Sec. 32-655a. Project comptroller. Duties. Audits. Consultants. - Connecticut Statutes

      Sec. 32-655a. Project comptroller. Duties. Audits. Consultants. The secretary shall take reasonable steps designed to ensure that the expenditure of public funds for project costs of the overall project is subject to adequate financial controls and that construction of the overall project conforms to applicable construction standards and approved plans and specifications. Such steps shall include, but are not limited to, the following:

      (1) (A) The secretary shall designate a project comptroller from the secretary's senior staff. The project comptroller shall review, certify and authorize any amount due for payment by the Treasurer on warrants issued by the State Comptroller and otherwise oversee the expenditure of all state funds made available for purposes of the overall project pursuant to public act 00-140*, and shall be responsible for monitoring the project budget, including cost estimates for site preparation, infrastructure, improvements and project construction, the review of all invoices for project costs for conformance to contracts and budgets, and the receipt and review of all reports from the independent auditing firm selected by the secretary and the State Building Inspector, the State Fire Marshal, the architects and environmental consultants as provided for in this section. The project comptroller shall be responsible for obtaining all necessary information and shall monitor all aspects of the planning and implementation of the overall project, including on-site inspections. The project comptroller shall prepare and submit to the secretary, the authority and the Auditors of Public Accounts as of the end of each quarter during the period of project development a summary of the reports received by the project comptroller during such quarter and a summary, by major category, of all expenditures of state funds for project costs during such quarter, noting any significant variances against budget.

      (B) In order to assure accountability regarding the construction aspects of the overall project by the project manager and other contractors and professionals retained directly or indirectly by the state, the secretary shall obtain the services of a person or persons experienced in construction oversight. The secretary shall obtain such services (i) by agreement with the Department of Public Works or the Department of Transportation; (ii) by direct hire; (iii) by contract; or (iv) by any combination of (i), (ii) or (iii) of this subparagraph.

      (2) The secretary shall select an independent auditing firm in accordance with applicable procurement procedures to review all invoices, expenditures, cost allocations and other appropriate documentation related to all elements of the public improvements managed by the project manager in order to reconcile all project costs and verify conformance with the project budget, cost allocation agreements and applicable contracts. The independent auditing firm shall file a written report quarterly with the secretary, the authority and the project comptroller reporting the results of such review and shall assist in the reconciliation of any discrepancies between the records of the project manager and the records of the project comptroller designated by the secretary.

      (3) All contracts entered into by the secretary or the authority related to the construction of the overall project, including contracts with the project manager and each construction manager, shall require the maintenance of complete accounting records relating to all expenditures of state funds, including detailed support for all cost allocations, on an open book basis providing for access to such records, including records in electronic form, by the secretary, the authority, the independent auditing firm selected by the secretary and the Auditors of Public Accounts.

      (4) All allocations of costs between public and private improvements shall be pursuant to written agreement and consistent with the project budget.

      (5) A construction manager or managers for all major elements of the public improvements shall be selected by the secretary and the authority in accordance with applicable procurement procedures and shall make reports to the project comptroller as requested. The construction managers shall be responsible for day-to-day management of all such construction activities in accordance with written agreements with the secretary or the authority.

      (6) All construction plans and specifications shall be subject to the review and approval of the State Building Inspector and the State Fire Marshal. The State Building Inspector and the State Fire Marshal shall conduct periodic inspections of the overall project as construction proceeds and shall immediately notify the secretary, the project comptroller and the authority of any material variance between approved plans and specifications and actual construction. The State Building Inspector and the State Fire Marshal shall provide quarterly reports to the secretary, the project comptroller and the authority regarding conformance of actual construction to approved plans and specifications.

      (7) Each contract for architectural services entered into by the secretary or the authority with respect to the overall project shall include a requirement that the architect monitor conformance of actual construction with the plans and specifications approved by the State Building Inspector and the State Fire Marshal and promptly report any material variance to the secretary, the project comptroller and the authority, with copies to the State Building Inspector and the State Fire Marshal.

      (8) An environmental consultant or consultants shall be selected by the secretary in accordance with applicable procurement procedures to monitor conformance of actual environmental remediation of the stadium facility site and the Adriaen's Landing site with any approved remediation plans and promptly report any material variance to the secretary, project comptroller and the authority.

      (P.A. 00-140, S. 32, 40; P.A. 02-103, S. 51.)

      *Public act 00-140 is entitled "An Act Implementing the Master Development Plan for the Adriaen's Landing Project and the Stadium at Rentschler Field Project". (See Reference Table captioned "Public Acts of 2000" in Volume 16 which lists the sections amended, created or repealed by the act.)

      History: P.A. 00-140 effective May 2, 2000 (Revisor's note: In Subdiv. (5) a reference to the project "controller" was changed editorially by the Revisors to project "comptroller" for consistency with references elsewhere in the section); P.A. 02-103 made a technical change in Subdiv. (1)(A).