Relating to prohibiting certain criteria in a local governmental agency contractor selection process.

89(R) HB 4314 - House Committee Report version - Bill Text

89R22995 DRS-D

By: Bell of Montgomery

H.B. No. 4314

Substitute the following for H.B. No. 4314:

By: Bell of Montgomery

C.S.H.B. No. 4314

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to prohibiting certain criteria in a local governmental

agency contractor selection process.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Subchapter Z, Chapter 271, Local Government

Code, is amended by adding Section 271.909 to read as follows:

Sec.

271.909.

CERTAIN CONTRACTING CRITERIA PROHIBITED. (a)

In this section, "governmental agency" has the meaning assigned by

Section 271.003.

(b)

Notwithstanding any other law, a governmental agency

that procures a good or service through a competitive process may

not:

(1)

consider any factor in the procurement process

other than a factor that:

(A) is required by law; or

(B)

is objective, measurable, and directly

related to the cost, quality, reliability, or legal compliance of

the good or service being procured; or

(2)

give a preference to a bid based on environmental,

social, and governance criteria that do not directly relate to the

cost, quality, reliability, or legal compliance of the good or

service being procured.

(c)

For a competitive procurement process, a governmental

agency shall:

(1)

provide written contract selection criteria in all

publicly available bid specification requirements; and

(2)

include written contract selection criteria in the

solicitation documents at the time of vendor solicitation.

(d)

A person may submit to the attorney general a suspected

violation of this section.

(e)

If the attorney general determines that a governmental

agency has violated this section:

(1)

if the procurement process is ongoing and a

contract has not been awarded, the attorney general shall direct

the governmental agency in writing to remove any contract selection

criteria that the attorney general determines are prohibited under

this section; or

(2)

if a contract has been awarded but has not been

executed or performance of the contract has not been completed:

(A)

the attorney general shall direct the

governmental agency in writing to terminate the contract not later

than the 10th day after the date the governmental agency receives

the notice; and

(B)

the governmental agency shall provide

written proof of the termination of the contract to the attorney

general within the period prescribed by Paragraph (A).

(f)

If a governmental agency fails to terminate a contract

or provide written proof of the termination of a contract to the

attorney general as required by and within the period prescribed by

Subsection (e)(2), the contract is void.

(g)

The attorney general may bring an action for injunctive

or declaratory relief to enforce this section if a governmental

agency fails to comply with this section.

SECTION 2. Section 271.909, Local Government Code, as added

by this Act, applies only to a contractor selection process

initiated on or after the effective date of this Act.

SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.