How To Find and Win Government Contracts in Texas

State and local governments spend billions of dollars on products and services every year. In this article, you will see advice for your company’s sales, marketing and business development divisions on entering or expanding your business into the State of Texas marketplace. Read on and prepare your firm to win your share of billions of dollars in annual spending.

If you are just getting started in government contracting, view this government contracting guide to get the information you need to successfully find and win government contracts.

Want to enter the Texas marketplace? The state has a couple of quick steps to get started.

First, your company needs to register with the state’s Comptroller in its Centralized Master Bidders List (CMBL). The CMBL is a master database used by Texas purchasing entities such as various state agencies. The entities develop a mailing list for vendors to receive bids for products or services.

Here is how to register as a vendor with the State of Texas in 5 easy steps:

1. Sign up on the TxComptroller eSystems Login screen page
2. Establish your State Vendor Account
3. Set up your company’s unique user ID, email address, name, telephone number and password
4. Select a security question and answer, which is required for “Forgot User ID” or “Forgot Password”
5. Accept the Terms of Use

Your TxComptroller eSystems login gives you access to multiple eSystems and accounts for taxpayers, vendors, businesses and other state payment recipients. The state recommends keeping your information current. This helps the Comptroller’s office provide you with the best customer service.

If applying for CMBL, please note that the annual registration fee is $70.

At the login page, your company has the option of registering as a business referred to as a Historically Underutilized Business or HUB. The Lone Star State is divided into 25 highway districts, which include designated counties. You should only select the districts where your company can provide the state with products and services.

Note that there are tools to help your business easily manage its government registrations with state, local and education (SLED) entities to make it easier to sell to SLED governments.

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Texas has its Electronic State Business Daily (ESBD) as a central location for finding departments’ and agencies’ solicitations. You can use this location to find out what Texas government is buying. ESBD includes procurements that are valued at more than $25,000. Searches can be done by agency name, number, NIGP Code, or using keywords, among other search parameters.

Once the search is complete, select a bid title of interest.

The bid selection will show:

• A synopsis of the solicitation
• The date the solicitation was opened
• Agency requisition number
• The price paid previously, if applicable
• How long the agency will accept proposals
• Commodity code
• Contact information

The “Package” link opens the solicitation’s documents and related attachments, which gives further details.

The GSA Schedules Program in Texas

In the government contracting marketplace, the U.S. General Services Administration is an agency to get to know. It hosts a key contracting program that spans all levels of government.

The GSA Schedules Program is the largest government-wide source of contracts available to the Federal government. State and local governments like the State of Texas also use the Schedule contracts to buy an array of goods and services. Schedule contractors can have access to business and solicitations issued by states.

The Texas Multiple Award Schedule Program

Texas has arranged its own Multiple Award Schedule Program. It’s based on GSA’s Schedule Program. TXMAS is a means of making quick buys from a pool of qualified companies by using maximum pricing. Your company and the agency can negotiate the price down. The program is a streamlined, best-value purchasing solution for a range of commodities and services that Texas agencies buy frequently.

The pool of TXMAS contractors is key for your company to join. When in the pool, a state agency or local government will be able to find your company’s product or service as a viable option for meeting its needs. Not being a part of the program limits your company to potential contracts.

Is My Company Eligible for TXMAS?

Texas has minimum requirements for TXMAS vendors. To be considered for a TXMAS award, applicants must provide:

• Submission of a competitively awarded base contract ("Base Contract") from a governmental entity with a minimum of one year remaining. The Base Contract must be suitable for general use by Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts ("CPA") customers and not specific to a geographical location or limited in use to a specific entity.
• Submission of a Texas SmartBuy ("TSB") Catalog Template. The catalog must mirror the Base Contract's items/services. The catalog shall comply with TXMAS template requirements and contain verifiable pricing. During the review process, the applicant will be provided an opportunity to correct errors in the submitted catalog. Three erroneous catalog submissions will be grounds for reject ion of the Offer Packet. CPA requires all orders under TXMAS contracts to be placed through the Texas SmartBuy online ordering system unless the applicant submits a request for offline sales and accompanying detailed justification for evaluation by CPA's Statewide Procurement Division ("SPD"). Offline sales are sales not specifically ordered through the TSB online ordering system. SPD has sole discretion to decide whether to authorize offline sales.
• Submission of Base Contract sales for the most recent 12-month period.
• TXMAS will not accept Free on Board ("FOB") Origin shipping terms for contracts for goods. The applicant agrees to FOB Destination terms and retains the risk of loss of the goods (and is therefore responsible for replacing damaged or list goods) until the goods have reached their final destination.
• Texas Secretary of State registration or registration in Applicant's formation state.
• Active Franchise Tax registration with CPA.

An applicant's past performance may affect a potential award and will be considered during the evaluation of the Offer Packet. The applicant may be required to provide references for a contract of similar size and scope.

You must forward the Justification Form to a Texas state agency or local government entity. The Texas state agency or local government entity must complete the form and email it directly to txmasoffer@cpa.texas.gov. The form will not be accepted if it is received from you.

TXMAS users can include:

• Texas state agencies
• Texas public universities
• Members of the Texas SmartBuy (TSB) Cooperative Purchasing Program

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The government of Texas aims for business diversity. Like other states and the Federal government, the Lone Star State gives extra opportunities to small businesses by setting aside small business contracts.

Texas encourages Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) and Minority and Women Business Enterprises (MWBE) to compete for the set-aside procurement opportunities.

To be certified as a HUB, your company must meet the following requirements:

• An applicant owner must provide proof of 51 percent ownership and control of the day-to-day operation of the business. The owner must be an economically disadvantaged person meeting eligibility as a(n):
• Asian Pacific American,
• Black American,
• Hispanic American,
• Native American,
• American woman, and/or
• Service-Disabled Veteran with a service-related disability of 20% or greater.
  
  

• The applicant/owner must:
• be a U.S. Citizen,
• prove at least one year of Texas residency,
• prove control of the day-to-day operations, and
• hold company title equivalent to ownership and control requirements.
  
  

• The applicant business must:
• be primarily based in Texas,
• prove its principal place of business is in Texas, and
• be a for-profit entity that has not exceeded the size standard prescribed by 34 TAC §20.294.
  
  

HUB certification is free of charge. You must provide a notarized HUB certification application to Texas. Then submit the application and other documents to the State-wide HUB Program for evaluation and determination of the company’s HUB eligibility.