Texas 2013 - 83rd Regular

Texas House Bill HB1685 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Price (Senate Sponsor - Whitmire) H.B. No. 1685
2	2	(In the Senate - Received from the House April 24, 2013;
3	3	April 25, 2013, read first time and referred to Committee on
4	4	Business and Commerce; May 1, 2013, reported favorably by the
5	5	following vote: Yeas 6, Nays 0; May 1, 2013, sent to printer.)
6	6
7	7
8	8	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
9	9	AN ACT
10	10	relating to the continuation of the self-directed and
11	11	semi-independent status of the Texas State Board of Public
12	12	Accountancy, the Texas Board of Professional Engineers, and the
13	13	Texas Board of Architectural Examiners.
14	14	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
15	15	SECTION 1. The Self-Directed Semi-Independent Agency
16	16	Project Act (Article 8930, Revised Statutes) is transferred to
17	17	Subtitle E, Title 4, Government Code, redesignated as Chapter 472,
18	18	Government Code, and amended to read as follows:
19	19	CHAPTER 472 [Art. 8930]. SELF-DIRECTED SEMI-INDEPENDENT AGENCIES
20	20	SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS [AGENCY PROJECT ACT.
21	21	[Sec. 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act shall be known as the
22	22	Self-Directed Semi-Independent Agency Project Act.]
23	23	Sec. 472.001. APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER. This chapter
24	24	applies to [2. AGENCY PARTICIPATION. The following agencies shall
25	25	be part of the pilot project created by this Act]:
26	26	(1) the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy;
27	27	(2) the Texas Board of Professional Engineers; and
28	28	(3) the Texas Board of Architectural Examiners.
29	29	Sec. 472.002 [3]. DEFINITION. In this chapter [Act],
30	30	"[project] agency" means an agency listed in Section 472.001 [2 of
31	31	this Act].
32	32	SUBCHAPTER B. STATUS OF AGENCIES
33	33	Sec. 472.051 [4]. SELF-DIRECTED AND SEMI-INDEPENDENT
34	34	STATUS OF AGENCIES [PILOT PROJECT]. (a) Each [Notwithstanding any
35	35	other provision of law, each project] agency is [shall become]
36	36	self-directed and semi-independent as specified in this chapter
37	37	[Act. To allow the pilot project the opportunity to test the
38	38	effectiveness of operating under the provisions of this Act, any
39	39	Act of the 78th Legislature that relates to an agency included in
40	40	Section 2 of this Act and that is inconsistent with being
41	41	self-directed and semi-independent may be implemented on
42	42	authorization by the governing board of the agency].
43	43	(b) Each [project] agency is [shall continue to be] a state
44	44	agency, as that term is defined in Section 2001.003(7)[, Government
45	45	Code].
46	46	(b-1) Except as otherwise provided by this chapter, each
47	47	agency is subject to a provision of law that applies to state
48	48	agencies, including:
49	49	(1) state purchasing requirements under Subtitle D,
50	50	Title 10;
51	51	(2) interagency transfer voucher requirements under
52	52	Section 2155.327;
53	53	(3) travel requirements under Chapters 2171 and 2205,
54	54	using amounts provided by the General Appropriations Act to guide
55	55	travel reimbursement rates; and
56	56	(4) prompt payment requirements under Chapter 2251.
57	57	(c) The Sunset Advisory Commission shall examine each
58	58	agency's performance as a self-directed and semi-independent
59	59	agency and the agency's compliance with this chapter as part of the
60	60	commission's periodic review of the agency under [This Act is
61	61	subject to] Chapter 325[, Government Code] (Texas Sunset Act)[.
62	62	Unless continued in existence as provided by that chapter, this Act
63	63	expires September 1, 2013].
64	64	(d) Each agency shall pay the cost incurred by the Sunset
65	65	Advisory Commission in performing a review of the agency under the
66	66	agency's enabling legislation. The Sunset Advisory Commission
67	67	shall determine the cost, and the agency shall pay the amount
68	68	promptly on receipt of a statement from the Sunset Advisory
69	69	Commission detailing the cost.
70	70	SUBCHAPTER C. POWERS AND DUTIES OF AGENCIES
71	71	Sec. 472.101 [5]. GENERAL DUTIES OF ALL [PROJECT] AGENCIES.
