By Coleman                                            H.B. No. 3065
       74R6486 JRD-D
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to determining whether a state agency is making a good
    1-3  faith effort to comply with the state's procurement programs and
    1-4  goals for contracting with historically underutilized businesses.
    1-5        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-6        SECTION 1.   Section 1.03, State Purchasing and General
    1-7  Services Act (Article 601b, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), is
    1-8  amended by adding Subsections (q) and (r) to read as follows:
    1-9        (q)  The commission, the state auditor, and the Legislative
   1-10  Budget Board jointly shall develop and implement procedures by
   1-11  which they will review annually each state agency's efforts to
   1-12  comply with the state's procurement programs and goals for
   1-13  contracting with historically underutilized businesses. The
   1-14  procedures must include an evaluation of the extent to which the
   1-15  state agency has complied with the historically underutilized
   1-16  businesses provisions of the agency strategic plan prepared by the
   1-17  agency under Subsection (l) of this section. In determining whether
   1-18  a state agency is making a good faith effort to comply with the
   1-19  state's procurement programs and goals for contracting with
   1-20  historically underutilized businesses and with the historically
   1-21  underutilized businesses provisions of the agency's strategic plan,
   1-22  the commission, the state auditor, and the Legislative Budget Board
   1-23  shall consider whether the agency has:
   1-24              (1)  adopted rules and procedures governing the
    2-1  agency's contract awards in the purchasing categories of
    2-2  commodities, professional services, other services, and
    2-3  construction contracts that are designed to help the agency achieve
    2-4  historically underutilized businesses procurement goals in each
    2-5  purchasing category;
    2-6              (2)  established a procedure to waive bonding
    2-7  requirements for historically underutilized businesses, to the
    2-8  extent allowed by law;
    2-9              (3)  negotiated in good faith with interested
   2-10  historically underutilized businesses whenever negotiation is
   2-11  allowed, thoroughly investigated the interested historically
   2-12  underutilized businesses' capabilities, and not rejected
   2-13  historically underutilized businesses as unqualified to perform a
   2-14  contract without sound reasons;
   2-15              (4)  established a list of commodities, professional
   2-16  services, other services, and construction work that could be
   2-17  provided by historically underutilized businesses;
   2-18              (5)  implemented a specific initiative to encourage
   2-19  historically underutilized businesses to participate in agency
   2-20  procurement opportunities;
   2-21              (6)  designated a senior employee with appropriate
   2-22  experience and authority to oversee the agency's attempts to
   2-23  utilize historically underutilized businesses;
   2-24              (7)  divided construction contract work or purchases in
   2-25  the other purchasing categories listed in Subdivision (1) of this
   2-26  subsection into the smallest reasonable units, consistent with
   2-27  applicable industry standards and Section 3.08(e) of this Act, to
    3-1  increase the possibility of participation by historically
    3-2  underutilized businesses in the contracting opportunity; and
    3-3              (8)  implemented procedures to increase and improve
    3-4  historically underutilized businesses' responsiveness to the
    3-5  agency's procurement solicitations.
    3-6        (r)  After their review of a state agency under Subsection
    3-7  (q) of this section, the commission, the state auditor, and the
    3-8  Legislative Budget Board shall recommend actions the agency should
    3-9  take to successfully comply with the state's procurement programs
   3-10  and goals for contracting with historically underutilized
   3-11  businesses and  with the historically underutilized businesses
   3-12  provisions of the agency strategic plan prepared by the agency
   3-13  under Subsection (l) of this section.
   3-14        SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
   3-15        SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
   3-16  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   3-17  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
   3-18  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   3-19  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.