Current through September 24, 2024
1.
General.
A. In the event a
determination is made by a Grant recipient after a construction contract is
executed that changes or modifications to the original contract are necessary
or would better serve the purpose of the Grant recipient, such Grant recipient
may, at its discretion, execute such change orders pertaining to the
construction that are necessary under the circumstances, as provided in the
contract documents and when in accordance with applicable law.
B. Change orders shall not change, vary, or
alter the basic purpose or effect of the project unless allowed by the
Department. Change orders shall be technically adequate, the costs shall be
necessary and reasonable, and eligible/ineligible costs shall be appropriately
separated.
2.
Change Order Submissions.
A.
After completion of the claims resolution and/or change order negotiation
process between the Grant recipient and the contracting party, a fully executed
change order shall be submitted to the Department for review and approval, in
order to obtain an ARPA RWAI Grant eligibility/allowability determination. If
any change order is submitted to the Department that is not complete and fully
executed by the Grant recipient, the contracting party, and the licensed
engineer if appropriate, the Department may return such change order without
review.
B. The Grant recipient may
submit a complete and fully executed change order which has been executed
conditional upon an ARPA RWAI Grant eligibility/allowability determination by
the Department.
C. All change
orders shall be submitted to the Department for review and approval in a timely
manner.
D. If possible, approval of
a change order should be secured from the Department before the work is
started, particularly for change orders including time extensions as per Rule
5.3.17.4 below. Approval may also be secured after the work is started;
however, the Grant recipient shall bear the cost if the work is determined to
be ineligible or unallowable.
E.
When the eligible cost of a project will be significantly reduced by a change
order or change orders, the Department may issue an amendment to the budget
modification decreasing the Grant amount, and the Grant recipient shall execute
such modification within the time frame established by the
Department.
3.
Department Review.
In order to allow the Department to perform a technical
and Grant allowability review, requests for change order approvals shall
conform to Department guidance, requirements, and regulations.
4.
Time Extensions.
Change orders which include time extensions exceeding 30
days beyond the original contract completion date, and/or documentation that
the Grant recipient is implementing all legal remedies provided in the contract
documents for failure to complete construction when required, shall be
submitted to the Department as specified in these regulations. Justification
for contract time extensions included in a change order shall be prepared but
need not be submitted to the Department unless the total time extensions for
the contract exceeds 30 days after the original contract completion date, in
which case justification for all time extensions shall be submitted to the
Department for an allowability determination. The deadline of September 30,
2026 ends the period of performance to liquidate all obligations. The contract
completion date should not exceed August 15, 2026.
House Bill 1421,
2022 Regular Session & Senate Bill 2444, 2023 Regular Session of the MS
Legislature
