HARRY HUGHES, Governor

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(b)  "Person" means a natural person, corporation,
partnership, or other business unit or association.

(c)  "Public agency" means:

(1)   [The] THE State of Maryland, its departments,
agencies, boards, commissions, and institutions; and

(2)   [County] COUNTY, city, school or conservation
districts, or other governmental units or districts that let
public bids for construction or other public works under Maryland
law.

(d)  "Steel products" means products rolled, formed, shaped,
drawn, extruded, forged, cast, fabricated, or otherwise similarly
processed, or processed by a combination of two or more of such
operations, from steel made in the United States by the open
hearth, basic oxygen, electric furnace, Bessemer, or other steel
making process.

(e)  "United States" means the United States of America and
includes all territory, continental or insular, subject to the
jurisdiction of the United States.

[18-702.] 12-402. REQUIREMENT IN BID; REASONABLENESS OF BID.

(a)  Each public agency shall require that every contract
advertised for bid or proposal for the construction or
maintenance of public works or for the purchase or manufacture of
any item of machinery or equipment of at least 10,000 pounds of
steel products to be installed at sites of public works shall
require use or supply of steel products only as defined by this
subtitle in the performance of the contract or any of the
subcontracts, unless the head of the public agency determines in
writing that the cost of steel products is unreasonable or
inconsistent with the public interest.

(b)  The [Department] BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS shall issue
rules which provide that, for purposes of subsection (a) of this
section, the bid or offered price of any steel products of
domestic origin is not unreasonable if it does not exceed the sum
of:

(1)   [The] THE bid or offered price of like steel
products of foreign origin (including any applicable duty); plus

(2)   [A] A differential of 20 percent of the bid or
offered price of the steel products of foreign origin. However,
if the steel products are produced in a "substantial labor
surplus area" as defined by the United States Department of
Labor, the differential applied under this paragraph shall be 30
percent.

[18-703.] 12-403. PAYMENTS.