(a)
Upon submitting a complete application for review under this article, the applicant may request that the Department of General Services refer the documents necessary for the review of that application to a qualified plan review firm operating under contract with the department pursuant to Section 17305. The department immediately shall grant the request and refer the necessary documents to a qualified plan review firm if the applicant so requests.
Upon completing the review, the qualified plan review firm shall submit the documents referred to it for the review of the application, together with the results of its review, to the Department of General Services.
(b)
The Department of General Services shall establish a procedure governing the use by applicants of the review process alternative described in this section, including, but not limited to, provisions restricting the use of qualified plan review firms on the basis of conflict of interest.