In this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated. “Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Labor and Industry. “Good labor practices evaluation factor” means a factor for good labor practices that will be used to evaluate technical proposals received for procurements being conducted through the competitive sealed proposals procurement method under § 13–104 of this article. “Public body” has the meaning stated in § 17–201 of this article. “Public work contract” has the meaning stated in § 17–201 of this article.

This subtitle applies to: public work contracts procured by a public body; and a contract subject to § 18–102 of this article.

To qualify for application of the good labor practices evaluation factor, a business must attest by affidavit that, on any contract subject to this subtitle that it is awarded or under which it performs any work, the business will: directly employ, as W–2 employees, all workers performing tasks on behalf of the business, except for a person exempt under Title 3, Subtitle 9 of the Labor and Employment Article, under the contract; pay all workers by check or electronic means as available and not in cash or cash equivalent; strictly comply with all legal obligations as an employer, including its obligations as an employer under Title 3, Title 5, Title 8, or Title 9 of the Labor and Employment Article and, as applicable, under Title 17 or Title 18 of this article; provide advance written notification to the procurement authority and to the Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Labor and Industry, in a form to be determined by the Commissioner, of any subcontractors performing work under the contract; provide written notice of the requirements of items (1), (2), and (3) of this subsection to any subcontractors performing work under the contract; obtain written acknowledgment of the notice provided in item (5) of this subsection and of the subcontractor’s agreement to adhere to those requirements, to be filed with the Commissioner, in a form and manner determined by the Commissioner; successfully complete a comprehensive consultation visit by the Maryland Occupational Safety and Health Program within a reasonable time determined by the Commissioner, following the start of work under the contract; be jointly and severally liable as an employer for any violation of a subcontractor under Title 17 or Title 18 of this article in connection with the subcontractor’s performance of work under the contract; promptly disclose to the Commissioner, in a form and manner to be prescribed by the Commissioner, any suits, charges, demands, orders, findings, or adjudications made against it in connection with violations subject to item (1), (2), or (3) of this subsection or against any of its subcontractors as provided in item (8) of this subsection; and on contracts subject to § 18–102 of this article, provide proof that the business has secured a payment bond sufficient to ensure payment of wages to all employees performing work under the contract. A procurement officer who receives a proposal for a competitive sealed proposal procurement that is submitted with the affidavit described under subsection (a) of this section shall evaluate the proposal with the good labor practices evaluation factor. The Commissioner shall: maintain a list for the preceding 12 months of all businesses that have submitted the affidavit described under subsection (a) of this section, confirming adherence to good labor practices; provide the list in item (1) of this subsection to all procurement officers at least once every 6 months and on request; and publish the list in item (1) of this subsection on the Maryland Department of Labor’s public website. If the Commissioner determines that a business is not following good labor practices, as described in subsection (a) of this section: the Commissioner shall remove the business from the list maintained under subsection (c)(1) of this section; and the business may not be eligible for the good labor practices evaluation factor for 12 months following the determination made under this subsection. The Chief Procurement Officer, in consultation with the Commissioner, may adopt regulations to implement the provisions of this subtitle.

A good labor practices evaluation factor for good labor practices described in § 14–903(a) of this subtitle shall be included in the technical evaluation factors for competitive sealed proposals for a proposal submitted for a contract described in § 14–902 of this subtitle. The good labor practices evaluation factor shall be: if a point system is used for evaluation of proposals, 10% of the total allocable technical points; or if a point system is not used for evaluation of proposals, ranked in its relative order of importance.

A person may not engage in conduct prohibited under § 14–605(a) or § 14–606 of this title in connection with any act undertaken to qualify for a good labor practices evaluation factor. The penalties established in §§ 14–605(b) and (c) and 14–606 of this title apply to violations of this subtitle.

In addition to the penalties established under § 14–905 of this subtitle, a person that willfully misrepresents or willfully omits any material matter in connection with an application or required disclosure for purposes of obtaining or retaining a contract or subcontract under this subtitle may be subject to: suspension or debarment under Title 16 of this article; or civil penalties under the Maryland False Claims Act.