HBA-DMD C.S.S.B. 1133 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.S.B. 1133 By: Madla State Affairs 4/30/1999 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The Professional Procurement Act exempts certain identified professionals, including physicians and engineers, from the general requirement that the state procure goods and services only through a competitive bidding process. The purpose of this policy is for professional services to be purchased on the basis of quality and competency rather than on the basis of the cheapest price. However, this law does not include advanced practice nurses, and therefore the state's contracts with professional nurses are currently awarded to the lowest bidder. C.S.S.B. 1133 includes professional nursing, landscape architecture, registered nurse services, and landscape architect services in the definition of "professional services." 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 2254.002(2), Government Code, to include professional nursing, registered nurse services, landscape architecture, and landscape architect services in the definition of "professional services." Includes in the definition persons who are registered, as well as licensed, as a certified public accountant, an architect, a landscape architect, a land surveyor, a physician, an optometrist, a professional engineer, a state certified or state licensed real estate appraiser, or a registered nurse, and who provide services in connection with their professional employment or practice. Makes conforming changes. SECTION 2.Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 3.Emergency clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE This substitute further amends Section 2251.002(2), Government Code, in SECTION 1, to include landscape architecture and landscape architect services in the definition of "professional services." This substitute includes in the definition persons who are registered, as well as licensed, as a certified public accountant, an architect, a landscape architect, a land surveyor, a physician, an optometrist, a professional engineer, a state certified or state licensed real estate appraiser, or a registered nurse, and who provide services in connection with their professional employment or practice. Makes conforming changes.