BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 3730

By: Martinez, "Mando"

Transportation

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Interested parties report that contract requirements for highway maintenance projects are not consistent with state purchasing law allowing agencies to use an informal bidding process for the purchase of services costing less than $25,000.  The parties note that this inconsistency has a negative impact on the privatization of maintenance contracts.  C.S.H.B. 3730 seeks to make the law governing the privatization of maintenance contracts consistent with state purchasing law.    

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 3730 amends the Transportation Code to specify that Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) authority to award a contract for a maintenance project as a purchase of service under the State Purchasing and General Services Act based in part on TxDOT's estimation of the amount the contract will involve applies to a contract estimated to involve an amount for which a formal solicitation process for the purchase of services is not required under rules relating to the delegation of purchasing authority to state agencies adopted by the comptroller of public accounts under applicable provisions of law, rather than an amount less than $15,000.

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2011.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE

C.S.H.B. 3730 differs from the original in nonsubstantive ways and by conforming to certain bill drafting conventions.