Bill Text: TX HB2049 | 2015-2016 | 84th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relating to indemnification and duties of engineers and architects under certain governmental contracts.
Sponsorship: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 4-1)
Status: (Passed) 2015-06-17 - Effective on 9/1/15 [HB2049 Detail]
Download: Texas-2015-HB2049-Enrolled.html
| H.B. No. 2049 | ||
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| relating to indemnification and duties of engineers and architects | ||
| under certain governmental contracts. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Section 271.904, Local Government Code, is | ||
| amended to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 271.904. ENGINEERING OR ARCHITECTURAL SERVICES | ||
| CONTRACTS: INDEMNIFICATION LIMITATIONS; DUTIES OF ENGINEER OR | ||
| ARCHITECT. (a) A covenant or promise in, in connection with, or | ||
| collateral to a contract for engineering or architectural services | ||
| to which a governmental agency is a party is void and unenforceable | ||
| if the covenant or promise provides that a licensed engineer or | ||
| registered architect whose work product is the subject of the | ||
| contract must indemnify or[ |
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| governmental agency against liability for damage, other than | ||
| liability for damage to the extent that the damage is caused by or | ||
| results from an act of negligence, intentional tort, intellectual | ||
| property infringement, or failure to pay a subcontractor or | ||
| supplier committed by the indemnitor or the indemnitor's agent, | ||
| consultant under contract, or another entity over which the | ||
| indemnitor exercises control. | ||
| (b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), a covenant or | ||
| promise in, in connection with, or collateral to a contract for | ||
| engineering or architectural services to which a governmental | ||
| agency is a party is void and unenforceable if the covenant or | ||
| promise provides that a licensed engineer or registered architect | ||
| whose work product is the subject of the contract must defend a | ||
| party, including a third party, against a claim based wholly or | ||
| partly on the negligence of, fault of, or breach of contract by the | ||
| governmental agency, the agency's agent, the agency's employee, or | ||
| other entity, excluding the engineer or architect or that person's | ||
| agent, employee, or subconsultant, over which the governmental | ||
| agency exercises control. A covenant or promise may provide for the | ||
| reimbursement of a governmental agency's reasonable attorney's fees | ||
| in proportion to the engineer's or architect's liability. | ||
| (c) Notwithstanding Subsection (b), a governmental agency | ||
| may require in a contract for engineering or architectural services | ||
| to which the governmental agency is a party that the engineer or | ||
| architect name the governmental agency as an additional insured | ||
| under the engineer's or architect's general liability insurance | ||
| policy and provide any defense provided by the policy. | ||
| (d) A contract for engineering or architectural services to | ||
| which a governmental agency is a party must require a licensed | ||
| engineer or registered architect to perform services: | ||
| (1) with the professional skill and care ordinarily | ||
| provided by competent engineers or architects practicing in the | ||
| same or similar locality and under the same or similar | ||
| circumstances and professional license; and | ||
| (2) as expeditiously as is prudent considering the | ||
| ordinary professional skill and care of a competent engineer or | ||
| architect. | ||
| (e) In a contract for engineering or architectural services | ||
| to which a governmental agency is a party, a provision establishing | ||
| a different standard of care than a standard described by | ||
| Subsection (d) is void and unenforceable. If a contract contains a | ||
| void and unenforceable provision, the standard of care described by | ||
| Subsection (d) applies. | ||
| (f) In this section, "governmental agency" has the meaning | ||
| assigned by Section 271.003. | ||
| SECTION 2. Section 271.904, Local Government Code, as | ||
| amended by this Act, applies only to a contract for which a request | ||
| for proposals or a request for qualifications is first published or | ||
| distributed on or after the effective date of this Act. A contract | ||
| for which a request for proposals or a request for qualifications is | ||
| first published or distributed before the effective date of this | ||
| Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the request was | ||
| published or distributed, and the former law is continued in effect | ||
| for that purpose. | ||
| SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015. | ||
| ______________________________ | ______________________________ | |
| President of the Senate | Speaker of the House | |
| I certify that H.B. No. 2049 was passed by the House on May 4, | ||
| 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 131, Nays 7, 1 present, not | ||
| voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B. | ||
| No. 2049 on May 26, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 143, Nays 1, | ||
| 3 present, not voting. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Chief Clerk of the House | ||
| I certify that H.B. No. 2049 was passed by the Senate, with | ||
| amendments, on May 22, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 26, Nays | ||
| 5. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Secretary of the Senate | ||
| APPROVED: __________________ | ||
| Date | ||
| __________________ | ||
| Governor | ||
