| Q: | What
is H-GAC? | |
| A: | The
Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) is a regional council of governments operating
under the laws of the State of Texas and governed by a board comprised of 35 elected
officials from the 13-county region. | |
| | | |
| Q: | What
is PlanSource? | |
| A: | PlanSource
is a cooperative purchasing program for planning services. | |
| | | |
| Q: | How
does a cooperative purchasing program work? | |
| A: | Government
entities join a cooperative purchasing community, like PlanSource, by executing
an Interlocal Contract to participate. This document sets out the conditions,
requirements and processes through which an entity's purchase orders are received,
confirmed to contract and processed. The process starts by executing an Interlocal
contract with H-GAC and then each local government can utilize the H-GAC resources
to find the firm they would like to work with. The local government will request
a formal pricing structure for the project, and once an agreement is made the
project begins. For the detailed process, refer to the PlanSource website (theplansource.org)
under "Getting Started". This page will outline step by step the process from
interest to completion. |
| | | |
| Q: | Can
my entity utilize PlanSource? | |
| A: | The
Texas Interlocal Cooperation Act permits joint participation by local governments,
states, state agencies and certain not-for-profit corporations. Most states have
interlocal cooperation authority or other joint power provisions that allow participation
in cooperative activities. For more information about these regulations in our
area, visit our website. |
| | | |
Q: | What
is the Interlocal contract and how does it help? | |
| A: | The
Interlocal contract is the vehicle that allows H-GAC to act as the procurement
agency on behalf of the local government. The Texas Interlocal Cooperation Act:
In 1971, the Texas Legislature passed the Interlocal Cooperation Act to promote
activities among local governments across Texas. The following excerpt from the
Act states:"The Interlocal Cooperation Act's purpose is to improve the efficiency
and effectiveness of local governments by authorizing the fullest possible range
of inter-governmental contracting authority at the local level, including contracts
between all political subdivisions of the state and agencies of the state." "Administrative
functions associated with interlocal cooperation include activities such as tax
assessment and collection, personnel services, purchasing, records management
services, data processing, warehousing, equipment repair and printing." "Any local
government may contract or agree with one or more local governments under the
terms of this Act." The Act was later amended to include "…a non-profit corporation
created and operated to provide one or more governmental functions and services."
The Texas Interlocal Cooperation Act requires a contract between the two entities.
H-GAC has an interlocal contract agreement that is signed by both the end user
and H-GAC. Once both parties enter into this agreement all products of HGACBuy
and H-GAC PlanSource are available to the end user. |
| | | |
| Q: | As
a local government, do I have to issue a separate RFP or RFQ before I can move
forward? |
| A: | No,
there is no need to issue an RFP or RFQ. By entering into a Interlocal contract
with H-GAC the need for competitive bids has been satisfied. Section 025 Contracts
for Purchases of the Government Code Chapter 791 Interlocal Cooperation Contracts
states: (c) A local government that purchases goods and services under this section
satisfies the requirement of the local government to seek competitive bids for
the purchase of the goods and services. H-GAC handled all the procurement steps.
H-GAC released and advertised the RFP, reviewed and qualified the contractors
and has made them available to end users who have an interlocal agreement with
H-GAC. PlanSource used mass circulation, minority emphasis print media and internet
services to post legal notices and bid solicitations. Therefore, posting of public
notices to solicit bids and the formal competitive bid process are satisfied through
PlanSource procedures. |
| | | |
| Q: | What
planning services are available through PlanSource? | |
| A: | There
are many types of planning resources available through PlanSource. Transportation
Planning and Land Use Planning are just two. The full list of resources for PlanSource
can be found on this website under the "Types of Services" tab. |
| | | |
| Q:
| How
do I know what services PlanSource can be used for? | |
| A: | PlanSource
was developed to help local governments and some not-for-profit corporations in
efficiently executing the PLANNING aspect of growing their communities. The Local
Government Code, Chapter 252 provides a definition for planning services. (5)
"Planning services" means services primarily intended to guide governmental policy
to ensure the orderly and coordinated development of the state or of municipal,
county, metropolitan, or regional land areas. Examples of these services offered
through PlanSource are also on the website. As you look at the PlanSource services
you will note that there are only planning services. All architectural and engineering
serves fall under a different set of procurement sanctions. If you are unclear
if your project qualifies for PlanSource, we would be happy to guide you along
the way. |
