In this subtitle, the following terms have the meanings indicated. Terms Defined. “Alternative education” means a public elementary or secondary school or program that addresses the needs of students that typically cannot be met in a regular school program and is designed to meet the needs of students with academic difficulties and/or discipline problems, and temporarily provide students with specialized instructional and/or behavioral supports for a specified time period before returning to their home school. “Best value” means the expected outcome of a procurement that provides the greatest overall benefit in response to the requirement with consideration given to the quantities involved, the time required for delivery, the purpose for which required, the competency and responsibility of the bidder, the ability of the bidder to perform satisfactory service, the plan for utilization of minority contractors, and the price offered by the bidder. “Bid” means a statement of price, terms of sale, schedule, and description of the supplies, services, construction, or construction-related services offered by a bidder in response to an invitation for bids. “Capital maintenance” means projects that involve the major repair, alteration, and replacement of building systems, equipment, finishes, and components, including their removal and disposal, and are sometimes referred to as “systemic renovation” projects. Competitive Negotiation. “Competitive negotiation” means a method of source selection that permits offerors to: Demonstrate creativity, experience, and knowledge; and Submit proposals that vary widely in scope, cost, and other factors. “Competitive negotiation” allows negotiating between the LEA and the qualified offerors with the objective that the final proposal should be the most advantageous to the LEA. “Competitive sealed bidding” means a process of procurement in which bidders provide fixed prices in response to a scope of work established by the LEA that is defined in advance. Construction. “Construction” means the process of building, altering, repairing, improving, or demolishing any structure, building, or other improvement to real property. “Construction” includes any major work necessary to repair, replace, prevent damage to, or sustain existing components of an improvement to real property. “Construction” does not include: The maintenance or routine operation of an existing improvement to real property; or Activities related to an energy performance contract. “Construction management agency (CMA)” means a project delivery method in which the LEA: Directly contracts with trade contractors; and Performs one of the following: Engages a construction manager as its agent to manage the project; or Acts as the construction manager. “Construction management at-risk (CMR)” means a project delivery method in which the LEA engages a construction manager to contract directly with trade contractors and provide a guaranteed maximum price for project procurement and construction. “Constructor” means the builder of a facility. “Cooperative-use space” means areas in a school that serve as shared or co-located spaces in which both the LEA and non-LEA organizations deliver programs and/or services. “County” includes Baltimore City. “Day” means calendar day unless otherwise designated. Design-Build. “Design-build” means a project delivery method in which a single entity is contractually responsible for both design and construction of a project. “Design-build” may include finance-design-build and other contracts that include services in addition to design and construction. “Donation” means a contribution of cash or gift in kind from a private entity to a public school system or a local government, with no consideration required of the recipient. “eMaryland Marketplace” means the State electronic procurement system. “Forward-funded project” means a school construction project that the State has approved for planning and for which the LEA has paid some portion of the State share with local funds. “Free and reduced-price meal percentage” means the number of students eligible in the previous year for free and reduced-price meals, divided by the full-time equivalent enrollment from the previous year. “Funding approval” means pending the availability of funds, the State commits to fund, in the next fiscal year, the entire or a portion of the State share of eligible costs for a school construction project. “Furniture, Fixtures, and Equipment (FF&E)” means a category of items such as chairs, desks, movable equipment, and fixed components that are required for the delivery of education within a school facility and are normally not included in the construction contract. “Gift in kind” means a contribution of materials, labor, services, equipment, or land from a private entity to a public school system or a local government, with no consideration required of the recipient. “Guaranteed maximum price (GMP)” means an arrangement between the LEA and the construction manager at risk in which the total amount payable to the construction manager at risk for the project is restricted to a preagreed maximum and includes the cost of construction and construction management services that is generally determined before the design and construction documents are complete. “High performance school” means a school building that satisfies the definition of a high performance building under State Finance and Procurement Article, §3-602.1, Annotated Code of Maryland, and is: A school building that meets or exceeds the current version of the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) for schools green building rating system silver rating; A school building that achieves at least a comparable numeric rating according to a nationally recognized, accepted, and appropriate numeric sustainable development rating system, guideline, or standard approved by the Secretary of Budget and Management and the Secretary of General Services; or A school building that complies with a nationally recognized and accepted green building code, guideline, or standard reviewed and recommended by the Maryland