1. (a) Per Tex. Gov't Code §2155.076, a state agency must adopt procedures for resolving vendor protests related to purchasing issues.
2. (b) A vendor who submitted a written response to a solicitation and did not receive the award may file a written protest.

3. (c) A valid protest must be:

   1. (1) In writing and contain:

      1. (A) the specific rule, statute or regulation the protesting vendor alleges the solicitation, contract award or tentative award violated;
      2. (B) a specific description of each action by the agency that the protesting vendor alleges is a violation of the statutory or regulatory provision the protesting vendor identified in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph;

      3. (C) a precise statement of the relevant facts including:

         1. (i) sufficient documentation to establish that the protest has been timely filed;
         2. (ii) a description of the adverse impact to the agency and the state; and
         3. (iii) a description of the resulting adverse impact to the protesting vendor;
      4. (D) a statement of the argument and authorities that the protesting vendor offers in support of the protest;
      5. (E) an explanation of the subsequent action the vendor is requesting.
   2. (2) signed by an authorized representative with the signature notarized; and
   3. (3) filed in the time period specified in this section.

4. (d) To be considered by the Commission, a protest must be filed:

   1. (1) by the end of the posted solicitation period, if the protest concerns the solicitation documents or actions associated with the publication of solicitation documents;
   2. (2) by the day of the award of a contract resulting from the solicitation, if the protest concerns the evaluation or method of evaluation for a solicitation; or
   3. (3) no later than 10 days after the notice of award, if the protest concerns the award.
5. (e) In the event of a timely protest or appeal under this section, the Commission shall not proceed further with the solicitation or with the award of the contract unless the Executive Director makes a written determination that the award of the contract without delay is necessary to protect the best interest of the Commission.
6. (f) Policies and procedures related to this section can be found in the Commission policy on the Commission website.

Source Note:The provisions of this §7.5 adopted to be effective June 7, 2026, 51 TexReg 3699.