(a) If the office elects to contract with federal-level government relations consultants, the office shall adopt written procedures for those contracts. The procedures must include:
(1) guidelines regarding contract management;
(2) a competitive procurement process and method to assess the effectiveness of a prospective consultant;
(3) a technique for assigning a value to a prospective consultant’s ability to provide services at a reasonable price and level of experience;
(4) a process for determining a prospective consultant’s ability to work with influential members of the United States Congress and serve as an effective advocate on behalf of the state; and
(5) a method to verify that the interests of a prospective consultant or the consultant’s other clients do not create a conflict of interest that may jeopardize the state’s interest.
(b) A contract between the office and a federal-level government relations consultant must include:
(1) an agreement regarding the goals of the service to be provided by the consultant and targeted performance measures;
(2) a provision governing the manner in which the contract may be terminated by the parties to the contract; and
(3) a provision allowing the office, the state auditor’s office as provided by Section 2262.003, and other specified oversight entities to audit the contractor’s performance under the contract.