By: Montford S.B. No. 493
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
1-1 relating to purchases of property through competitive bids and
1-2 other means by school districts.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Subsections (a), (b), and (h), Section 21.901,
1-5 Education Code, are amended to read as follows:
1-6 (a) Except as provided in this section, all contracts
1-7 proposed to be made by any Texas public school board for the
1-8 purchase of any personal property, except produce or vehicle fuel,
1-9 shall be submitted to competitive bidding for each 12-month period
1-10 when said property is valued at $25,000 <$10,000> or more, in the
1-11 aggregate for each 12-month period.
1-12 (b) Except as provided in Subsection (e) of this section,
1-13 all contracts proposed to be made by any Texas public school board
1-14 for the construction, maintenance, repair or renovation of any
1-15 building <or for materials used in said construction, maintenance,
1-16 repair or renovation,> shall be submitted to competitive bidding
1-17 when said contracts are valued at $10,000 or more. In this
1-18 section, maintenance includes supervision of custodial, plant
1-19 operations, maintenance, and ground services personnel.
1-20 (h) Each <Whenever possible, each> contract proposed to be
1-21 made by any Texas public school board for the lease of one or more
1-22 school buses, including a lease with an option to purchase, shall
1-23 be submitted to competitive bidding when the contract is valued at
1-24 $10,000 or more.
2-1 SECTION 2. Subchapter Z, Chapter 21, Education Code, is
2-2 amended by adding Section 21.9013 to read as follows:
2-3 Sec. 21.9013. PURCHASES OF PERSONAL PROPERTY VALUED BETWEEN
2-4 $10,000 AND $25,000. (a) A school district shall purchase
2-5 personal property as provided by this section if the value of the
2-6 items is at least $10,000 but less than $25,000, in the aggregate,
2-7 for a 12-month period. In the alternative, the school district may
2-8 elect to submit a contract for the purchase of those items to
2-9 competitive bidding as provided by Section 21.901 of this code.
2-10 (b) For each 12-month period, the district shall publish a
2-11 notice in two successive issues of any newspaper of general
2-12 circulation in the county in which the school is located. If there
2-13 is no newspaper in the county in which the school is located, the
2-14 advertising shall be published in a newspaper in the county nearest
2-15 the county seat of the county in which the school is located,
2-16 specifying the categories of personal property to be purchased
2-17 under this section and soliciting the names, addresses, and
2-18 telephone numbers of vendors that are interested in supplying any
2-19 of the categories to the district. For each category, the district
2-20 shall create a vendor list consisting of each vendor that responds
2-21 to the published notice and any additional vendors the district
2-22 elects to include.
2-23 (c) Before the district makes a purchase from a category of
2-24 personal property, the district must obtain written or telephone
2-25 price quotations from at least three vendors from the list for that
2-26 category. If fewer than three vendors are on the list, the
2-27 district shall contact each vendor on the list. Whenever possible,
3-1 telephone quotes should be confirmed in writing by mail or
3-2 facsimile. The bidding records must be retained with the school's
3-3 competitive bidding records and are subject to audit. The purchase
3-4 shall be made from the lowest responsible bidder.
3-5 (d) Purchases of produce and fuel shall be made in
3-6 accordance with this section.
3-7 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 1993.
3-8 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
3-9 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
3-10 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
3-11 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
3-12 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.