House Bill 3242 was among 48 bills vetoed by Gov. Rick Perry. This measure required that a minimum of 10 percent of the purchases by the Texas Building and Procurement Commission be done by reverse auction. The Texas Construction Association, along with the ABC-Texas and the AGC-Texas Building Branch, worked with the Senate sponsor of the bill, Sen. Craig Estes, to attach an amendment that would prohibit the use of reverse auctions for state construction projects. The bill passed with the amendment intact.

However, the Governor had a concern unrelated to our amendment and vetoed the bill. The Governor felt that the Building and Procurement Commission should have the flexibility to use whatever purchasing method the Commission felt was the best and most cost effective and not be required to use any one method.

The Governor also vetoed HB 2493, which would have expanded the ability of municipalities and school districts to accept a bid from a local business even though the bid was not the lowest.

Here is the list of bills vetoed by the Governor. The ones most directly related to construction also show the governor's veto proclamation. These bills can also be accessed under the Legislation tab of the TCA Web site: www.texcon.org.

Vetoed Bills - 2003 Regular Session

HB 32 Relating to certain writs of habeas corpus based solely on a claim of a time-served credit error.
HB 59 Relating to the offense of aggravated kidnapping, the punishment for the offense of kidnapping, and the definition of and punishment for the offense of trafficking in persons.
HB 76 Relating to procedures adopted by a state entity to ensure an employment preference for veterans.
HB 156 Relating to the grant of the power of eminent domain to a regional mobility authority.
HB 157 Relating to the powers and duties of a regional mobility authority.
HB 298 Relating to prohibiting the disclosure of personal customer information by the Parks and Wildlife Department.
HB 424 Relating to the regulation of certain housing authorities; providing a penalty.
HB 425 Relating to procedures to help ensure that certain state agency actions are consistent with the meaning and intent of applicable legislative enactments.
HB 999 Relating to electronic reporting of political contributions and expenditures.
HB 1053 Relating to the confidentiality of social security numbers in certain circumstances.
HB 1232 Relating to the expiration of alcoholic beverage permits and licenses.
HB 1241 Relating to measures to protect the state from theft, lost lottery tickets, or other losses incurred by or in connection with lottery sales agents.
HB 1274 Relating to the procedure for collecting signatures on a petition filed in connection with a candidate's application for a place on the ballot.
HB 1344 Relating to the election of an unopposed candidate for an office of a political subdivision and to omission of that candidate from the ballot.
HB 1380 Relating to certain products offered in connection with a consumer loan.
HB 1496 Relating to reduction in benefit fraud and claim overpayments in unemployment compensation.
HB 1517 Relating to publicizing a list of voters' rights.
HB 1518 Relating to accountability for public school dropouts and students at risk of dropping out of school and to the evaluation of school campuses.
HB 1701 Relating to providing a uniform limit on the population of a county election precinct.
HB 1839 Relating to property in the custody of a pawnbroker; providing criminal penalties.
HB 2089 Relating to requiring the secretary of state to publicly post a list of candidate names on the Internet.
HB 2159 Relating to a documented member of the Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas hunting certain deer.
HB 2295 Relating to municipal contracts regarding public improvements and purchasing.
Veto Proclamation: A late amendment to House Bill No. 2295 is problematic and lacks the criteria needed to guide municipalities in establishing and administering a program similar to the state's Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) Program. Without criteria needed to certify and verify minority-owned and women-owned businesses, this bill would inject ambiguity into the bid selection process and could undermine the success of the state HUB program.

HB 2361 Relating to the investigation of a firefighter or police officer in certain municipalities.
HB 2493 Relating to consideration of a bidder's principal place of business in awarding certain municipal and school district contracts.
Veto Proclamation: In 1999, the Legislature allowed certain local governments to avoid purchasing goods from the lowest bidder and instead to buy from a local business which came within three percent of the best bid. Current law applies to municipalities with populations of 200,000 or less that wish to buy real property or goods from a seller whose principal place of business is in the municipality. Now, just two sessions later, House Bill No. 2493 would greatly expand the formerly limited exception. This bill would allow the local government to use the exception for services rather than just goods, increase the size of governments which could circumvent the lowest bid, further erode taxpayer protection by allowing local governments to purchase from a local bidder whose bid is five percent higher than the best bid and would extend the exception to school districts at a time when expenditures for schools are already straining local property taxpayers' ability to pay. With this veto message, I hope to discourage legislators from further attempts to bypass competitive bid requirements.

HB 2924 Relating to the addition of territory to a public improvement district.
HB 3175 Relating to the authority of the comptroller of public accounts to manage cash flow by transferring available cash between funds in the custody or under the management of the comptroller; making an appropriation.
HB 3232 Relating to the collection of costs incurred by certain municipalities in remedying substandard conditions on a property.
HB 3242 Relating to the use of the reverse auction procedure by the Texas Building and Procurement Commission.
Veto Proclamation: House Bill No. 3242 would mandate that all state agencies use a reverse auction to make 10 percent of all purchases, other than professional services. I believe the Texas Building and Procurement Commission, which generally makes state agency purchases, should have the flexibility to determine the most efficient and cost effective means of making purchases.

HB 3441 Relating to a reduction in expenditures of certain state governmental entities, including changes affecting the Commission on Human Rights, attorney general's office, management of certain accounts and funds, and certain election-related forms.
HB 3554 Relating to motor vehicle inspection facilities near the border of this state and Mexico.
SB 24 Relating to the creation, administration, powers, duties, operation, and financing of the Ranch at Clear Fork Creek Municipal Utility District No. 1; granting the authority to impose taxes and issue bonds; granting the power of eminent domain.
SB 147 Relating to the adoption by state agencies of risk management plans and risk control strategies.
SB 315 Relating to the annexation by certain junior college districts of territory in a district's service area.
SB 407 Relating to the liability of a governmental unit for fire or emergency services in a contract or in the absence of a contract.
SB 463 Relating to rates and insurable property under the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association.
SB 733 Relating to the purchase by certain local governments of an item from a local vendor.
SB 827 Relating to creating offenses for abandoning or endangering an elderly individual or disabled individual and for failing to provide certain care for a child, elderly individual, or disabled individual.
SB 970 Relating to the sale or transport of certain desert plants; providing a penalty.
SB 1154 Relating to the authority and duties of certain libraries and to library systems in the state.
SB 1504 Relating to the regulation of motor vehicle sales and the powers and duties of the Motor Vehicle Board of the Texas Department of Transportation.
SB 1521 Relating to tuition charged by a public institution of higher education for certain graduate programs.
SB 1526 Relating to collection and use of information in connection with licensing regarding a retail installment transaction involving a motor vehicle.
SB 1597 Relating to policies by law enforcement agencies regarding the arrest of persons for certain offenses.
SB 1601 Relating to unclaimed funds in class actions.
SB 1659 Relating to certain ad valorem tax exemptions, payments, and refunds.
SB 1705 Relating to the authority of certain taxing entities to repeal the local sales and use tax exemption for telecommunications services.
SB 1782 Relating to the precedence of highway access rules and ordinances of certain counties and municipalities over highway access management orders of the Texas Transportation Commission.