81R8374 TJS-D
By: Hunter H.B. No. 3972
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the election of certain members of the board of trustees
of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 821.001(5), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(5) "Board of trustees" means the board appointed or
elected under this subtitle to administer the retirement system.
SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 825, Government Code, is
amended by adding Section 825.0021 to read as follows:
Sec. 825.0021. ELECTED TRUSTEES. (a) The retirement
system shall provide for the direct election of two persons to serve
on the board of trustees who are former members of the retirement
system who have retired and are receiving benefits from the
retirement system, and who shall be elected by former members of the
retirement system who have retired and are receiving benefits from
the retirement system.
(b) The two persons elected under Subsection (a) hold office
for staggered terms.
(c) The board of trustees by rule shall adopt procedures to
implement this section. The procedures must include a method for
filling a vacancy in an elected position.
SECTION 3. Sections 825.0032(a) and (b), Government Code,
are amended to read as follows:
(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a person is not
eligible for appointment or election to the board if the person or
the person's spouse:
(1) is employed by or participates in the management
of a business entity or other organization receiving funds from the
retirement system;
(2) owns or controls, directly or indirectly, more
than a 10 percent interest in a business entity or other
organization receiving funds from the retirement system; or
(3) uses or receives a substantial amount of tangible
goods, services, or funds from the retirement system, other than
compensation or reimbursement authorized by law for board
membership, attendance, or expenses.
(b) Subsection (a) does not apply to employment by,
participation in the management of, or ownership or control of an
interest in a business entity or other organization on behalf of the
retirement system. Subsection (a)(3) does not apply to a person who
is nominated for appointment under Section 825.002(c), (d), or (e)
or elected under Section 825.0021.
SECTION 4. Sections 825.0041(a) and (c), Government Code,
are amended to read as follows:
(a) A person who is appointed or elected to and qualifies
for office as a member of the board of trustees may not vote,
deliberate, or be counted as a member in attendance at a meeting of
the board until the person completes a training program that
complies with this section.
(c) A person appointed or elected to the board of trustees
is entitled to reimbursement under Section 825.007 for the travel
expenses incurred in attending the training program regardless of
whether the attendance at the program occurs before or after
the person qualifies for office.
SECTION 5. Section 825.009(a), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) A trustee appointed from a slate of members nominated by
members of the retirement system under Section 825.002 or elected
by members of the retirement system under Section 825.0021 is
entitled to leave with pay from the trustee's public school
employer to attend to the official business of the retirement
system.
SECTION 6. Sections 825.010(a) and (c), Government Code,
are amended to read as follows:
(a) It is a ground for removal from the board that a trustee:
(1) does not have at the time of taking office the
qualifications required for the trustee's position;
(2) does not maintain during service on the board the
qualifications required for the trustee's position;
(3) violates a prohibition established by Section
825.002(b) or 825.0032;
(4) cannot because of illness or disability discharge
the trustee's duties for a substantial part of the term for which
the trustee is appointed or elected; or
(5) is absent from more than half of the regularly
scheduled board meetings that the person is eligible to attend
during a calendar year without an excuse approved by a majority vote
of the board.
(c) If the executive director has knowledge that a potential
ground for removal exists, the executive director shall notify the
presiding officer of the board of the ground. The presiding officer
shall then notify the appropriate appointing officer, if any, and
the attorney general that a potential ground for removal exists. If
the potential ground for removal involves the presiding officer,
the executive director shall notify the next highest officer of the
board, who shall notify the appropriate appointing officer, if any,
and the attorney general that a potential ground for removal
exists.
SECTION 7. Section 825.003, Government Code, is repealed.
SECTION 8. (a) In this section, "board" means the board of
trustees of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas.
(b) The board shall adopt procedures to implement Section
825.0021(a), Government Code, as added by this Act, not later than
December 31, 2009.
(c) The procedures adopted by the board shall facilitate the
elections required under Section 825.0021(a), Government Code, as
added by this Act, so that the first elections are conducted not
later than May 1, 2010.
(d) A person elected at the first election under Section
825.0021(a), Government Code, as added by this Act, shall serve a
term beginning as soon as practicable after the date of the election
and taking the oath of office. One person elected under Section
825.0021(a) shall serve a term that expires August 31, 2013, and the
other person elected under Section 825.0021(a) shall serve a term
that expires August 31, 2015, as determined according to the
board's procedures adopted under Section 825.0021(c), Government
Code, as added by this Act.
(e) Not later than the 10th day after the date of the first
election held under Section 825.0021, Government Code, as added by
this Act, the board shall post the election results on the Teacher
Retirement System of Texas publicly accessible Internet website.
SECTION 9. The term of a person serving on the board of
trustees of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas on December 1,
2009, and who was appointed to that position under Section 825.003,
Government Code, before the repeal of that section by this Act
expires on the date on which a person elected to serve on the board
at the first election held under Section 825.0021, Government Code,
as added by this Act, takes the oath of office.
SECTION 10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.