1-1 By: Bosse (Senate Sponsor - Bernsen) H.B. No. 2149
1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House May 5, 1999;
1-3 May 6, 1999, read first time and referred to Committee on State
1-4 Affairs; May 14, 1999, reported favorably by the following vote:
1-5 Yeas 7, Nays 0; May 14, 1999, sent to printer.)
1-6 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-7 AN ACT
1-8 relating to the award of state highway improvement contracts.
1-9 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-10 SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 223, Transportation Code,
1-11 is amended by adding Section 223.0041 to read as follows:
1-12 Sec. 223.0041. AWARD OF CONTRACT. (a) Except as provided
1-13 by Section 223.005, all bids received and not rejected by the
1-14 department shall be tabulated and forwarded to the commission.
1-15 (b) The commission may accept or reject the bids. If the
1-16 bids are accepted, the commission shall award the contract to the
1-17 lowest bidder, subject to Section 223.045.
1-18 SECTION 2. Sections 223.005(b)-(d), Transportation Code, are
1-19 amended to read as follows:
1-20 (b) [Except as provided by Subsection (d), all bids received
1-21 under this section and not rejected by the department shall be
1-22 tabulated and forwarded to the commission and may be accepted or
1-23 rejected by the commission.]
1-24 [(c) If the bids are accepted, the commission shall award
1-25 the contract to the lowest bidder, subject to Section 223.045.]
1-26 [(d)] The commission may delegate to the director or the
1-27 director's designee the right to:
1-28 (1) accept or reject bids received, subject to Section
1-29 223.045; and
1-30 (2) award a contract to the lowest bidder.
1-31 SECTION 3. Section 223.013(c), Transportation Code, is
1-32 amended to read as follows:
1-33 (c) A provision of this subchapter that requires [That part
1-34 of Section 223.004(a) requiring] a bid to be opened at a public
1-35 hearing [of the commission] does not apply to an electronically
1-36 submitted bid. A copy of each electronically submitted bid shall
1-37 be publicly posted within 48 hours after bids are opened.
1-38 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
1-39 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
1-40 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
1-41 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
1-42 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
1-43 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
1-44 passage, and it is so enacted.
1-45 * * * * *