of-state buying organizations and federal agencies, making national cooperatives like OMNIA Partners and Region 14 ESC Texas clearly within the statutory framework. Pennsylvania's COSTARS program is one of the most active state cooperative purchasing programs in the country. National cooperatives can be utilized through the §1902 framework. Pennsylvania public works construction projects must continue to comply with the Pennsylvania Prevailing Wage Act, Steel Products Procurement Act, and Trade Practices in Public Works Procurement Act — these statutes apply independently of the cooperative purchasing pathway. Counsel should verify the specific cooperative contract structure satisfies §1902 and that the resulting construction work complies with applicable Pennsylvania public works procurement statutes.