| 1 | 1 | | By: Wentworth S.B. No. 941 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 5 | 5 | | AN ACT |
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| 6 | 6 | | relating to contracts by governmental entities for professional |
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| 7 | 7 | | services relating to geoscience. |
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| 8 | 8 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 9 | 9 | | SECTION 1. Subdivision (2), Section 2254.002, Government |
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| 10 | 10 | | Code, is amended to read as follows: |
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| 11 | 11 | | (2) "Professional services" means services: |
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| 12 | 12 | | (A) within the scope of the practice, as defined |
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| 13 | 13 | | by state law, of: |
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| 14 | 14 | | (i) accounting; |
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| 15 | 15 | | (ii) architecture; |
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| 16 | 16 | | (iii) landscape architecture; |
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| 17 | 17 | | (iv) land surveying; |
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| 18 | 18 | | (v) medicine; |
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| 19 | 19 | | (vi) optometry; |
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| 20 | 20 | | (vii) professional engineering; |
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| 21 | 21 | | (viii) real estate appraising; [or] |
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| 22 | 22 | | (ix) professional nursing; or |
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| 23 | 23 | | (x) professional geoscience; or |
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| 24 | 24 | | (B) provided in connection with the professional |
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| 25 | 25 | | employment or practice of a person who is licensed or registered as: |
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| 26 | 26 | | (i) a certified public accountant; |
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| 27 | 27 | | (ii) an architect; |
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| 28 | 28 | | (iii) a landscape architect; |
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| 29 | 29 | | (iv) a land surveyor; |
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| 30 | 30 | | (v) a physician, including a surgeon; |
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| 31 | 31 | | (vi) an optometrist; |
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| 32 | 32 | | (vii) a professional engineer; |
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| 33 | 33 | | (viii) a state certified or state licensed |
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| 34 | 34 | | real estate appraiser; [or] |
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| 35 | 35 | | (ix) a registered nurse; or |
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| 36 | 36 | | (x) a professional geoscientist. |
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| 37 | 37 | | SECTION 2. The heading to Section 2254.004, Government |
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| 38 | 38 | | Code, is amended to read as follows: |
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| 39 | 39 | | Sec. 2254.004. CONTRACT FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES OF |
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| 40 | 40 | | ARCHITECT, ENGINEER, [OR] SURVEYOR, OR GEOSCIENTIST. |
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| 41 | 41 | | SECTION 3. Subsections (a) and (b), Section 2254.004, |
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| 42 | 42 | | Government Code, are amended to read as follows: |
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| 43 | 43 | | (a) In procuring architectural, engineering, [or] land |
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| 44 | 44 | | surveying, or geoscientific services, a governmental entity shall: |
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| 45 | 45 | | (1) first select the most highly qualified provider of |
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| 46 | 46 | | those services on the basis of demonstrated competence and |
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| 47 | 47 | | qualifications; and |
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| 48 | 48 | | (2) then attempt to negotiate with that provider a |
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| 49 | 49 | | contract at a fair and reasonable price. |
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| 50 | 50 | | (b) If a satisfactory contract cannot be negotiated with the |
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| 51 | 51 | | most highly qualified provider of architectural, engineering, [or] |
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| 52 | 52 | | land surveying, or geoscientific services, the entity shall: |
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| 53 | 53 | | (1) formally end negotiations with that provider; |
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| 54 | 54 | | (2) select the next most highly qualified provider; |
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| 55 | 55 | | and |
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| 56 | 56 | | (3) attempt to negotiate a contract with that provider |
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| 57 | 57 | | at a fair and reasonable price. |
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| 58 | 58 | | SECTION 4. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to |
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| 59 | 59 | | the selection of a provider of professional geoscientific services |
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| 60 | 60 | | or the award of a contract to provide professional geoscientific |
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| 61 | 61 | | services made on or after October 1, 2009. |
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| 62 | 62 | | SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |
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