(a) Texas and United States products and Texas services.
The terms used in this section are as defined by Government Code, §2155.444(c).
(1) If goods, including agricultural products, produced
or grown in this state or offered by Texas bidders are not equal in
cost and quality to other products, then goods, including agricultural
products, produced or grown in other states of the United States shall
be given preference over foreign products if the cost to the state
and quality are equal. However, a preference shall be given to those
goods produced or grown in this state or offered by Texas bidders
as follows:
(A) goods produced or offered by a Texas bidder that
is owned by a service-disabled veteran who is a Texas resident shall
be given a first preference and goods produced in this state or offered
by other Texas bidders shall be given second preference, if the cost
to the state and quality are equal; and
(B) agricultural products grown in this state shall
be given first preference and agricultural products offered by Texas
bidders shall be given second preference, if the cost to the state
and quality are equal.
(2) A preference shall be given for purchases of Texas
vegetation native to the region for landscaping purposes, including
plants, if the cost to the state is not greater and the quality is
not inferior.
(3) A first preference shall be given to services offered
by a Texas bidder that is owned by a service-disabled veteran who
is a Texas resident and a second preference shall be given to services
offered by other Texas bidders if:
(A) the services meet state requirements regarding
the service to be performed and expected quality; and
(B) the cost of the service does not exceed the cost
of other similar services of similar expected quality that are offered
by a bidder that is not entitled to a preference under this subsection.
(4) When an agency conducts an advertising campaign
that involves the creation or production of a commercial, in accordance
with any additional guidance or rules from the Music, Film, Television,
and Multimedia Office within the office of the governor, a preference
shall be given to a commercial production company and advertising
agency located in this state if:
(A) the services meet state requirements regarding
the service to be performed and regarding expected quality; and
(B) the cost of the service does not exceed the cost
of other similar services of similar expected quality that are offered
by a bidder that is not entitled to a preference.
(b) Products of persons with mental or physical disabilities.
A preference shall be given to manufactured products of workshops,
organizations, or corporations whose primary purpose is training and
employing persons with mental or physical disabilities, if the products
meet state specifications as to quantity, quality, and price. Competitive
bids are not required for purchases of blind-made goods or services
offered as a result of efforts by the Texas Council on Purchasing
from People with Disabilities, if the goods or services meet state
specifications as to quantity, quality, price, delivery, life cycle
costs, and costs no more than the fair market price of similar items.
(c) Recycled, remanufactured or environmentally sensitive
products. A preference shall be given to recycled, remanufactured
or environmentally sensitive products, including recycled steel products,
if the products meet state specifications as to quantity and quality
and the average price of the product is not more than 10 percent greater
than the price of comparable non-recycled products. The preference
for recycled steel products applies also to products purchased in
connection with projects described in Government Code, §2166.003.
(d) Covered television equipment. In accordance with
Health & Safety Code, §361.991, and 30 TAC Chapter 328, Subchapter
J, and in addition to any other preferences under other Texas laws,
a preference shall be given to a television manufacturer that:
(1) through its recovery plan collects more than its
market share allocation; or
(2) provides collection sites or recycling events in
any county located in a council of governments region in which there
are fewer than six permanent collection sites open at least twice
each month.
(e) Energy efficient products. A preference shall be
given to energy efficient products if they meet state requirements
as to quantity and quality, and are equal to or less than the cost
of other products offered. This preference shall be applied by evaluating
the energy use of the products offered and considering the costs of
such energy use over the expected life of the equipment. The methodology
for evaluating energy use and costs shall be included in the bid invitation.
(f) Rubberized asphalt paving material. A preference
shall be given to rubberized asphalt paving material made from scrap
tires by a facility in this state if the cost, as determined by life-cycle
cost benefit analysis, does not exceed the bid cost of alternative
paving materials by more than 15%.
(g) Recycled motor oil and lubricants. In the purchase
of motor oil and other automotive lubricants for state-owned vehicles,
a preference shall be given to motor oils and lubricants that contain
at least 25% recycled oil if the quality is comparable and the cost
is equal to or less than new oil and lubricants.
(h) Products and services from economically depressed
or blighted areas as defined in Government Code, §2306.004 or
that meet the definition of a historically underutilized business
zone as defined by 15 U.S.C. §632(p). Preference shall be given
to goods and services produced in economically depressed or blighted
areas if they meet state requirements as to quantity and quality,
and are equal to or less than the cost of other similar goods or services
offered that are not produced in an economically depressed or blighted
area.
(i) Products of facilities on formerly contaminated
property. A preference shall be given to goods produced at a facility
located on property for which the owner has received a certificate
of completion under Health and Safety Code, §361.609, if the
goods meet state specifications regarding quantity, quality, delivery,
life cycle costs, and price.
(j) Vendors that meet or exceed air quality standards.
(1) For contracts to be performed, in whole or in part,
in a designated nonattainment area or an affected county, as those
terms are defined by Health and Safety Code, §386.001, the comptroller
and state agencies procuring goods and services may:
(A) give preference to goods or services of a vendor
that demonstrates that the vendor meets or exceeds any state or federal
environmental standards, including voluntary standards, relating to
air quality; or
(B) require that a vendor demonstrate that the vendor
meets or exceeds any state or federal environmental standards, including
voluntary standards, relating to air quality.
(2) The preference may be given only if the cost to
the state for the goods and services would not exceed 105% of the
cost of the goods or services provided by a vendor who does not meet
the standards.
(3) When this preference is made available, the methodology
for claiming, evaluating and granting the preference shall be included
in the comptroller's and other state agencies' solicitations. The
application of the preference should encourage vendor innovation to
achieve the clean air objectives as described in the solicitation.
(k) Paper containing recycled fibers. In accordance
with Government Code, §2155.446, a preference shall be given
to paper containing the highest proportion of recycled fibers for
all purposes for which paper with recycled fibers may be used and
to the extent that the paper is available at a reasonable price through
normal commercial sources to supply the state's needs. The preference
does not apply if the average price of paper with recycled fibers
exceeds by more than 10 percent the price of comparable non-recycled
paper.
(l) Recycled computer equipment of other manufacturers.
In accordance with Health and Safety Code, §361.965(d), a preference
shall be given to a manufacturer that has a program to recycle the
computer equipment of other manufacturers, including collection events,
recycling grants, and manufacturer initiatives to accept computer
equipment labeled with another manufacturer's brand.
(m) Foods of higher nutritional value. In accordance
with Government Code, §2155.442 and the Department of Agriculture's
nutrition standards, a preference may be given for contractors who
provide foods of higher nutritional value without trans fatty acids
for consumption in a public cafeteria.
(n) Travel agents residing in Texas. In accordance
with Government Code, §2171.052, the comptroller may make contracts
with travel agents that meet certain reasonable requirements prescribed
by the central travel office, with preference given to resident entities
of this state.
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