The Texas Professional Services Procurement Act, codified at Chapter 2254, Subchapter A of the Government Code, forbids state and local government bodies in Texas from awarding professional services contracts through competitive bidding. Instead, agencies have to pick providers based on demonstrated competence and qualifications, then negotiate a fair and reasonable price. The law reaches a wider list of professions than most people expect, and ignoring it can void a contract or trigger criminal and licensing consequences.
What the Act Requires
The core rule is short. A governmental entity may not select a provider of professional services on the basis of competitive bids. Selection must rest on demonstrated competence and qualifications. Once a provider is chosen, the contract price must be fair and reasonable, and fees cannot exceed any maximum set by law.1State of Texas. Texas Government Code 2254.003 – Selection of Provider; Fees
In practice, the agency publishes its need for professional services, often as a request for qualifications describing the project. Interested firms respond with statements of their relevant experience, technical competence, and capacity. The agency ranks the responses, sometimes through a scoring committee, and moves to negotiation with the top choice. Price does not drive the ranking. The reasoning behind the statute is that specialized professional judgment cannot be meaningfully compared on cost alone: a low number tells a city nothing about whether a bridge design will hold or whether a forensic analyst’s methodology will survive cross-examination.
Which Professions and Which Government Bodies Are Covered
The Act defines “professional services” by reference to specific licensed or registered fields. It covers services within the scope of practice of:2State of Texas. Texas Government Code 2254.002 – Definitions
- Professional engineering
- Architecture
- Landscape architecture
- Land surveying
- Accounting (certified public accountants)
- Medicine, including surgery
- Optometry
- Real estate appraising (state certified or licensed appraisers)
- Professional nursing (registered nurses)
- Forensic science (forensic analysts and forensic science experts)
- Interior design, whether or not the designer is state registered
If what you are buying falls inside the scope of practice of one of those professions, the Act applies. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t.
On the government side, the law reaches every “governmental entity” in Texas. That includes state agencies and departments, districts, authorities, counties, municipalities, other political subdivisions, publicly owned utilities, and local government corporations acting on behalf of a political subdivision in construction planning and design.2State of Texas. Texas Government Code 2254.002 – Definitions A small water district is as bound by Chapter 2254 as a major state agency.
The Extra Step for Architects, Engineers, and Land Surveyors
Section 2254.004 layers a more specific procedure on top of the general rule for three disciplines: architecture, engineering, and land surveying. For those services, the agency must first identify the single most highly qualified provider based on demonstrated competence and qualifications. Only after that selection may it begin negotiating a contract at a fair and reasonable price.3State of Texas. Texas Government Code 2254.004 – Contract for Professional Services of Architect, Engineer, or Surveyor
If the agency and the top-ranked firm cannot reach a satisfactory price, the agency must formally end those negotiations, move to the next most qualified firm, and try again. The cycle repeats until a contract is signed.3State of Texas. Texas Government Code 2254.004 – Contract for Professional Services of Architect, Engineer, or Surveyor
Agencies most often get into trouble here by collapsing the sequence. Asking firms to submit fee proposals alongside their qualifications packages, or using cost as a ranking factor before the top firm has been chosen, breaks the statute. The order is fixed: qualifications first, price second, and negotiations must be closed with one firm before opening with the next.
What Happens When an Agency Gets It Wrong
The most immediate consequence of a bad procurement is a void contract. A court can invalidate an award that used price as a selection factor or skipped the required negotiation sequence, which forces the agency to restart the process and absorbs time and money on both sides.
The Texas Attorney General’s Office can investigate procurement law violations, issue opinions on compliance questions, and take legal action against agencies or firms. Complaints, audit findings, or public interest concerns can all trigger a review. The State Auditor’s Office separately conducts performance audits of procurement practices, and noncompliance findings may be referred for corrective action or further proceedings.
Licensing boards add another layer. The Texas Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors can discipline engineers and surveyors, and the Texas Board of Architectural Examiners can act against architects. Available sanctions range through fines, license suspension, and revocation, which effectively ends a professional’s ability to work on Texas government projects at all. Firms that misrepresent their qualifications or collude during selection may also face debarment from future government contracting, and serious fraud can lead to criminal prosecution under the Penal Code. Public officials who knowingly bypass the Act can face disciplinary action or removal.
How Contractors Challenge a Procurement Decision
Contractors who want to dispute a state agency’s handling of a professional services procurement generally cannot go straight to court. Government Code Chapter 2260 lays out an exclusive administrative process that has to be used first.
It starts with negotiation. The agency’s chief administrative officer must examine the contractor’s claim and begin negotiations within 120 days of receiving it, and the parties may agree to mediate during that period. If the claim is not fully resolved within 270 days, unless both sides agree in writing to extend, the contractor may request a formal hearing. Only after the administrative process is finished can the contractor file suit under Chapter 107 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code.4State of Texas. Texas Government Code Chapter 2260 – Resolution of Certain Contract Claims Against the State
Many agencies also run their own internal procedures for clarifying selection criteria or challenging a decision early, which tend to be faster and less adversarial. For disputes involving a city, county, or other local government rather than a state agency, the Chapter 2260 process may not apply, and affected parties may have more direct access to the courts.
How Texas Compares to the Federal Brooks Act
Qualifications-based selection is not a Texas invention. The federal Brooks Act, at 40 U.S.C. Chapter 11, requires federal agencies to pick architects and engineers on the basis of demonstrated competence and qualification at fair and reasonable prices. Under the federal version, agencies must discuss the project with at least three firms and select at least three finalists ranked by qualification before any price negotiation begins.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 40 USC Chapter 11 – Selection of Architects and Engineers
The Texas statute is broader. The Brooks Act applies only to architects and engineers, while the PSPA extends qualifications-based selection to accountants, physicians, nurses, optometrists, real estate appraisers, forensic scientists, and interior designers as well. A firm that works on both state and federal projects needs to know both sets of procedures, because the underlying philosophy is the same but the mechanics differ.