1-1     By:  Jackson                                          S.B. No. 1669
 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed March 12, 1999; March 15, 1999, read
 1-3     first time and referred to Committee on Intergovernmental
 1-4     Relations; April 9, 1999, reported favorably, as amended, by the
 1-5     following vote:  Yeas 4, Nays 0; April 9, 1999, sent to printer.)
 1-6     COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO. 1                             By:  Moncrief
 1-7     Amend S.B. No. 1669 as follows:
 1-8           In Section 262.011, Local Government Code, in SECTION 1 of
 1-9     the bill (page 1, line 35) strike "40" and substitute "25".
1-10     COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO. 2                             By:  Moncrief
1-11     Amend S.B. No. 1669 as follows:
1-12           (1)  Strike all of SECTION 3, and replace with the following:
1-13           SECTION 3.  Subsection (a), Section 262.026, Local Government
1-14     Code, is amended to read as follows:
1-15           (a)  The county official who makes purchases for the county
1-16     shall open the bids on the date specified in the notice.  The date
1-17     specified in the notice may be extended if the commissioners court
1-18     determines that the extension is in the best interest of the
1-19     county.  All bids, including those received before an extension is
1-20     made, must be opened at the same time.  The commissioners court may
1-21     adopt an order that delegates the authority to make extensions
1-22     under this subsection to the county official who makes purchases
1-23     for the county [by the commissioners court if an error is
1-24     discovered in the original specifications or the nature of the item
1-25     to be purchased requires an extension for the county to best use
1-26     the provisions of Section 262.030].
1-27                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-28                                   AN ACT
1-29     relating to the qualifications of a county purchasing agent and to
1-30     county purchasing procedures.
1-31           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-32           SECTION 1.  Section 262.011, Local Government Code, is
1-33     amended by adding Subsection (p) to read as follows:
1-34           (p)  During each two-year term of office, a county purchasing
1-35     agent shall complete not less than 40 hours in courses relating to
1-36     the duties of the county purchasing agent.  The courses must be:
1-37                 (1)  accredited by a nationally recognized college or
1-38     university; or
1-39                 (2)  recognized by a national purchasing association,
1-40     such as the National Association of Purchasing Management.
1-41           SECTION 2.  Subsection (a), Section 262.023, Local Government
1-42     Code, is amended to read as follows:
1-43           (a)  Before a county may purchase one or more items under a
1-44     contract that will require an expenditure exceeding $25,000
1-45     [$15,000], the commissioners court of the county must comply with
1-46     the competitive bidding or competitive proposal procedures
1-47     prescribed by this subchapter.  All bids or proposals must be
1-48     sealed.
1-49           SECTION 3.  Subsection (a), Section 262.026, Local Government
1-50     Code, is amended to read as follows:
1-51           (a)  The county official who makes purchases for the county
1-52     shall open the bids on the date specified in the notice.  The date
1-53     specified in the notice may be extended if the county official who
1-54     makes purchases for the county determines the extension is in the
1-55     best interest of the county.  All bids, including those received
1-56     before an extension is made, must be opened at the same time [by
1-57     the commissioners court if an error is discovered in the original
1-58     specifications or the nature of the item to be purchased requires
1-59     an extension for the county to best use the provisions of Section
1-60     262.030].
1-61           SECTION 4.  The change in law made by Section 1 of this Act,
 2-1     relating to the requirement that a county purchasing agent complete
 2-2     40 hours in courses involving county purchasing, applies only to
 2-3     each term of office of a county purchasing agent that begins on or
 2-4     after the effective date of this Act.
 2-5           SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
 2-6           SECTION 6.  The importance of this legislation and the
 2-7     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
 2-8     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
 2-9     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-10     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
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