77R12847 SMJ-D
By Solomons H.B. No. 2318
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2318:
By Ramsay C.S.H.B. No. 2318
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the use of electronically transmitted information in
1-3 certain county and municipal procedures for the purchase, sale, or
1-4 lease of items.
1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 252, Local Government Code,
1-7 is amended by adding Section 252.004 to read as follows:
1-8 Sec. 252.004. CERTAIN ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSIONS PERMITTED.
1-9 (a) Under the competitive sealed bidding and competitive sealed
1-10 proposal procedures prescribed by this chapter, a municipality may
1-11 receive bids or proposals through the Internet or by other
1-12 electronic means if the municipality implements security measures
1-13 regarding the electronic transmission of information that ensure
1-14 that bids and proposals are not viewed by unauthorized persons or
1-15 tampered with and that the bids and proposals remain effectively
1-16 unopened until the proper time.
1-17 (b) For the purposes of this chapter, a bid or proposal is
1-18 considered sealed if it is received by a municipality through the
1-19 Internet or by other electronic means in accordance with security
1-20 measures the municipality implements under Subsection (a).
1-21 SECTION 2. Section 252.041, Local Government Code, is
1-22 amended by adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:
1-23 (e) In lieu of publishing notice under Subsection (a) or
1-24 (b), a municipality with a population of 25,000 or more may post on
2-1 its Internet website a notice that the municipality is soliciting
2-2 proposals or bids for the contract. The municipality must post the
2-3 notice for at least two consecutive weeks on its website, with the
2-4 first day of the website posting occurring before the 14th day
2-5 before the date of the proposal or bid opening. The website notice
2-6 must comply with Subsections (c) and (d). Before posting notice on
2-7 its website, the municipality must publish in a newspaper published
2-8 in the municipality notice that the municipality is soliciting
2-9 proposals or bids for the contract on its website. The newspaper
2-10 notice must include the address of the municipality's website.
2-11 SECTION 3. Subchapter C, Chapter 262, Local Government Code,
2-12 is amended by adding Section 262.0235 to read as follows:
2-13 Sec. 262.0235. CERTAIN ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSIONS PERMITTED.
2-14 (a) Under the competitive bidding and competitive proposal
2-15 procedures prescribed by this chapter, a county may receive bids or
2-16 proposals through the Internet or by other electronic means if the
2-17 county implements security measures regarding the electronic
2-18 transmission of information that ensure that bids and proposals are
2-19 not viewed by unauthorized persons or tampered with and that the
2-20 bids and proposals remain effectively unopened until the proper
2-21 time.
2-22 (b) For the purposes of this chapter, a bid or proposal is
2-23 considered sealed if it is received by a county through the
2-24 Internet or by other electronic means in accordance with security
2-25 measures the county implements under Subsection (a).
2-26 SECTION 4. Section 262.025, Local Government Code, is
2-27 amended by adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:
3-1 (e) In lieu of publishing notice under Subsection (a), a
3-2 county with a population of 400,000 or more may post a notice of a
3-3 proposed purchase on the county's Internet website. The county
3-4 must post the notice for at least two consecutive weeks on its
3-5 website, with the first day of the website posting occurring before
3-6 the 14th day before the date of the bid opening. The website
3-7 notice must comply with Subsections (b) and (c). Before posting
3-8 notice on its website, the county must publish in a newspaper of
3-9 general circulation in the county notice that the county is
3-10 soliciting bids for the proposed purchase on its website. The
3-11 newspaper notice must include the address of the county's website.
3-12 SECTION 5. Section 263.007, Local Government Code, is
3-13 amended to read as follows:
3-14 Sec. 263.007. SALE OR LEASE OF REAL PROPERTY THROUGH
3-15 SEALED-BID PROCEDURE. (a) The commissioners court of a county may
3-16 adopt a procedure by which the county may sell or lease through a
3-17 sealed-bid or sealed-proposal procedure any real property,
3-18 including space in a building, owned by the county.
3-19 (b) A procedure adopted by the commissioners court under
3-20 Subsection (a) may provide for the county to receive bids or
3-21 proposals through the Internet or by other electronic means if the
3-22 county implements security measures regarding the electronic
3-23 transmission of information that ensure that bids and proposals are
3-24 not viewed by unauthorized persons or tampered with and that the
3-25 bids and proposals remain effectively unopened until the proper
3-26 time. For the purposes of this section, a bid or proposal is
3-27 considered sealed if it is received by a county through the
4-1 Internet or by other electronic means in accordance with security
4-2 measures the county implements under this subsection.
4-3 (c) As an alternative to the notice provisions described by
4-4 Subsection (d), the commissioners court in a county with a
4-5 population of 400,000 or more may provide for the county to post
4-6 notice on the county's Internet website of its intent to sell or
4-7 lease real property under this section. Before posting notice on
4-8 its website, the county must publish in a newspaper of general
4-9 circulation in the county notice that the county is soliciting bids
4-10 or proposals for the sale or lease of real property on its website.
4-11 The newspaper notice must include the address of the county's
4-12 website. The website notice soliciting bids or proposals must:
4-13 (1) be posted on the county's website for at least two
4-14 consecutive weeks, with the first day of the posting occurring
4-15 before the 14th day before the date the award of the sale or lease
4-16 is made; and
4-17 (2) include the information described by Subsections
4-18 (d)(3) and (4).
