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Purchasing Statutes of Special Interest to Counties

December 1, 2018 by County Progress

By Narita Holmes
Government Procurement and Compliance Consultant
Former Ector County Purchasing Agent

With the next legislative session only a few months away, we can expect to see further changes in laws impacting procurement which will require careful attention to detail.

During the 85th Legislative Session in 2017, several laws passed that require special wording be included in specifications to keep the county in compliance with purchasing statutes.

  • B. 9 – established the Texas Cybercrime Act and created a third degree felony for a person who intentionally interrupts or suspends access to a computer system or network without consent of the entity or intentionally alters data, introduces ransomware, or decrypts encrypted private data.
  • B. 89 – prohibits contracts with a company for goods or services unless the contract contains written verification from the company that it (1) does not boycott Israel, and (2) will not boycott Israel during the term of the contract. The Office of the Texas Comptroller (comptroller) has published a list of companies that boycott Israel, and this list should be checked before the awarding of a contract to a vendor.
  • B. 1571 – requires governments to include the estimated amount of avoided expected future operating and maintenance costs when evaluating energy savings, along with all other pertinent costs when entering into an energy savings contract.
  • B. 3223 – makes a political entity liable for damages caused by use of a vehicle used during a crime and requires a $1,000 penalty payment to the state if the entity violates the requirement to remove any equipment and insignia from the vehicle before selling or transferring the marked law enforcement vehicle.
  • B. 252 – Provides that governmental entities may not enter into a contract with a company that does business with Iran, Sudan, or a foreign terrorist organization, as indicated on a list prepared by the comptroller. See the statute, Chapter 2252, Government Code, for exceptions.
  • B. 255 – changes the Vendor Disclosure Form 1295. See related story for specifics.
  • SB 622 – provides that the proposed budget of a political subdivision for a fiscal year beginning on or after Jan. 1, 2018, must include a line item indicating expenditures for required newspaper notices that allows comparison between budgeted and actual expenditures.
  • B. 1289 – Requires that construction projects in which iron or steel must be used must include a requirement that any iron or steel product used in the project must be produced in the United States, unless the total cost of the project will increase by more than 20 percent or complying with the requirement is not in the public interest. A number of other requirements are included in the law. Purchasing professionals are reporting rising bid costs as a result of this law. Any variance from the law should be made only after consulting with legal counsel and careful documentation. *

Filed Under: County Purchasing, Feature Story Tagged With: commissioners court, Compliance Consultant, County Purchasing Act, Disclosure of Interested Parties, Do’s and Don’ts, Government Procurement, governmental entities, Legislative Session, Procurement, Purchasing, Texas Ethics Commission

Procurement-Is it Legal to use this Purchasing Cooperative?

December 1, 2013 by Christi Stark

Using cooperative purchasing contracts can save significant time and money for county governments.  It is necessary for cooperatives to operate transparently, providing information for members. If the needed information is not posted, the cooperative should make the requested information available for members when requested.

There are many cooperatives based in different locations, following different laws. To assist county governments in determining if and how a cooperative is following procurement law in awarding contracts, use the checklist below to determine whether or not it is appropriate to use the cooperative contract(s).

Questions to Ask Proof 
Does the cooperative follow Texas Government Code 791 by requiring Texas county governments to sign an interlocal contract?

 

If the county is in Texas, state law requires that the governing body approve and sign an interlocal contract with the governmental entity cooperative providing the contracts; this law applies to all Texas government and applies to cooperatives located outside of Texas.
Was the Request for Proposal/Bid for this contract award competitively solicited?

 

The cooperative should have proof of due diligence; advertisement dates should be available for each contract award.
Were responses received prior to the deadline?

Were any responses accepted past the deadline?

Receipt date and time of each submittal should be timely, recorded and available for review.
Is there proof that the contracts went through an evaluation process?

Was the evaluation based on the published criteria?

Evaluation tabulation worksheets should be available for each contract award.

NOTE:  If contracts are routinely awarded to all proposers, there may not be an evaluation, and the contract may not be competitively bid.

Does the RFP/awarded contract reference the correct procurement law? The applicable procurement law should be used for each RFP.
Is the awarded vendor using the pricing that was in the proposal/contract award?

 

Audits should be conducted periodically to ensure contract compliance.
Was the contract awarded by a governmental entity as stipulated in Texas Government Code 791? See Texas Government Code 791 – http://www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/ Docs/GV/htm/GV.791.htm#00
If the cooperative offers facilities services contracts, such as maintenance, renovation or repair, were these contracts procured through Job Order Contracting as noted under Texas Government Code 2267? http://www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/Docs/GV/htm/GV.2267.htm
Does the cooperative use the contracts they procure at their own governmental entity? The “gold standard” is for cooperatives to use their own contracts.
Value Added Services Look for
What services does the cooperative provide the members? Cooperatives should address problems with orders/deliveries/substitutions, etc.; maintain current product/pricing lists; and research new products/services.
What services does the cooperative provide the vendor? Pre-proposal meetings, marketing support, help signing up members, training/orientation.
Does the cooperative provide contract review/audit services?

 

What is the audit method and schedule?
Does the cooperative have a mechanism or provide the customer service for members to quickly determine what products/services are available?

 

Having the legally procured contract is step one; helping members find the contracted product/service they need is step two.
Does the solicitation for proposal encourage participation by historically underutilized businesses or minority- or women-owned business enterprises? Look for evaluation criteria that includes HUB/WMBE.

Filed Under: Budget Tagged With: Procurement, Purchasing Cooperative

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