Texas 2013 - 83rd Regular

Texas House Bill HB3039 Compare Versions

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1	1	83R23617 AED/CLG-D
2	2	By: Workman H.B. No. 3039
3	3	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 3039:
4	4	By: Bell C.S.H.B. No. 3039
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to financing programs and activities related to rural
10	10	economic development; authorizing a fee.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Section 58.032, Agriculture Code, is amended by
13	13	amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsections (i) and (j) to read
14	14	as follows:
15	15	(a) The Texas agricultural fund is a fund in the state
16	16	treasury that may be appropriated for the purposes of this chapter
17	17	or for rural development programs administered by the Texas
18	18	Economic Development Bank as authorized by Chapter 489, Government
19	19	Code.
20	20	(i) Notwithstanding Subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), (f),
21	21	(g), and (h), the Texas Economic Development Bank may establish and
22	22	maintain accounts in the Texas agricultural fund.
23	23	(j) No money in an account of the authority in the Texas
24	24	agricultural fund, including any money due the authority and any
25	25	assessment or fee collected under Section 502.404, Transportation
26	26	Code, may be appropriated for or used to pay or satisfy any charge,
27	27	debt, interest payment, principal payment, or other financial
28	28	obligation of the Texas Economic Development Bank.
29	29	SECTION 2. Section 489.101(a), Government Code, is amended
30	30	to read as follows:
31	31	(a) The office shall establish the Texas Economic
32	32	Development Bank for the purpose of:
33	33	(1) providing globally competitive, cost-effective
34	34	state incentives to expanding businesses operating in this state
35	35	and businesses relocating to this state; [and]
36	36	(2) ensuring that communities and businesses in this
37	37	state have access to capital for economic development purposes; and
38	38	(3) providing financial assistance for economic
39	39	development projects, including projects for rural areas of this
40	40	state under Subchapter E.
41	41	SECTION 3. Section 489.106, Government Code, is amended to
42	42	read as follows:
43	43	Sec. 489.106. ADMINISTRATION OF FUND, ACCOUNT, AND CHAPTER.
44	44	The office shall administer the fund and the rural development
45	45	account in the Texas agricultural fund. In administering the fund,
46	46	the rural development account in the Texas agricultural fund, and
47	47	this chapter, the office has the powers necessary to carry out the
48	48	purposes of this chapter, including the power to:
49	49	(1) make, execute, and deliver contracts,
50	50	conveyances, and other instruments;
51	51	(2) impose and collect fees and charges in connection
52	52	with any transaction and provide for reasonable penalties for
53	53	delinquent payments or performance; [and]
54	54	(3) issue bonds for financial assistance to stimulate
55	55	the economy in rural areas of this state under Subchapter E; and
56	56	(4) issue bonds for other economic development
57	57	projects, as [that term is] defined by Section 501.101, Local
58	58	Government Code, or Section 505.151, 505.152, 505.153, 505.154,
59	59	505.155, or 505.156, Local Government Code.
60	60	SECTION 4. Section 489.108, Government Code, is amended to
61	61	read as follows:
62	62	Sec. 489.108. PROGRAMS, SERVICES, ACCOUNTS, AND FUNDS UNDER
63	63	BANK'S DIRECTION. Notwithstanding any other law, the bank shall
64	64	perform the duties and functions of the office with respect to the
65	65	following programs, services, accounts, and funds:
66	66	(1) the Texas Small Business Industrial Development
67	67	Corporation established under Chapter 503, Local Government Code;
68	68	(2) the capital access program established under
69	69	Section 481.405;
70	70	(3) the Texas leverage fund;
71	71	(4) the linked deposit program established under
72	72	Section 481.193;
73	73	(5) the enterprise zone program established under
74	74	Chapter 2303;
75	75	(6) the industrial revenue bond program;
76	76	(7) the defense economic readjustment zone program
77	77	established under Chapter 2310;
78	78	(8) the Empowerment Zone and Enterprise Community
79	79	grant program established under Section 481.025; [and]
80	80	(9) the renewal community program; and
81	81	(10) the rural development account in the Texas
82	82	agricultural fund.
83	83	SECTION 5. Chapter 489, Government Code, is amended by
84	84	adding Subchapter E to read as follows:
85	85	SUBCHAPTER E. RURAL DEVELOPMENT ACCOUNT
86	86	Sec. 489.251. PURPOSE. Financial assistance is a
87	87	commitment made by the bank for the purpose of stimulating economic
88	88	development in rural areas of this state.
89	89	Sec. 489.252. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
90	90	(1) "Anticipation note" means a note issued by an
91	91	eligible issuer and purchased by the bank under Section 1431.014.
92	92	(2) "Financial assistance" means a loan, loan
93	93	guarantee, or similar assistance from the rural development account
94	94	to an applicant under this subchapter.
95	95	(3) "Rural area" means an area that is predominately
96	96	rural in character, being one that the office of the governor
97	97	defines and declares to be a rural area.
98	98	Sec. 489.253. RURAL DEVELOPMENT ACCOUNT. The rural
99	99	development account is a dedicated account in the Texas
100	100	agricultural fund for the purpose of financing rural economic
101	101	development projects authorized by Section 49-f(g), Article III,
102	102	Texas Constitution.
