1-1     By:  Ellis, West, Barrientos                          S.B. No. 1380

 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed March 13, 1997; March 19, 1997, read

 1-3     first time and referred to Committee on State Affairs;

 1-4     April 18, 1997, reported adversely, with favorable Committee

 1-5     Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 13, Nays 0; April 18, 1997,

 1-6     sent to printer.)

 1-7     COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1380                   By:  Ellis

 1-8                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-9                                   AN ACT

1-10     relating to the creation of an electronic state business daily to

1-11     give notice before a state agency makes a procurement with a value

1-12     that exceeds $25,000.

1-13           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-14           SECTION 1.  Subchapter B, Chapter 2155, Government Code, is

1-15     amended by adding Section 2155.074 to read as follows:

1-16           Sec. 2155.074.  STATE BUSINESS DAILY; NOTICE REGARDING

1-17     PROCUREMENTS EXCEEDING $25,000.  (a)  This section applies to each

1-18     state agency making a procurement that will exceed $25,000 in

1-19     value, without regard to the source of funds the agency will use

1-20     for the procurement, including a procurement that:

1-21                 (1)  is otherwise exempt from the commission's

1-22     purchasing authority or the application of this subtitle;

1-23                 (2)  is made under delegated purchasing authority;

1-24                 (3)  is related to a construction project; or

1-25                 (4)  is a procurement of  professional or consulting

1-26     services.

1-27           (b)  In this section, "department" means the Texas Department

1-28     of Commerce.

1-29           (c)  The department each business day shall produce and post

1-30     a business daily in an electronic format.  The department shall

1-31     post in the business daily information as prescribed by this

1-32     section about each state agency procurement that will exceed

1-33     $25,000 in value.  The department shall also post in the business

1-34     daily other information relating to the business activity of the

1-35     state that the department considers to be of interest to the

1-36     public.

1-37           (d)  The department shall make the business daily available

1-38     on the Internet through its information service known as the Texas

1-39     Marketplace or through a suitable successor information service

1-40     that will make the information available on the Internet.  The

1-41     department and each state agency shall cooperate in making the

1-42     electronic business daily available.

1-43           (e)  To accommodate businesses that do not have the technical

1-44     means to access the business daily, governmental and

1-45     nongovernmental entities such as public libraries, chambers of

1-46     commerce, trade associations, small business development centers,

1-47     economic development departments of local governments, and state

1-48     agencies may provide public access to the business daily.  A

1-49     governmental entity may recover the direct cost of providing the

1-50     public access only by charging a fee for downloading procurement

1-51     notices and bid or proposal solicitation packages posted in the

1-52     business daily.  A nongovernmental entity may use information

1-53     posted in the business daily in providing a service that is more

1-54     than only the downloading of information from the business daily,

1-55     including a service by which appropriate bidders or offerors are

1-56     matched with information that is relevant to those bidders or

1-57     offerors, and may charge a lawful fee that the entity considers

1-58     appropriate for the service.

1-59           (f)  The department and other state agencies may not charge a

1-60     fee designed to   recover the cost of preparing and gathering the

1-61     information that is published in the business daily.  These costs

1-62     are considered part of a procuring agency's responsibility to

1-63     publicly inform potential bidders or offerors of its procurement

1-64     opportunities.

 2-1           (g)  The department shall post in the business daily either

 2-2     the entire bid or proposal solicitation package or a notice that

 2-3     includes at a minimum the following information for each

 2-4     procurement that a state agency will make that is estimated to

 2-5     exceed $25,000 in value:

 2-6                 (1)  a brief description of the goods or services to be

 2-7     procured and any applicable state product or service codes for the

 2-8     goods and services;

 2-9                 (2)  the last date on which bids, proposals, or other

2-10     applicable expressions of interest will be accepted;

2-11                 (3)  the estimated cost of the procurement;

2-12                 (4)  the estimated quantity of goods or services to be

2-13     procured;

2-14                 (5)  if applicable, the previous price paid by the

2-15     state agency for the same or similar goods or services;

2-16                 (6)  the estimated date on which the goods or services

2-17     to be procured will be needed; and

2-18                 (7)  the name, business mailing address, and business

2-19     telephone number of the state agency employee a person may contact

2-20     to obtain all necessary information related to making a bid or

2-21     proposal or other applicable expression of interest for the

2-22     procurement contract.

2-23           (h)  The department shall continue to either:

2-24                 (1)  post notice of the procurement in accordance with

2-25     Subsection (g) until the latest of 15 calendar days after the date

2-26     the notice is first posted; the date the state agency will no

2-27     longer accept bids, proposals, or other applicable expressions of

2-28     interest for the procurement; or the date the state agency decides

2-29     not to make the procurement; or

2-30                 (2)  post the entire bid or proposal solicitation

2-31     package in accordance with Subsection (g) until the latest of 15

2-32     calendar days after the date the bid or proposal solicitation

2-33     package is first posted; the date the state agency will no longer

2-34     accept bids, proposals, or other applicable expressions of interest

2-35     for the procurement; or the date the state agency decides not to

2-36     make the procurement.

2-37           (i)  A state agency may not award the procurement contract

2-38     and shall continue to accept bids or proposals or other applicable

2-39     expressions of interest for the procurement contract for at least

2-40     15 calendar days after the date the department first posted notice

2-41     of the procurement in accordance with Subsection (g) or 15 calendar

2-42     days after the date the department first posted the entire bid or

2-43     proposal solicitation package in accordance with Subsection (g), as

2-44     applicable.  The minimum time for posting required by this

2-45     subsection and Subsection (h) does not apply in an emergency

2-46     requiring the state agency to make the procurement more quickly to

2-47     prevent a hazard to life, health, safety, welfare, or property or

2-48     to avoid undue additional cost to the state.

2-49           (j)  A contract or procurement award made by a state agency

2-50     that violates the applicable minimum time for posting required by

2-51     Subsections (h) and (i) is void.

2-52           (k)  Each state agency that will award a procurement contract

2-53     estimated to exceed $25,000 in value shall send to the department:

2-54                 (1)  the information the department requires for

2-55     posting in the state business daily under this section; and

2-56                 (2)  a notice when the procurement contract has been

2-57     awarded or when the state agency has decided to not make the

2-58     procurement.

2-59           (l)  The department may adopt rules, prescribe forms, and

2-60     require information to administer this section.  The department

2-61     shall send any proposed rules to the governor, Legislative Budget

2-62     Board, comptroller, state auditor, and commission for review and

2-63     comment.

2-64           (m)  The requirements of this section are in addition to the

2-65     requirements of other law relating to the solicitation of bids,

2-66     proposals, or expressions of interest for a procurement by a state

2-67     agency.  This section does not affect whether a state agency is

2-68     required to award a procurement contract through competitive

2-69     bidding, competitive sealed proposals, or another method.

 3-1           SECTION 2.  The minimum posting time requirement of

 3-2     Subsections (h) and (i), Section 2155.074, Government Code, as

 3-3     added by this Act, and the provisions of Subsection (j), Section

 3-4     2155.074, Government Code, as added by this Act, apply only to a

 3-5     procurement contract awarded on or after July 1, 1998.

 3-6           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect June 1, 1998, except that

 3-7     the Texas Department of Commerce may adopt rules, procedures, and

 3-8     forms and make agreements necessary to administer this Act

 3-9     beginning September 1, 1997.

3-10           SECTION 4.  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.

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