Terms Used In Maryland Code, LOCAL GOVERNMENT 12-532

  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • County: means a county of the State or Baltimore City. See
  • Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
  • Person: includes an individual, receiver, trustee, guardian, personal representative, fiduciary, representative of any kind, corporation, partnership, business trust, statutory trust, limited liability company, firm, association, or other nongovernmental entity. See
  • state: means :

    (1) a state, possession, territory, or commonwealth of the United States; or

    (2) the District of Columbia. See
(a) Except as provided in subsection (c) of this section, Cecil County shall obtain the following by competitively bid contract awarded to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder:

(1) the building or repair of a road; and

(2) the purchase or lease of road or construction equipment or machinery.

(b) (1) The governing body of Cecil County shall advertise for bids on a contract under subsection (a) of this section in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the county.

(2) The advertisement shall:

(i) appear at least once;

(ii) appear at least 1 week, but not more than 30 days, before the final date for submitting bids;

(iii) if the contract relates to building or repairing a road, set forth the place where the road is to be built or repaired;

(iv) include a description of the goods or services required under the contract;

(v) state that sealed bids for goods or services will be received until the date designated in the advertisement; and

(vi) designate a date for the opening of the bids.

(c) (1) Subsections (a) and (b) of this section do not apply to an expenditure that:

(i) is $10,000 or less; or

(ii) the governing body of Cecil County by a recorded majority vote taken at a public meeting declares to be an emergency expenditure.

(2) For an expenditure under this subsection, the governing body may determine:

(i) the manner of providing for the expenditure; and

(ii) if the building or repair is by contract, the manner in which the contract is awarded.

(d) (1) A contract entered into in violation of subsection (a) or (b) of this section is void, unless:

(i) a court determines in a judicial action that all parties acted in good faith; and

(ii) the parties have substantially complied with the provisions of subsections (a) and (b) of this section.

(2) If a contract is void under this subsection, the governing body of Cecil County shall compensate the contractor for costs actually incurred if the contractor:

(i) acted in good faith;

(ii) did not directly contribute to the violation; and

(iii) did not know of the violation.

(e) A person who willfully violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to a fine not exceeding $1,000.