| (a) An entity that does business with the department
is required to:
(1) disclose to the department in writing the existence
of a conflict of interest involving an agreement between the entity
and the department and adequately remedy the conflict:
(A) before the effective date of the agreement; or
(B) if the conflict of interest arises after the effective
date of the agreement, within five working days after the date that
the entity knows or should have known of the conflict;
(2) adhere to all civil and criminal laws related to
business;
(3) maintain good standing with the comptroller, other
state agencies, states, and agencies of the federal government with
which the entity has had a business relationship;
(4) notify the department in writing within five working
days after the date that the entity knows or should have known of
the existence of, and must adequately address:
(A) a conviction of a bidding crime, a plea of guilty
or nolo contendere to a charge of a bidding crime, a civil judgment
for a bidding crime, or a public admission to a bidding crime, whether
made by the entity or by an individual or other entity that acted
on behalf of the entity;
(B) a conviction of an offense indicating a lack of
moral or ethical integrity, such as bribery or payment of kickbacks
or secret rebates to agents of a governmental entity, if the offense
reflects on the business practices of the entity;
(C) debarment of the entity by the comptroller, another
state agency, another state, or an agency of the federal government
for a ground related to business integrity; or
(D) any behavior of the entity that seriously and directly
affects the entity's responsibility to the department and that is
also a violation of:
(i) the law; or
(ii) the department's rules that relate to the entity's
dealing with the department.
(5) disclose to the department any discovery of credible
evidence of:
(A) a violation of a law involving fraud, bribery,
or conflict of interest in connection with the award or performance
of its contract;
(B) a violation of this section on the part of a subcontractor
or subprovider on its contract; or
(C) an overpayment on its contract;
(6) cooperate fully with the department or any other
government agency responsible for audits, investigations, or corrective
actions;
(7) prohibit its employees who have access to non-public
information by reason of performance on a department contract from
using the information for personal gain; and
(8) refrain from committing acts indicating a lack
of moral or ethical integrity and reflecting on the business practices
of the entity, including:
(A) offering, giving, or agreeing to give a benefit
to a member of the commission or to a department employee;
(B) submitting an offer below anticipated costs, with
an expectation of either increasing the contract amount after award
or recovering incurred losses by receiving follow-on contracts at
artificially high prices;
(C) disclosing or receiving bid or proposal information
in exchange for a thing of value or to give anyone a competitive advantage
in the award of a department contract;
(D) retaliating against an employee for disclosing
information to the department relating to a violation of law related
to a department contract, including the competition for or negotiation
of a contract;
(E) knowingly entering into a subcontract with an entity
that is suspended or debarred by the department;
(F) making false or misleading statements in order
to obtain a benefit, including falsifying or permitting misrepresentation
of its qualifications; or
(G) disposing of waste in an unauthorized area.
(b) In this section, "bidding crime" means an act prohibited
by state or federal law that involves fraud, conspiracy, collusion,
perjury, or material misrepresentation with respect to a public contract,
regardless of where the act was committed.
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