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TITLE 34PUBLIC FINANCE
PART 1COMPTROLLER OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTS
CHAPTER 20STATEWIDE PROCUREMENT AND SUPPORT SERVICES
SUBCHAPTER AGENERAL PROVISIONS
DIVISION 2DEFINITIONS
RULE §20.25Definitions

(a) As used throughout this chapter, words and terms defined in the State Purchasing and General Services Act, Government Code, Title 10, Subtitle D, and the Code Construction Act, Government Code, Chapter 311 shall have the same meaning as defined therein, and each word or term listed in this chapter shall have the meaning set forth herein, unless:

  (1) its use clearly requires a different meaning; or

  (2) a different definition is prescribed for a particular chapter or portion thereof.

(b) The following words and terms, when used in this chapter, shall have the following meaning unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

  (1) Act--The State Purchasing and General Services Act, Government Code, Title 10, Subtitle D, Chapter 2151, et seq, including any amendments thereto that may be made from time to time.

  (2) Advisory groups--A group that advises and assists the standards and specification program in establishing specifications. The advisory group may include representatives from federal, state and local governments, user groups, manufacturers, vendors and distributors, bidders, associations, colleges, universities, testing laboratories, and others with expertise and specialization in particular product area.

  (3) Agent of record--An employee or official designated by a qualified cooperative entity as the individual responsible to represent the qualified entity in all matters relating to the program.

  (4) Approved products list--The list is also referred to as the approved brands list or qualified products list. It is a specification developed by evaluation of brands and models of various manufacturers and listing those determined to be acceptable to meet the minimum level of quality. Testing is completed in advance of procurement to determine which products comply with the specifications and standards requirements.

  (5) Award--The act of accepting a bid, thereby forming a contract between the state and a bidder.

  (6) Bid--An offer to contract with the state, submitted in response to a bid invitation issued by the comptroller.

  (7) Bid deposit--A deposit required of bidders to protect the state in the event a low bidder attempts to withdraw its bid or otherwise fails to enter into a contract with the state. Acceptable forms of bid deposits are limited to: cashier's check, certified check, or irrevocable letter of credit issued by a financial institution subject to the laws of Texas and entered on the United States Department of the Treasury's listing of approved sureties; a surety or blanket bond from a company chartered or authorized to do business in Texas.

  (8) Bidder--An individual or entity that submits a bid. The term includes anyone acting on behalf of the individual or other entity that submits a bid, such as agents, employees, and representatives.

  (9) Blanket bond--A surety bond which provides assurance of a bidder's performance on two or more contracts in lieu of separate bonds for each contract. The amount for a blanket bond shall be established by the comptroller based on the bidder's annual level of participation in the state purchasing program.

  (10) Brand name--A trade name or product name which identifies a product as having been made by a particular manufacturer.

  (11) Centralized master bidders list (CMBL)--A list maintained by the comptroller containing the names and addresses of prospective bidders and catalog information systems vendors.

  (12) Comptroller--The Comptroller of Public Accounts of the State of Texas or the designated and authorized representative of the Comptroller of Public Accounts of the State of Texas.

  (13) Contract value or the value of a contract--The estimated dollar amount that a state agency may be obligated to pay pursuant to the contract and all executed and proposed amendments, extensions and renewals of the contract.

  (14) Contractor--A vendor that contracts to provide goods or services to the state under the Act and all successors-in-interest to that contractor.

  (15) Cooperative purchasing program--A program to provide purchasing services to qualified cooperative entities, as defined herein.

  (16) Customer choice--Customer choice as the term is defined under Utilities Code, §31.002(4).

  (17) Debarment--An exclusion from contracting or subcontracting with state agencies on the basis of any cause set forth in the Act or these rules, commensurate with the seriousness of the offense, performance failure, or inadequacy to perform.

  (18) Director--The director of the division.

  (19) Distributor purchase--Purchase of repair parts for a unit of major equipment that are needed immediately or as maintenance contracts for laboratory/medical equipment.

  (20) Division--The organizational division within the office of the Comptroller of Public Accounts for the State of Texas performing the responsibilities identified in the Act for and under the direction of the comptroller.

  (21) Emergency procurement--A situation requiring the state agency to make the procurement more quickly to prevent a hazard to life, health, safety, welfare, or property or to avoid undue additional cost to the state.

  (22) Environmentally sensitive products--Products that protect or enhance the environment, or provide less risk to the environment than traditionally available products.

  (23) Equivalent product--A product that is comparable in performance and quality to the specified product.

  (24) Electronic State Business Daily (ESBD)--A business daily made available on the Internet at an electronic procurement marketplace to which state agencies post contract opportunities that will exceed $25,000 in value.

  (25) Formal bid--A written bid submitted in a sealed envelope in accordance with a prescribed format, or an electronic data interchange transmitted to the comptroller in accordance with procedures established by the comptroller.

  (26) Group purchasing program--A purchasing program that offers discount prices to two or more state agencies, which is formed as a result of interagency or interlocal cooperation and follows all applicable statutory standards for purchases.

  (27) Historically Underutilized Business or HUB--A historically underutilized business as defined by Government Code, Chapter 2161 and Subchapter D, Division 1 of these rules.

  (28) Informal bid--An unsealed, competitive bid submitted by letter, telephone, or other means.

  (29) Invitation for bids (IFB)--A written request for submission of a bid; also referred to as a bid invitation.

  (30) Invoice--A document presented by a contractor for payment, which includes information necessary for payment processing, and is received by mail, hand delivery, electronically, or by facsimile transmission.

  (31) Late bid--A bid that is received at the place designated in the bid invitation after the time set for bid opening.

  (32) Level of quality--The ranking of an item, article, or product in regard to its properties, performance, and purity.

  (33) Local government--A county, municipality, special district, school district, junior college district, regional planning commission, or other political subdivision of the state pursuant to Local Government Code, §271.101.

  (34) Manufacturer's price list--A price list published in some form by the manufacturer and available to and recognized by the trade. The term does not include a price list prepared especially for a given bid.

  (35) Multiple award contract (as it applies to Multiple Award Schedule Contracts)--An award of a contract for an indefinite amount of one or more similar goods or services from a vendor.

  (36) Multiple award contract procedure--A purchasing procedure by which the comptroller establishes one or more levels of quality and performance and makes more than one award at each level.

  (37) Non-competitive purchase--A purchase of goods or services (also referred to as "spot purchase") that does not exceed the amount stated in §20.82 of this title (relating to Delegated Purchases).

  (38) Notice of award--A letter signed by the comptroller or the designee which awards and creates a term contract.

  (39) Open market purchase--A purchase of goods, usually of a specified quantity, made by buying from any available source in response to an open market requisition.

  (40) Performance bond--A surety bond which provides assurance of a bidder's performance of a certain contract. The amount for the performance bond shall be based on the bidder's annual level of potential monetary volume in the state purchasing program. Acceptable forms of bonds are those described in the definition for "bid deposit."

Cont'd...

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