72	72	In addition to the duties enumerated in the enabling legislation
73	73	specifically applicable to each [project] agency, each [project]
74	74	agency shall have the duties prescribed by Sections 472.102 [6]
75	75	through 472.105 [9 of this Act].
76	76	Sec. 472.102 [6]. BUDGET. (a) An [A project] agency shall
77	77	adopt a budget annually using generally accepted accounting
78	78	principles. The budget shall be reviewed and approved only by the
79	79	[project] agency's governing board notwithstanding any other
80	80	provision of law, including the General Appropriations Act. No
81	81	costs shall be incurred by the general revenue fund. An [A project]
82	82	agency shall be responsible for all costs, both direct and
83	83	indirect.
84	84	(b) An [A project] agency shall keep financial and
85	85	statistical information as necessary to disclose completely and
86	86	accurately the financial condition and operation of the [project]
87	87	agency.
88	88	(c) The Texas State Board of Public Accountancy shall
89	89	annually remit $703,344 to the general revenue fund, the Texas
90	90	Board of Professional Engineers shall annually remit $373,900 to
91	91	the general revenue fund, and the Texas Board of Architectural
92	92	Examiners shall annually remit $510,000 to the general revenue
93	93	fund.
94	94	Sec. 472.103 [7]. AUDITS. Nothing in this chapter [Act]
95	95	shall affect the duty of the state auditor [State Auditor] to audit
96	96	an [a project] agency. The state auditor [State Auditor] shall
97	97	enter into a contract and schedule with each [project] agency to
98	98	conduct audits, including financial reports and performance
99	99	audits. Costs incurred in performing such audits shall be
100	100	reimbursed by the [project] agency.
101	101	Sec. 472.104 [8]. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. (a) An [A
102	102	project] agency shall submit to the legislature and the governor by
103	103	the first day of the regular session of the legislature a report
104	104	describing all of the agency's activities in the previous biennium.
105	105	The report shall include:
106	106	(1) an audit required by Section 472.103 [7 of this
107	107	Act];
108	108	(2) a financial report of the previous fiscal year;
109	109	(3) a description of any changes in licensing fees;
110	110	(4) a report on the number of examination candidates,
111	111	licensees, certificate holders, and enforcement activities and any
112	112	changes in those figures; and
113	113	(5) a description of all new rules adopted or
114	114	repealed.
115	115	(b) In addition to the reporting requirements of Subsection
116	116	(a) [of this section], each [project] agency shall report annually,
117	117	not later than November 1, to the governor, to the committee of each
118	118	house of the legislature that has jurisdiction over appropriations,
119	119	and to the Legislative Budget Board the following:
120	120	(1) the salary for all [project] agency personnel and
121	121	the total amount of per diem expenses and travel expenses paid for
122	122	all agency employees, including trend performance data for the
123	123	preceding five fiscal years;
124	124	(2) the total amount of per diem expenses and travel
125	125	expenses paid for each member of the governing body of each
126	126	[project] agency, including trend performance data for the
127	127	preceding five fiscal years;
128	128	(3) each [project] agency's operating plan covering a
129	129	period of two fiscal years;
130	130	(4) each agency's operating [and] budget, including
131	131	revenues and a breakdown of expenditures by program and
132	132	administrative expenses, showing:
133	133	(A) projected budget data for [covering] a period
134	134	of two fiscal years [two-year period]; and
135	135	(B) trend performance data for the preceding five
136	136	fiscal years; and
137	137	(5) trend performance data for the preceding five
138	138	fiscal years regarding:
139	139	(A) the number of full-time equivalent positions
140	140	at the agency;
141	141	(B) the number of complaints received from the
142	142	public and the number of complaints initiated by agency staff;
143	143	(C) the number of complaints dismissed and the
144	144	number of complaints resolved by enforcement action;
145	145	(D) the number of enforcement actions by sanction
146	146	type;
147	147	(E) the number of enforcement cases closed
148	148	through voluntary compliance;
149	149	(F) the amount of administrative penalties
150	150	assessed and the rate of collection of assessed administrative
151	151	penalties;
152	152	(G) the number of enforcement cases that allege a
153	153	threat to public health, safety, or welfare or a violation of
154	154	professional standards of care and the disposition of those cases;
155	155	(H) the average time to resolve a complaint;
156	156	(I) the number of license holders or regulated
157	157	persons broken down by type of license and license status,
158	158	including inactive status or retired status;
159	159	(J) the fee charged to issue and renew each type
160	160	of license, certificate, permit, or other similar authorization
161	161	issued by the agency;
162	162	(K) the average time to issue a license;
163	163	(L) litigation costs, broken down by
164	164	administrative hearings, judicial proceedings, and outside counsel
165	165	costs; and
166	166	(M) reserve fund balances [(4) a detailed
167	167	report of all revenue received and all expenses incurred by the
168	168	project agency in the previous 12 months].
