Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3329 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R9811 YDB-F
2	2	By: Raymond H.B. No. 3329
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the procurement process of state agencies, including
8	8	the evaluation of and communication with vendors.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 2155.090, Government Code, is amended by
11	11	adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:
12	12	(a-1) State agency personnel, contractors, and vendors may
13	13	share information and knowledge to achieve best value in
14	14	procurements for the state.
15	15	SECTION 2. Section 2155.144, Government Code, is amended by
16	16	amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsections (j-1), (j-2), (j-3),
17	17	and (j-4) to read as follows:
18	18	(c) An agency to which this section applies shall acquire
19	19	goods or services by any procurement method approved by the Health
20	20	and Human Services Commission that provides the best value to the
21	21	agency. The agency shall document that it considered all relevant
22	22	factors under Subsection (d) in making the acquisition. For each
23	23	solicitation, an agency shall document the evaluation questions and
24	24	measures the agency uses to score the vendor's response to the
25	25	solicitation on each factor listed in Subsection (d). If a question
26	26	or measure is used to score more than one factor listed in
27	27	Subsection (d), the agency shall designate each factor the question
28	28	or measure is used to score.
29	29	(j-1) The contract management handbook published under
30	30	Subsection (j) must include:
31	31	(1) instructions for ensuring that:
32	32	(A) appropriate health and human services agency
33	33	employees answer questions from vendors in a timely manner; and
34	34	(B) vendors that participate or are interested in
35	35	participating in a procurement by an agency have access to at least
36	36	two agency employees who serve as contacts for the agency;
37	37	(2) a model communications procedure for vendors and
38	38	agency employees, developed in collaboration with representatives
39	39	from vendors and state agencies, to be included in the agency's
40	40	solicitations;
41	41	(3) procedures for:
42	42	(A) notifying other responsive vendors if an
43	43	agency employee or another vendor violates the communications
44	44	requirements for a solicitation;
45	45	(B) determining when an agency employee or vendor
46	46	has failed to comply with the communication provisions of a
47	47	solicitation; and
48	48	(C) ensuring an appropriate number of interested
49	49	vendors are granted access to a pre-bid, pre-offer, or pre-proposal
50	50	conference; and
51	51	(4) instructions for ensuring that agency personnel
52	52	who are involved in implementing a specific procurement are also
53	53	involved in evaluating and scoring the responses submitted to the
54	54	solicitation for the procurement.
55	55	(j-2) For a procurement in an amount that exceeds $20
56	56	million, the contract management handbook published under
57	57	Subsection (j) must require a health and human services agency to:
58	58	(1) notify interested parties at least two months
59	59	before the date the agency issues the solicitation for the
60	60	procurement;
61	61	(2) continually and timely post solicitations on the
62	62	agency's Internet website; and
63	63	(3) establish guidelines for considering public
64	64	comment on solicitations, including guidelines allowing public
65	65	comment for at least 45 days after the date the agency issues the
66	66	solicitation.
67	67	(j-3) A health and human services agency's solicitation
68	68	posted under Subsection (j-2)(2) must be substantially similar to
69	69	the final solicitation issued by the agency for the procurement. A
70	70	health and human services agency that receives comments during the
71	71	public comment process under Subsection (j-2)(3) that result in a
72	72	final solicitation that substantially differs from the initial
73	73	solicitation posted under Subsection (j-2)(2) must post on the
74	74	agency's Internet website a statement of the differences between
75	75	the initial and final solicitations with the corresponding comments
76	76	that led to the modifications.
77	77	(j-4) A vendor may notify the state auditor of agency
78	78	noncompliance with Subsection (c) or (j-3) or an instruction,
79	79	procedure, or requirement in the contract management handbook
80	80	published under Subsection (j) for the purpose of audit or
81	81	investigation.
82	82	SECTION 3. Section 2262.051, Government Code, is amended by
83	83	adding Subsections (i), (j), (k), and (l) to read as follows:
84	84	(i) The guide must include:
85	85	(1) instructions for ensuring that:
86	86	(A) appropriate state agency employees answer
87	87	questions from vendors in a timely manner; and
88	88	(B) vendors that participate or are interested in
89	89	participating in a procurement by a state agency have access to at
90	90	least two agency employees who serve as contacts for the agency;
91	91	(2) a model communications procedure for vendors and
92	92	agency employees, developed in collaboration with representatives
93	93	from vendors and state agencies, to be included in the agency's
94	94	solicitations; and
95	95	(3) procedures for:
96	96	(A) notifying other responsive vendors if an
97	97	agency employee or another vendor violates the communication
98	98	requirements for the solicitation;
99	99	(B) determining when an agency employee or vendor
100	100	has failed to comply with the communication provisions of a
101	101	solicitation;
102	102	(C) ensuring an appropriate number of interested
103	103	vendors are granted access to a pre-bid, pre-offer, or pre-proposal
104	104	conference; and
105	105	(D) establishing a question and answer process
106	106	involving vendors and agency employees for a solicitation.
107	107	(j) For a procurement in an amount that exceeds $20 million,
108	108	the guide must require a state agency to:
109	109	(1) notify interested parties at least two months
110	110	before the date the agency issues the solicitation for the
111	111	procurement;
112	112	(2) continually and timely post solicitations on the
113	113	agency's Internet website; and
114	114	(3) establish guidelines for considering public
115	115	comment on solicitations, including guidelines allowing public
116	116	comment for at least 45 days after the date the agency issues the
117	117	solicitation.
118	118	(k) A state agency's solicitation posted under Subsection
119	119	(j)(2) must be substantially similar to the final solicitation
120	120	issued by the agency for the procurement. A state agency that
121	121	receives comments during the public comment process under
122	122	Subsection (j)(3) that result in a final solicitation that
123	123	substantially differs from the initial solicitation posted under
124	124	Subsection (j)(2) must post on the agency's Internet website a
125	125	statement of the differences between the initial and final
126	126	solicitations with the corresponding comments that led to the
127	127	modifications.
128	128	(l) A vendor may notify the state auditor of agency
129	129	noncompliance with Subsection (k) or an instruction, procedure, or
130	130	requirement in the guide for the purpose of audit or investigation.
131	131	SECTION 4. As soon as practicable after the effective date
132	132	of this Act, the comptroller of public accounts shall adopt the
133	133	rules and update the contract management handbook and contract
134	134	management guide as necessary to implement the changes in law made
135	135	by this Act.
136	136	SECTION 5. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
137	137	a contract for which a state agency first advertises or otherwise
138	138	solicits offers, bids, proposals, qualifications, or other
139	139	applicable expressions of interest on or after the effective date
140	140	of this Act. A contract for which a state agency first advertises
141	141	or otherwise solicits offers, bids, proposals, qualifications, or
142	142	other applicable expressions of interest before the effective date
143	143	of this Act is governed by the law as it existed immediately before
144	144	the effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect
145	145	for that purpose.
146	146	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.