4-19 (d) Except as provided by Subsection (c), the [(b) The]
4-20 procedure must include a requirement that the county publish,
4-21 before a sale or lease is made, a notice of its intent to sell or
4-22 lease, as appropriate, the real property. The notice must:
4-23 (1) be published in a newspaper of general circulation
4-24 in the county the commissioners court represents and, if the real
4-25 property is located in another county, in a newspaper of general
4-26 circulation in that other county;
4-27 (2) be published on two dates, with the date of the
5-1 second publication occurring before the 14th day before the date
5-2 the award of the sale or lease is made;
5-3 (3) include a description of the real property,
5-4 including its location; and
5-5 (4) include a description of the procedure by which
5-6 sealed bids or sealed proposals for the sale or lease may be
5-7 submitted.
5-8 (e) [(c)] Before selling property under this section, the
5-9 commissioners court shall:
5-10 (1) obtain an appraisal of the property's fair market
5-11 value; and
5-12 (2) determine a minimum bid amount, based on the
5-13 appraisal.
5-14 (f) [(d)] Under the procedure, the commissioners court may
5-15 reject any and all bids submitted.
5-16 (g)(1) [(e)(1)] The commissioners court of a county may
5-17 lease real property owned or controlled by the county that was
5-18 formerly owned or controlled by the Texas Department of Mental
5-19 Health and Mental Retardation to a federal, state, or local
5-20 government entity for any purpose or to a nonprofit organization
5-21 that is exempt from federal taxation under Section 501(c)(3),
5-22 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. Section 501(c)(3)), to
5-23 conduct health and human service activities or such other
5-24 activities which the commissioners court finds to be in the public
5-25 interest, without using the sealed-bid or sealed-proposal process
5-26 described in Subsection (a) and without using any other competitive
5-27 bidding process which would otherwise be required by law.
6-1 (2) The commissioners court of a county with a
6-2 population of one million or more that contains two or more
6-3 municipalities with a population of 250,000 or more may lease real
6-4 property owned or controlled by the county to a for-profit entity
6-5 to conduct health and human service activities which the
6-6 commissioners court finds to be in the public interest, without
6-7 using the sealed-bid or sealed-proposal process described in
6-8 Subsection (a) and without using any other competitive bidding
6-9 process which would otherwise be required by law.
6-10 (3) If the commissioners court of a county chooses to
6-11 lease under this subsection, the commissioners court shall declare
6-12 its intent to do so through written notice posted in the same place
6-13 and manner as the commissioners court posts its regular meeting
6-14 agenda not later than 30 days prior to the beginning of the lease
6-15 period. In setting the terms and conditions of the lease,
6-16 including but not limited to the amount of the lease payment, the
6-17 commissioners court may consider local business custom regarding
6-18 leases and the reasonable market value of the leasehold, but the
6-19 commissioners court is not bound thereby and may also consider the
6-20 extent to which the provision of services or the other activities
6-21 to be performed by the lessee will benefit the public. This
6-22 subsection does not limit the ability of a commissioners court to
6-23 enter into interlocal agreements, contracts, or any other
6-24 arrangement permitted by law.
6-25 (h) [(f)] The procedure authorized by this section is an
6-26 alternative procedure to the procedure authorized by Section
6-27 272.001.
7-1 SECTION 6. Subchapter D, Chapter 263, Local Government Code,
7-2 is amended by adding Section 263.1535 to read as follows:
7-3 Sec. 263.1535. NOTICE IN POPULOUS COUNTY. In lieu of
7-4 publishing notice under Section 263.153, the commissioners court in
7-5 a county with a population of 400,000 or more may post notice of a
7-6 sale of surplus or salvage property on the county's Internet
7-7 website. The notice must be:
7-8 (1) first posted on the website on or after the 30th
7-9 day but before the 10th day before the date of the sale; and
7-10 (2) posted on the website for at least two consecutive
7-11 weeks.
7-12 SECTION 7. Section 271.049(a), Local Government Code, is
7-13 amended to read as follows:
7-14 (a) Regardless of the sources of payment of certificates,
7-15 certificates may not be issued unless the issuer publishes notice
7-16 of its intention to issue the certificates. The notice must be
7-17 published once a week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper, as
7-18 defined by Subchapter C, Chapter 2051, Government Code, that is of
7-19 general circulation in the area of the issuer, or posted for at
7-20 least two consecutive weeks on the issuer's Internet website, with
7-21 the date of the first publication or website posting to be before
7-22 the 14th day before the date tentatively set for the passage of the
7-23 order or ordinance authorizing the issuance of the certificates.
7-24 SECTION 8. Section 271.055(b), Local Government Code, is
7-25 amended to read as follows:
7-26 (b) If an issuer gives notice under this subsection, the
7-27 notice must:
8-1 (1) be published once a week for two consecutive weeks
8-2 in a newspaper, as defined by Subchapter C, Chapter 2051,
8-3 Government Code, that is of general circulation in the area of the
8-4 issuer, or posted for at least two consecutive weeks on the
8-5 issuer's Internet website, with the date of the first publication
8-6 or website posting to be before the 14th day before the date set
8-7 for the public opening of the bids and the reading of the bids
8-8 aloud; and
8-9 (2) state that plans and specifications for the work
8-10 to be done or specifications for the machinery, supplies,
8-11 equipment, or materials to be purchased are on file with a
8-12 designated official of the issuer and may be examined without
8-13 charge.
8-14 SECTION 9. Subchapter Z, Chapter 271, Local Government Code,
8-15 is amended by adding Section 271.906 to read as follows:
8-16 Sec. 271.906. CERTAIN ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSIONS PERMITTED.
8-17 Under the competitive procedures prescribed by this chapter, a
8-18 municipality or a county may receive bids or proposals through the
8-19 Internet or by other electronic means if the municipality or county
8-20 implements security measures regarding the electronic transmission
8-21 of information that ensure that bids and proposals are not viewed
8-22 by unauthorized persons or tampered with and that the bids and
8-23 proposals remain effectively unopened until the proper time.
8-24 SECTION 10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.