169	169	Sec. 472.105 [9]. DISPOSITION OF FEES COLLECTED. If
170	170	provided in an [a project] agency's enabling legislation, the
171	171	[project] agency shall collect a professional fee of $200 from its
172	172	license holders [licensees] annually, which shall be remitted to
173	173	the state. If provided in an [a project] agency's enabling
174	174	legislation, the [project] agency shall collect a scholarship fee
175	175	of $10 annually from its license holders [licensees and shall remit
176	176	it to the state].
177	177	Sec. 472.106 [10]. GENERAL POWERS OF ALL [PROJECT]
178	178	AGENCIES. In addition to the powers enumerated in each [project]
179	179	agency's enabling legislation, each [project] agency shall have the
180	180	powers described in Sections 472.107 [11] through 472.110 [14 of
181	181	this Act].
182	182	Sec. 472.107 [11]. ABILITY TO CONTRACT. To carry out and
183	183	promote the objectives of this chapter, an [Act, a project] agency
184	184	may enter into contracts and do all other acts incidental to those
185	185	contracts that are necessary for the administration of its affairs
186	186	and for the attainment of its purposes. Any [; provided, however,
187	187	that any] indebtedness, liability, or obligation of the [project]
188	188	agency shall not:
189	189	(1) create a debt or other liability of the state or
190	190	any other entity other than the [project] agency; or
191	191	(2) create any personal liability on the part of the
192	192	members of the board of the [project] agency or its employees.
193	193	Sec. 472.108 [12]. PROPERTY. An [A project] agency may
194	194	acquire by lease, and maintain, use, and operate, any real,
195	195	personal, or mixed property necessary to the exercise of the
196	196	powers, rights, privileges, and functions of the agency.
197	197	Sec. 472.109 [13]. SUITS. The office of the attorney
198	198	general shall represent an [a project] agency in any litigation.
199	199	The attorney general may assess and collect from the [project]
200	200	agency reasonable attorney's fees associated with any litigation
201	201	under this section.
202	202	Sec. 472.110 [14]. FEES AND DISPOSITION OF FUNDS. (a)
203	203	Subject to the limitations, if any, in the applicable enabling
204	204	legislation, each [project] agency may set the amount of fees by
205	205	statute or rule as necessary for the purpose of carrying out the
206	206	functions of the [project] agency.
207	207	(b) All fees and funds collected by an [a project] agency,
208	208	[during the pilot project and] any funds appropriated to the
209	209	[project] agency, and any other funds belonging to or under the
210	210	control of an agency shall be deposited in interest-bearing deposit
211	211	accounts in the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company. The
212	212	comptroller shall contract with the [project] agency for the
213	213	maintenance of the deposit accounts under terms comparable to a
214	214	contract between a commercial banking institution and its
215	215	customers. An agency may not hold funds in an account that is not
216	216	under the control of the comptroller.
217	217	(c) An [A project] agency shall use the comptroller's
218	218	uniform statewide accounting system under Chapter 2101 to make all
219	219	payments, other than direct payments from an agency's account to
220	220	the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company [may retain each
221	221	fiscal year an amount of fines and other revenue the project agency
222	222	receives during the fiscal year as a result of enforcement actions
223	223	that is equal to 20 percent of the total amount expended by the
224	224	project agency during the previous fiscal year, not to exceed $1
225	225	million].
226	226	(d) An agency shall remit all administrative penalties
227	227	collected by the agency to the comptroller for deposit in [At the
228	228	end of each fiscal year 50 percent of the unexpended balance of the
229	229	amount retained in Subsection (c) of this section shall be
230	230	deposited to the credit of] the general revenue fund.
