By:  Sibley                                           S.B. No. 1159
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
                                        AN ACT
    1-1  relating to arbitration of a dispute with the General Services
    1-2  Commission regarding certain building construction contracts.
    1-3        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-4        SECTION 1.  Subsection (c), Section 5.26, State Purchasing
    1-5  and General Services Act (Article 601b, Vernon's Texas Civil
    1-6  Statutes), is amended to read as follows:
    1-7        (c)  Any contract covered by this section that is not
    1-8  excepted by Sections 5.13 and 5.14 shall be considered to have an
    1-9  arbitration clause as a part of the contract covering any dispute
   1-10  or claim arising out of the contract, including a dispute or claim
   1-11  relating to a breach of the contract.  A party to a contract with a
   1-12  claim or dispute against the other party shall give 30 days'
   1-13  written notice of the nature and extent of the claim or dispute.
   1-14  If the matters are not resolved within this notice period, either
   1-15  party may commence arbitration by giving the other a written
   1-16  request for arbitration and arbitrators shall be appointed.  The
   1-17  arbitrators shall be selected as provided in the contract.  Each
   1-18  arbitrator selected under this subsection must be a disinterested
   1-19  person with no affiliation with a party to the arbitration.  If the
   1-20  contract does not provide for the selection of arbitrators, each
   1-21  party shall appoint one arbitrator.  The two appointed arbitrators
   1-22  shall select a third arbitrator.  <All arbitrators shall be
   1-23  uninterested parties and have no affiliation with either party to
   1-24  the contract.>  The parties shall make their appointments within 10
    2-1  business days after a written request for arbitration is delivered
    2-2  from one party to another.  The third arbitrator shall be appointed
    2-3  within 10 business days after the appointment of the party
    2-4  arbitrators.  The arbitration shall be conducted within 60 <20>
    2-5  business days after the appointments are made.  The decision of the
    2-6  arbitrators shall be binding on the parties.  The arbitration shall
    2-7  be governed by and may be compelled and enforced under the Texas
    2-8  General Arbitration Act (Article 224 et seq., Revised Statutes) or
    2-9  under the United States Arbitration Act (9 U.S.C.  Section 1 et
   2-10  seq.), if applicable.  The arbitration award shall not include
   2-11  punitive or exemplary damages nor attorney's fees.  <Arbitration
   2-12  may not be requested after the first anniversary of the completion
   2-13  of the work under the contract.>
   2-14        The Comptroller, with the assistance of the Center for Public
   2-15  Policy Dispute Resolution of The University of Texas School of Law,
   2-16  shall review the performance of the dispute resolution system
   2-17  created herein and shall furnish a report to the 75th Legislature
   2-18  in its Regular Session.
   2-19        <This subsection expires on September 1, 1995, except that
   2-20  the subsection remains in effect for the limited purpose of
   2-21  governing an arbitration proceeding that begins before that date.
   2-22  For the purpose of the expiration date, an arbitration proceeding
   2-23  begins before September 1, 1995, if the written request for
   2-24  arbitration is sent on or before August 31, 1995.>
   2-25        SECTION 2.  (a)  The change in law made by this Act applies
   2-26  only to arbitration of a claim or dispute for which a written
   2-27  request for arbitration is delivered under Subsection (c), Section
    3-1  5.26, State Purchasing and General Services Act (Article 601b,
    3-2  Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), on or after the effective date of
    3-3  this Act.
    3-4        (b)  Arbitration of a claim or dispute for which a written
    3-5  request for arbitration is delivered under Subsection (c), Section
    3-6  5.26, State Purchasing and General Services Act (Article 601b,
    3-7  Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), before the effective date of this
    3-8  Act is covered by the law in effect when the request was delivered,
    3-9  and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
   3-10        SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
   3-11  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   3-12  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
   3-13  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   3-14  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
   3-15  and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
   3-16  passage, and it is so enacted.