Green Building Council and approved by the Secretary of Budget and Management and the Secretary of General Services. “IAC” means the Interagency Commission on School Construction. “IAC” or its designee means a member of the IAC or a staff member, respectively, of the Maryland State Department of Education, the Department of General Services, or the Maryland Department of Planning who has been specifically designated to act in the place of the IAC member, or the Executive Director of the Public School Construction Program. “Invitation for bids (IFB)” means the document used for soliciting bids under procurement by competitive sealed bidding. “Job order contracting (JOC)” means a project delivery method in which the LEA selects a contractor through a competitive procurement process based on a multiplier or coefficient that: Reflects the bidder's determination of the actual cost to perform the work plus overhead and profit; and Is applied to a fixed-price list of construction items and activities. “LEA” means the local education agency or its designee. “Local board” means the board of education of a county and includes the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners “Locally funded project” means a school construction project that has been designed, built, or occupied prior to the State approval of planning. “Maintenance” means routine, preventative, or corrective activities that are performed to a facility to: Continue operations or upkeep; Prevent deterioration; or Correct a deficiency. Minority Business Enterprise (MBE). “Minority business enterprise” means a legal entity, other than a joint venture, organized to engage in commercial transactions, that is: At least 51 percent owned and controlled by one or more individuals who are socially and economically disadvantaged; Managed by, and whose daily business operations are controlled by, one or more of the socially and economically disadvantaged individuals who own it; and Certified as a Minority Business Enterprise by the Maryland Department of Transportation. “Minority business enterprise (MBE)” includes a not-for-profit entity organized to promote the interests of physically or mentally disabled individuals. “Multistep sealed bidding” means a multiphase process in which bidders submit a technical offer (statement of qualifications) and a second phase in which those bidders who are determined qualified during the first phase may have price bids considered. “Offeror” means an entity that responds to a request for proposals. “Planning approval” means, pending the availability of funds, the State commits to fund the State share of eligible costs for a school construction project in some future fiscal years. “Prevailing wage rate” means the hourly rate of wages paid in the locality as determined by the State Commissioner of Labor and Industry under State Finance and Procurement Article, §17-208, Annotated Code of Maryland. “Priority funding” area means an area designated by a county or a municipal corporation in accordance with State Finance and Procurement Article, §§5-7B-02 and 5-7B-03, Annotated Code of Maryland. “Proposal” means the response by an offeror to a request for proposals. “Quality based selection” means a method of source selection based on a combination of qualification and cost factors. “Renewal” means a capital improvement project for an existing school that, on completion, results in a like-new operational condition for the school as defined by the Commission. “Renovation” means a construction project to upgrade an existing building and site, or a portion of a building and site, to improve a school facility’s educational, building performance, and/or aesthetic qualities but which does not achieve a renewal or like-new condition. “Responsible” means an entity that has: The capability in all respects to perform fully the contract requirements; and The integrity and reliability that shall assure good faith performance. “Responsive” means a bid submitted in response to an invitation for bids that conforms in all material respects to the requirements contained in the invitation for bids. Request for Proposals. “Request for proposals” means any documents used for soliciting proposals from offerors. “Request for proposals” may request the offeror's price and terms for the proposed contract, a description of technical expertise, work experience, and any other information. “Request for qualifications” means any documents used to solicit statements of qualifications including experience, references, team composition, financial stability and condition, and availability of equipment from bidders. “Solicited” means an invitation for bid, request for proposals, request for qualifications, or other formal notification to the public of the owner's interest in receiving prices, other information, or both, for a proposed public school construction project or related services, which contains all relevant information to allow members of the public to submit responsive and responsible bids, offers, or proposals. “Special education classroom” means a classroom that is used primarily for students who are instructed for more than 60 percent of the day outside of regular classrooms. “State” means the government of the State of Maryland. “Trade contract” means a contract for specialized construction work including, but not limited to, electrical, plumbing, and carpentry. “Trade package” means solicitation documents for a trade contract. “Unsolicited proposal” means a written proposal for an original or innovative idea that is submitted on the initiative of the offeror for the purpose of obtaining a contract with the LEA. Education Article, §§4-126, 5-112, and 5-301—5-321, Annotated Code of Maryland Effective date: May 21, 2007 (34:10 Md. R. 891) Regulation .01B amended effective November 2, 2009 (36:22 Md. R. 1725) COMAR 23.03.01 recodified to be COMAR 14.39.01 under new subtitle, Interagency Commission on School Construction, effective November 4, 2019 (46:22 Md. R. 979) Regulation .01B amended effective November 4, 2019 (46:22 Md. R. 979); June 28, 2021 (48:13 Md. R. 509); July 7, 2025 (52:13 Md. R. 656)