HBA-MPA C.S.H.B. 2159 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 2159 By: Bosse Transportation 3/24/1999 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, the law provides for the retainage of five percent of the contract price for a highway improvement project, until the entire improvement has been completed and accepted. This circumstance can reduce cash flow of the contractor, thereby resulting in higher bids. Also, since retainage is counted against a contractor's bidding capacity, the number of projects on which a contractor may bid may be limited. C.S.H.B. 2159 authorizes the Texas Department of Transportation to release a portion of amounts retained under a highway improvement contract pending completion and acceptance of the improvement. 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 Section 223.010, Transportation Code, by amending Subsection (a), and adding Subsection (h), as follows: Sec. 223.010. DEPOSIT AND INVESTMENT OF RETAINED AMOUNT. (a) Makes a conforming change. (h) Provides that this subsection applies only to a contract that provides a separate period for performing vegetative establishment or maintenance or a related activity following construction of an improvement. Authorizes the Texas Department of Transportation to release a portion of the amount retained under Subsection (a), but no more than the amount sufficient to ensure compliance with the contract, at the time construction of the improvement is completed but before the entire improvement is accepted. SECTION 2.Emergency clause. Effective date: upon passage. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE C.S.H.B. 2159 differs from the original bill in SECTION 1 by expanding the potential application of Subsection (h) by adding the words "or a related activity" after the words "vegetative establishment or maintenance." Substitutes the phrase "but no more than the amount sufficient to ensure compliance with the contact" for the sentence in the original that calls for the amount released to be in proportion to the cost of the work that is completed at the time of release. Makes nonsubstantive rearrangement of the wording of the bill.