231	231	Sec. 472.111 [15]. POST-PARTICIPATION LIABILITY. (a) If a
232	232	state agency no longer has status under this chapter [Act] as a
233	233	self-directed semi-independent [project] agency [either because of
234	234	the expiration of this Act or] for any [other] reason, the state
235	235	agency shall be liable for any expenses or debts incurred by the
236	236	state agency during the time the state agency had status as a
237	237	self-directed semi-independent agency [participated in the pilot
238	238	project]. The state agency's liability under this section includes
239	239	liability for any lease entered into by the state agency. The state
240	240	is not liable for any expense or debt covered by this subsection,
241	241	and money from the general revenue fund may not be used to repay the
242	242	expense or debt.
243	243	(b) If a state agency no longer has status under this
244	244	chapter [Act] as a self-directed semi-independent [project] agency
245	245	[either because of the expiration of this Act or] for any [other]
246	246	reason, ownership of any property or other asset acquired by the
247	247	state agency during the time the state agency had status as a
248	248	self-directed semi-independent agency [participated in the pilot
249	249	project], including unexpended fees in a deposit account in the
250	250	Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company, shall be transferred to
251	251	the state.
252	252	Sec. 472.112 [16]. OPEN GOVERNMENT. Subject to the
253	253	confidentiality provisions of an [a project] agency's enabling
254	254	legislation:
255	255	(1) meetings of the [project] agency are subject to
256	256	Chapter 551[, Government Code]; and
257	257	(2) records maintained by the [project] agency are
258	258	subject to Chapter 552[, Government Code].
259	259	Sec. 472.113 [17]. MEMBERSHIP IN EMPLOYEES [EMPLOYEE]
260	260	RETIREMENT SYSTEM. Employees of the [project] agencies are members
261	261	of the Employees Retirement System of Texas under Chapter 812,
262	262	[Government Code,] and the agencies' [transition to] independent
263	263	status shall have no effect on their membership.
264	264	Sec. 472.114 [18]. GIFTS. (a) Notwithstanding other law,
265	265	an [a project] agency may not accept a gift, grant, or donation:
266	266	(1) from a party to an enforcement action; or
267	267	(2) to pursue a specific investigation or enforcement
268	268	action.
269	269	(b) An [A project] agency must:
270	270	(1) report each gift, grant, or donation that the
271	271	agency receives as a separate item in the agency's detailed report
272	272	under Section 472.104(b) [8(b) of this Act]; and
273	273	(2) include with the report a statement indicating the
274	274	purpose for which each gift, grant, or donation was used.
275	275	SECTION 2. Section 901.658, Occupations Code, is amended to
276	276	read as follows:
277	277	Sec. 901.658. FUNDING. The board may:
278	278	(1) use without appropriation, in accordance with
279	279	[Article 8930, Revised Statutes,] this subchapter[,] and Section
280	280	901.155, any money from the trust fund established under Section
281	281	901.155; and
282	282	(2) accept gifts, grants, and donations of real or
283	283	personal property from any entity, subject to limitations or
284	284	conditions set by law, for the purposes of this subchapter.
285	285	SECTION 3. Section 1001.507, Occupations Code, is repealed.
286	286	SECTION 4. Section 472.104(b), Government Code, as
287	287	redesignated and amended by this Act, applies only to a report
288	288	originally due on or after the effective date of this Act. A report
289	289	originally due before the effective date of this Act is governed by
290	290	the law in effect on the date the report was originally due, and the
291	291	former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
292	292	SECTION 5. Not later than October 1, 2013, each agency, as
293	293	that term is defined by Section 472.002, Government Code, as
294	294	redesignated and amended by this Act, shall transfer any funds held
295	295	in an account not under the control of the comptroller of public
296	296	accounts to an account that is under the control of the comptroller
297	297	of public accounts, as provided by Section 472.110(b), Government
298	298	Code, as redesignated and amended by this Act.
299	299	SECTION 6. Sections 472.110(c) and (d), Government Code, as
300	300	redesignated and amended by this Act, and the repeal by this Act of
301	301	Section 1001.507, Occupations Code, apply only to an administrative
302	302	penalty that is collected on or after the effective date of this
303	303	Act. An administrative penalty that is collected before the
304	304	effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
305	305	date the administrative penalty was collected, and the former law
306	306	is continued in effect for that purpose.
307	307	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.
308	308	* * * * *