103	103	Sec. 489.254. BONDS. (a) The bank may issue general
104	104	obligation bonds, up to the amounts authorized by Section 49-f(g),
105	105	Article III, Texas Constitution, to fund rural economic development
106	106	projects under this subchapter.
107	107	(b) An amount of not more than five percent of the total
108	108	amount of bonds issued may be used to pay administrative fees
109	109	involved in selling the bonds.
110	110	Sec. 489.255. MANAGEMENT OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT ACCOUNT. (a)
111	111	Repayments of financial assistance under any program funded wholly
112	112	or partly with the proceeds of general obligation bonds issued in
113	113	accordance with Section 489.254 shall be deposited first in the
114	114	interest and sinking account as prescribed by the bank's
115	115	resolutions authorizing the bonds, and second in the reserve
116	116	account for the bonds until that account is fully funded as
117	117	prescribed by the bank's resolutions. The rural development
118	118	account and all accounts within that account shall be kept and
119	119	maintained at the direction of the bank and held in trust by the
120	120	comptroller for and on behalf of the bank and the owners of the
121	121	bonds issued in accordance with Section 489.254, and may be used
122	122	only as provided by this subchapter. Pending its use, money in the
123	123	rural development account shall be invested as prescribed by the
124	124	resolution by which the bonds were issued.
125	125	(b) A bond authorization issued under this chapter that is
126	126	payable from the rural development account shall:
127	127	(1) expressly require that the account be administered
128	128	separately from other accounts in the Texas agricultural fund; and
129	129	(2) provide that a bondholder may not consider a
130	130	payment from an account or fund that is administered by the Texas
131	131	Agricultural Finance Authority as security for the bond.
132	132	(c) If during the time any general obligation bonds are
133	133	payable from the rural development account the bank determines that
134	134	there will not be sufficient money in the interest and sinking
135	135	account for the bonds during the following fiscal year to pay the
136	136	principal of or interest on the bonds that is to come due during the
137	137	following fiscal year, the comptroller shall transfer to the fund
138	138	the first money coming into the state treasury not otherwise
139	139	appropriated by the constitution in an amount sufficient to pay the
140	140	obligations.
141	141	(d) The bank may receive, and shall deposit in the rural
142	142	development account appropriations, grants, donations, earned
143	143	federal funds, and the proceeds of any investment pools operated by
144	144	the comptroller that are related to rural economic development
145	145	projects under this subchapter.
146	146	(e) The rural development account includes grants and
147	147	donations made for the purposes of rural economic development
148	148	projects administered by the bank and any other money received
149	149	under this subchapter. Notwithstanding Section 404.071, income and
150	150	interest earned on money in the rural development account shall be
151	151	deposited to the credit of the account. The fund is exempt from the
152	152	application of Section 403.095.
153	153	(f) The bank shall attempt to administer the rural
154	154	development account in a manner that makes private donations to the
155	155	account an eligible itemized deduction for federal income taxation
156	156	purposes.
157	157	Sec. 489.256. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR RURAL ECONOMIC
158	158	DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS. (a) The bank may provide financial
159	159	assistance from available funds held in the rural development
160	160	account to an applicant for a rural economic development project.
161	161	(b) The bank may purchase anticipation notes from an
162	162	eligible issuer authorized by Section 1431.014(a) for the purpose
163	163	of securing a financial commitment made by the bank for a rural
164	164	economic development project.
165	165	Sec. 489.257. APPLICATION FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE. (a)
166	166	The office by rule shall adopt applicant eligibility standards and
167	167	prescribe the application process, including the creation of any
168	168	forms and the setting of necessary fees to cover the implementation
169	169	of this subchapter.
170	170	(b) An applicant for financial assistance under this
171	171	subchapter must submit to the office with the application:
172	172	(1) project financial information required by the
173	173	office;
174	174	(2) any applicable feasibility or economic impact
175	175	statements;
176	176	(3) a statement of the applicant's employment or
177	177	managerial history;
178	178	(4) security to be pledged by the applicant for
179	179	financial commitments made by the bank from the rural development
180	180	account;
181	181	(5) documentation of other forms of equity or other
182	182	financial support from state, federal, or private resources that
183	183	will be committed to the project; and
184	184	(6) a statement regarding how the commitment of the
185	185	bank is projected to induce capital investment, create or preserve
186	186	jobs, or provide other economic development benefits in a rural
187	187	area.
188	188	(c) The bank may consider only applications that
189	189	demonstrate reasonable assurance that the projected revenues will
190	190	be sufficient to repay any financial assistance approved by the
191	191	bank.
192	192	(d) After considering the application and all other
193	193	information the bank considers relevant, the bank shall approve or
194	194	deny the application and promptly notify the applicant of the
195	195	decision.
196	196	Sec. 489.258. RULES. The office may adopt rules, policies,
197	197	and procedures necessary or reasonable to implement this
198	198	subchapter.
199	199	SECTION 6. Section 1431.014(a), Government Code, is amended
200	200	to read as follows:
201	201	(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, an
202	202	issuer participating in a rural economic development program
203	203	established by the Texas Agricultural Finance Authority or the
204	204	Texas Economic Development Bank may sell to the authority or bank,
205	205	as applicable, an anticipation note issued for a purpose described
206	206	by Section 1431.004(a)(1), provided that the note matures before
207	207	the 30th anniversary of the date the note is issued.
208	208	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.