Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB75 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	86R2931 SOS-D
2	2	By: Hall S.B. No. 75
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to forensic audits of certain school district projects.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 44, Education Code, is
10	10	amended by adding Section 44.0085 to read as follows:
11	11	Sec. 44.0085. FORENSIC AUDIT OF CERTAIN PROJECTS REQUIRED.
12	12	(a) In this section, "capital project" means the construction,
13	13	acquisition, and equipment of a public school building that are
14	14	financed by the issuance of bonds under Section 45.001(a)(1)(A).
15	15	(b) The board of trustees of a school district shall
16	16	contract with an independent auditing firm to perform one or more
17	17	forensic audits of each capital project in the district in
18	18	accordance with this section.
19	19	(c) A forensic audit under this section must be performed:
20	20	(1) every three years if the capital project extends
21	21	more than three years following the execution date of the project
22	22	contract; and
23	23	(2) at the completion of the project or termination of
24	24	the project contract.
25	25	(d) If multiple forensic audits are required under
26	26	Subsection (c), a subsequent audit is not required to cover a period
27	27	for which a previous audit was performed under this section.
28	28	(e) A forensic audit under this section must include for the
29	29	audit period the following information:
30	30	(1) any performance metric or measurement tool used by
31	31	the school district to evaluate the performance of the capital
32	32	project;
33	33	(2) the district's quality assessment plan or other
34	34	assessment tool to measure risk;
35	35	(3) the district's method for monitoring of
36	36	deliverables, milestones, and delivery schedules under the
37	37	contract, including specifying whether enhanced monitoring is used
38	38	by the district;
39	39	(4) a project change order or amendment to the
40	40	contract;
41	41	(5) a decrease or increase in the quantity of work to
42	42	be performed or of materials, equipment, or supplies to be
43	43	furnished under the contract;
44	44	(6) a decrease or increase in the contract price of
45	45	more than 25 percent;
46	46	(7) project invoices and payments;
47	47	(8) contractor reports made or required, including
48	48	progress and financial reports;
49	49	(9) district reports made or required, including site
50	50	monitoring reports;
51	51	(10) the length of time between each district
52	52	monitoring activity;
53	53	(11) any assignment by the contractor of the
54	54	contractor's rights or duties under the contract;
55	55	(12) any buyout or sale of the entity with which the
56	56	district contracted for the project;
57	57	(13) any dispute resolved, including the dispute
58	58	resolution process used;
59	59	(14) any corrective action plan implemented;
60	60	(15) any contractor nonperformance, including any
61	61	contract remedy used for contractor nonperformance;
62	62	(16) any liquidated damages assessed or collected
63	63	under the contract;
64	64	(17) whether all or part of the contract was
65	65	terminated by mutual agreement, convenience, or cause;
66	66	(18) any internal audit of the project by the
67	67	district;
68	68	(19) a determination of compliance with:
69	69	(A) any financial provision under the contract;
70	70	and
71	71	(B) applicable laws, rules, and district
72	72	policies; and
73	73	(20) any identified fraud or malfeasance.
74	74	(f) A forensic audit under this section must be conducted in
75	75	accordance with generally accepted auditing standards as
76	76	prescribed by:
77	77	(1) the American Institute of Certified Public
78	78	Accountants;
79	79	(2) the Governmental Accounting Standards Board;
80	80	(3) the United States Government Accountability
81	81	Office; or
82	82	(4) any other professionally recognized entity that
83	83	prescribes auditing standards.
84	84	(g) A school district shall cooperate with an auditor
85	85	conducting a forensic audit under this section and provide
86	86	assistance to the auditor and access to all information necessary
87	87	to conduct the audit, including any confidential information.
88	88	(h) A contract under Subsection (b) shall require each
89	89	forensic audit to be filed with the school district not later than
90	90	the 90th day after the date the applicable audit period ends. The
91	91	district shall make each audit available as soon as practicable for
92	92	public inspection:
93	93	(1) on the district's Internet website; and
94	94	(2) at the district's central administrative building
95	95	during regular business hours.
96	96	(i) A school district shall pay for a forensic audit under
97	97	this section using the proceeds from the bonds issued for the
98	98	capital project.
99	99	SECTION 2. Section 44.0085, Education Code, as added by
100	100	this Act, applies only to a project subject to that section that is
101	101	financed by bonds issued on or after the effective date of this Act.
102	102	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.