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Ellis County approves purchasing items: sole-source exemptions, aggregate supply and behavioral-health contract
Summary
The Commissioners Court approved a string of purchasing actions: sole-source exemptions for proprietary products (New EarthLock soil stabilizer, Arcosa lightweight aggregate), authorization to purchase EarthLock as needed, a one-year Arcosa aggregate purchase, and an award of informal RFP 2026-001 for behavioral health assessments to TrueCare 24.
Ellis County Commissioners approved multiple purchasing actions covering proprietary materials and a behavioral-health contract.
EJ Harbin, the county's director of purchasing, told the court New EarthLock LLC's EarthLock soil stabilizer is proprietary and only available from the manufacturer, recommending a sole-source exemption under the Local Government Code; the court unanimously granted the exemption and then authorized on-call purchases of the material for departmental use.
Harbin also recommended Arcosa Aggregates as a sole-source provider for lightweight aggregate produced with a proprietary rotary-kiln process; the court approved a sole-source exemption and a one-year purchase authorization for Arcosa material (grades 3'5) so road-and-bridge crews can access the product immediately.
On RFP 2026-001 for behavioral-health assessments, Harbin said seven responsive proposals were received, two finalists were interviewed by an evaluation team and TrueCare 24 was rated highest after presentations; the court authorized the county judge to execute the contract upon final legal review.
Why it matters: the purchases support road maintenance and emergency-recovery/development projects, and the behavioral-health contract funds assessments the county will use for services tied to local programs. Several items relied on sole-source findings, which the purchasing director documented for the record.
All items passed on unanimous voice votes; staff said they will distribute updated bid-book pricing and move forward with contract execution subject to legal review.
Ending: The court approved the purchasing package and staff will proceed with contracting and distribution of new pricing to departments.
