By:  Jackson                                          S.B. No. 1669
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
                                       AN ACT
 1-1     relating to the qualifications of a county purchasing agent and to
 1-2     county purchasing procedures.
 1-3           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-4           SECTION 1.  Section 262.011, Local Government Code, is
 1-5     amended by adding Subsection (p) to read as follows:
 1-6           (p)  During each two-year term of office, a county purchasing
 1-7     agent shall complete not less than 25 hours in courses relating to
 1-8     the duties of the county purchasing agent.  The courses must be:
 1-9                 (1)  accredited by a nationally recognized college or
1-10     university; or
1-11                 (2)  recognized by a national purchasing association,
1-12     such as the National Association of Purchasing Management.
1-13           SECTION 2.  Subsection (a), Section 262.023, Local Government
1-14     Code, is amended to read as follows:
1-15           (a)  Before a county may purchase one or more items under a
1-16     contract that will require an expenditure exceeding $25,000
1-17     [$15,000], the commissioners court of the county must comply with
1-18     the competitive bidding or competitive proposal procedures
1-19     prescribed by this subchapter.  All bids or proposals must be
1-20     sealed.
1-21           SECTION 3.  Subsection (a), Section 262.026, Local Government
1-22     Code, is amended to read as follows:
1-23           (a)  The county official who makes purchases for the county
1-24     shall open the bids on the date specified in the notice.  The date
 2-1     specified in the notice may be extended if the commissioners court
 2-2     determines that the extension is in the best interest of the
 2-3     county.  All bids, including those received before an extension is
 2-4     made, must be opened at the same time.  The commissioners court may
 2-5     adopt an order that delegates the authority to make extensions
 2-6     under this subsection to the county official who makes purchases
 2-7     for the county [by the commissioners court if an error is
 2-8     discovered in the original specifications or the nature of the item
 2-9     to be purchased requires an extension for the county to best use
2-10     the provisions of Section 262.030].
2-11           SECTION 4.  The change in law made by Section 1 of this Act,
2-12     relating to the requirement that a county purchasing agent complete
2-13     25 hours in courses involving county purchasing, applies only to
2-14     each term of office of a county purchasing agent that begins on or
2-15     after the effective date of this Act.
2-16           SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
2-17           SECTION 6.  The importance of this legislation and the
2-18     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-19     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-20     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-21     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.