HBA-TYH H.B. 2472 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2472
By: Maxey
State Affairs
3/23/1999
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

The Texas Integrated Enrollment and Services (TIES) project is part of the
state's effort to improve the delivery of critical health, human, and
employment services to thousands of Texans by integrating eligibility and
enrollment functions of many health and human service agencies.  Many
publicly funded nongovernmental service providers provide services to the
state eligibility and enrollment staff clients.  Facility colocation with
these providers may improve service access for clients, increase
administrative efficiencies, and improve integration of services.  TIES
would generally be seeking a limited amount of space with a provider that
is already located in a site. Current lease procurement requirements in
Chapter 2167  (Lease of Space for State Agencies) do not provide for the
state to enter into a lease or sublease in these situations. 

TIES project systems integrator and critical business service vendors may
be responsible for the call/mail centers operations and facility design,
implementation, and modification of systems and physical facilities for up
to three years.  For these reasons, the vendors need to have complete
control over the facility leases as the contracted lessee.  Once a vendor's
service to TIES terminates, TIES needs the ability to assume the role as
the facility lessee and thus assume the lease.  If this cannot occur, TIES
would have to go through the competitive process of space procurement.  If
another site is awarded the bid, TIES operations will have to relocate.
This could be costly and disruptive to operations and client services. 

H.B. 2472 waives state competitive procurement in situations where client
access to services would be enhanced and the colocation of offices would
improve the efficiency of the administration and delivery of services.
This bill also authorizes a state agency to enter into and negotiate a
contract and to share business resources with a private service provider. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Subchapter B, Chapter 531, Government Code, by adding
Section 531.051, as follows:  

Sec. 531.051.  LEASES AND SUBLEASES OF CERTAIN OFFICE SPACE.  Authorizes a
health and human services agency, with the approval of the Health and Human
Services Commission, the Texas Workforce Commission, or any other state
agency that administers employment services programs, to lease or sublease
office space to or from a private service provider that contracts with the
agency to enable agency eligibility and enrollment personnel to work with
the provider if client access to services would be enhanced and the
colocation of the offices would improve the efficiency of the
administration and delivery of services. Provides that Subchapters D (Lease
of Public Grounds) and E (Lease of Space in StateOwned Buildings to Private
Tenants), Chapter 2165, and Subchapter B (Procedures For Leasing Space;
Lease Contract), Chapter 2167, do not apply to a state agency that leases
or subleases office space to or from a private service provider.  Provides
that a state agency is delegated the authority to enter into a lease or
sublease, and authorizes  a state agency to  negotiate the terms of the
lease or sublease.   Authorizes a state agency, to the extent authorized by
federal law, to share business resources with a private service provider
that enters into a lease or sublease agreement with the agency. 

SECTION 2.  Emergency clause.
  Effective date: upon passage.