By Jackson                                            S.B. No. 1669
         76R7075 DRH-F                           
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the qualifications of a county purchasing agent and to
 1-3     county purchasing procedures.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 262.011, Local Government Code, is
 1-6     amended by adding Subsection (p) to read as follows:
 1-7           (p)  During each two-year term of office, a county purchasing
 1-8     agent shall complete not less than 40 hours in courses relating to
 1-9     the duties of the county purchasing agent.  The courses must be:
1-10                 (1)  accredited by a nationally recognized college or
1-11     university; or
1-12                 (2)  recognized by a national purchasing association,
1-13     such as the National Association of Purchasing Management.
1-14           SECTION 2.  Section 262.023(a), Local Government Code, is
1-15     amended to read as follows:
1-16           (a)  Before a county may purchase one or more items under a
1-17     contract that will require an expenditure exceeding $25,000
1-18     [$15,000], the commissioners court of the county must comply with
1-19     the competitive bidding or competitive proposal procedures
1-20     prescribed by this subchapter.  All bids or proposals must be
1-21     sealed.
1-22           SECTION 3.  Section 262.026(a), Local Government Code, is
1-23     amended to read as follows:
1-24           (a)  The county official who makes purchases for the county
 2-1     shall open the bids on the date specified in the notice.  The date
 2-2     specified in the notice may be extended if the county official who
 2-3     makes purchases for the county determines the extension is in the
 2-4     best interest of the county.  All bids, including those received
 2-5     before an extension is made, must be opened at the same time [by
 2-6     the commissioners court if an error is discovered in the original
 2-7     specifications or the nature of the item to be purchased requires
 2-8     an extension for the county to best use the provisions of Section
 2-9     262.030].
2-10           SECTION 4.  The change in law made in Section 1 of this Act,
2-11     relating to the requirement that a county purchasing agent complete
2-12     40 hours in courses involving county purchasing, applies only to
2-13     each term of office of a county purchasing agent that begins on or
2-14     after the effective date of this Act.
2-15           SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
2-16           SECTION 6.  The importance of this legislation and the
2-17     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-18     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-19     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-20     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
2-21                          COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO. 1
2-22           Amend S.B. 1669 by adding the following to SECTION 1, Section
2-23     262.011, of the Local Government Code on Page 1, line 12:; or (3)
2-24     courses offered by state agencies related to purchasing.
2-25                                                                Swinford