BILL ANALYSIS



C.S.H.B. 2176
By: Price
03-29-95
Committee Report (Substituted)


BACKGROUND

Current law, (Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes, Article 6674a et seq.)
provides procedures for the contracting of state highway
improvement contracts.  Due to the fact that the Texas
Transportation Commission meets monthly, it typically takes three
or four months to prepare, advertise, receive bids, and award a
highway improvement contract.  This time-consuming process prevents
the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) from adequately
responding to the maintenance needs of the state highway system.

PURPOSE

H.B. 2176 allows TxDOT to expedite and clarify the process for
advertising, bidding on, and awarding highway improvement contracts
by allowing the Transportation Commission to delegate the bidding
and approval of certain highway contracts to the executive
director.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly
grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer,
department, agency, or institution.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1: Amends V.T.C.S., Article 6674h, Section 8 as follows:
(a)changes State Department of Highways and Public Transportation
to Texas Department of Transportation.
(b)increase the ceiling for expedited advertising procedures from
$100,000 to contracts estimated by the department to involve less
than $300,000. This expedited advertising requires notice in two
successive issues of any newspaper published in the county where
the work is done.
(c)provides that in the event that the county receiving the project
has no locally published paper, the required notice must be made in
the newspaper closest to the recipient county seat.
(d)authorizes the Commission to set a fee to recover the costs of
keeping a mailing list of contractors and mailing notices of
contract lettings. This section also adds language which mandates
that the fees collected are credited to the state highway fund,
exempting funds collected under Sections 403.094 and 403.095,
Government Code.

SECTION 2: Amends V.T.C.S., Article 6674i, Section 9 as follows:
(a)Provides that all bids must be sealed and filed with the
executive director of TxDOT or his designee.  These bids must be
opened at a public meeting and the Texas Transportation Commission
can reject bids if they do not meet their criteria.  
(b)authorizes the Commission to delegate to the executive director
or designee the right to award contracts estimated by the
department to involve less than $300,000.  Bids under this section
are filed with the district engineer and opened at a public meeting
set by the district engineer or his designee. This section also
includes language directing the executive director to award
contracts under this section to the lowest bidder.

SECTION 3: Amends V.T.C.S., Article 6674j, Section 11 to authorize
the Commission to delegate to the executive director its authority
to prescribe the form and content of contracts.  The executive
director may delegate authority received under this section to an
employee of the department who is not below the rank of division
director.

SECTION 4: Amends V.T.C.S., Article 6674l, Section 12 to authorize
the Commission to delegate to the executive director the signing of
a highway improvement contract.  These contracts are subject to
approval of two Commission members or a designee under Section
2103.064(a), Government Code.

SECTION 5: Provides that this change in law applies only to a
contract for which a notice of bid opening has been published on or
after the effective date of this Act.

Section 6. Emergency Clause and Effective Date as upon passage.


COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

The Committee substitute to H.B. 2176 adds additional language in
SECTION 3, by amending V.T.C.S., Article 6674j, Section 11 to
authorize the Commission to delegate to the executive director its
authority to prescribe the form and content of contracts.  The
executive director may delegate authority received under this
section to an employee of the department who is not below the rank
of division director.

SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION

Pursuant to a public notice posted on March 16, 1995, at 5:53 p.m.,
the House Committee on Transportation met in a public hearing on
Wednesday, March 22, 1995 at 2:00 p.m. in Room E1.014 of the
Capitol Extension and was called to order at 6:54 p.m. after the
rules were suspended on the House floor to meet in public hearing
after the posted time, by the Chair, Representative Clyde
Alexander.  The Chair laid out H.B. 2176 and recognized
Representative Price to explain H.B. 2176.  The Chair recognized
Representative Siebert to lay out the Committee Substitute to H.B.
2176.  The Chair recognized the following person who was neutral on
H.B. 2176.  Bob Templeton, Texas Department of Transportation with
a letter from commissioner Anne Wynne, Texas Department of
Transportation.  Representative Siebert withdrew the Committee
substitute to H.B. 2176.  The Chair left H.B. 2176 pending before
the Committee.  Pursuant to a public notice posted on March 23,
1995, at 7:36 p.m., the House Committee on Transportation met in a
public hearing on Wednesday, March 29, 1995 at 2:00 p.m. in Room
E1.014 of the Capitol Extension and was called to order at 2:10
p.m. by the Chair, Representative Clyde Alexander.  The Chair laid
out H.B. 2176 by Price which was pending before the committee. 
Representative Siebert laid out the Committee Substitute to H.B.
2176 and without objection the substitute was adopted. 
Representative Uher moved that the committee report H.B. 2176, as
substituted, to the full House with the recommendation that it do
pass.  The motion prevailed by the following vote: Ayes (6), Nayes
(0), Absent (3), Present not voting (0).