Texas 2013 - 83rd Regular

Texas House Bill HB445 Compare Versions

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1	1	83R586 MCK-D
2	2	By: Dukes, Naishtat H.B. No. 445
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the creation of the individual development account
8	8	program to provide savings incentives and opportunities for certain
9	9	foster children to pursue home ownership, postsecondary education,
10	10	and business development.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Chapter 40, Human Resources Code, is amended by
13	13	adding Subchapter E to read as follows:
14	14	SUBCHAPTER E. ASSET DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE FOR CERTAIN
15	15	FOSTER CHILDREN
16	16	Sec. 40.201. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
17	17	(1) "Assets for Independence Act" means the federal
18	18	Assets for Independence Act (42 U.S.C. Section 604 note).
19	19	(2) "Financial institution" has the meaning assigned
20	20	by Section 201.101, Finance Code.
21	21	(3) "Individual development account" means a deposit
22	22	account established by a participant at a financial institution
23	23	selected by a sponsoring organization.
24	24	(4) "Participant" means an individual who has entered
25	25	into an agreement with a sponsoring organization to participate in
26	26	the program.
27	27	(5) "Program" means the individual development
28	28	account program established under this subchapter.
29	29	(6) "Service provider" means a person to whom a
30	30	qualified expenditure from a participant's individual development
31	31	account is made. The term includes:
32	32	(A) a public or private institution of higher
33	33	education;
34	34	(B) a provider of occupational or vocational
35	35	education, including a proprietary school;
36	36	(C) a mortgage lender;
37	37	(D) a title insurance company;
38	38	(E) the lessor or vendor of office supplies or
39	39	equipment or retail space, office space, or other business space;
40	40	and
41	41	(F) any other provider of goods or services used
42	42	for the start of a business.
43	43	(7) "Sponsoring organization" has the meaning
44	44	assigned to "qualified entity" by Section 404(7), Assets for
45	45	Independence Act, except that the term does not include a state
46	46	agency.
47	47	Sec. 40.202. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM; RULES. (a) The
48	48	executive commissioner by rule may develop and implement a program
49	49	under which:
50	50	(1) individual development accounts are facilitated
51	51	and administered by sponsoring organizations for eligible
52	52	individuals to provide those individuals with an opportunity to
53	53	accumulate assets and to facilitate and mobilize savings;
54	54	(2) sponsoring organizations are provided grant funds
55	55	for use in administering the program and matching qualified
56	56	expenditures made by program participants; and
57	57	(3) at least 85 percent of the grant funds described by
58	58	Subdivision (2) must be used by the sponsoring organization for
59	59	matching qualified expenditures.
60	60	(b) The department shall contract with sponsoring
61	61	organizations to facilitate the establishment of and to administer
62	62	the individual development accounts in accordance with the rules
63	63	adopted by the executive commissioner. The executive
64	64	commissioner's rules must include guidelines for contract
65	65	monitoring, reporting, termination, and recapture of state funds.
66	66	(c) In adopting rules under the program, the executive
67	67	commissioner shall state the selection criteria for sponsoring
68	68	organizations and give priority to organizations that have
69	69	demonstrated:
70	70	(1) a capacity to administer individual development
71	71	account programs; or
72	72	(2) a commitment to serve areas of this state that
73	73	currently do not have individual development account programs
74	74	available.
75	75	Sec. 40.203. PARTICIPANT ELIGIBILITY. (a) Only foster
76	76	children who are at least 15 years of age and younger than 23 years
77	77	of age may participate in the program.
78	78	(b) The executive commissioner by rule shall establish
79	79	eligibility criteria for participation in the program that are
80	80	consistent with the purposes of the program and with the Assets for
81	81	Independence Act.
82	82	Sec. 40.204. CONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENDITURES BY
83	83	PARTICIPANT. (a) A participant may contribute to the
84	84	participant's individual development account.
85	85	(b) A participant's contributions to the participant's
86	86	individual development account shall accrue interest.
87	87	(c) A participant may withdraw money from the participant's
88	88	account only to pay for the following qualified expenditures:
89	89	(1) postsecondary education or training expenses for
90	90	the account holder;
91	91	(2) the expenses of purchasing or financing a home for
92	92	the account holder for the first time;
93	93	(3) the expenses of a self-employment enterprise; and
94	94	(4) start-up business expenses for the account holder.
95	95	Sec. 40.205. DUTIES OF SPONSORING ORGANIZATIONS. (a) The
96	96	executive commissioner shall adopt rules to establish the duties of
97	97	sponsoring organizations under the program.
98	98	(b) Each sponsoring organization shall provide to the
99	99	department any information necessary to evaluate the sponsoring
100	100	organization's performance in fulfilling the duties outlined in the
101	101	executive commissioner's rules.
102	102	Sec. 40.206. MATCHING FUNDS; LIMITATIONS ON AMOUNT AND
103	103	AVAILABILITY. (a) At the time a participant in the program makes a
104	104	withdrawal from the participant's individual development account
105	105	for a qualified expenditure described by Section 40.204(c), the
106	106	participant shall receive matching funds from the sponsoring
107	107	organization, payable directly to the service provider.
108	108	(b) The sponsoring organization shall determine the amount
109	109	of federal matching funds spent for each individual development
110	110	account as limited by the guidelines established by the Assets for
111	111	Independence Act.
112	112	(c) This subchapter does not create an entitlement of a
113	113	participant to receive matching funds. The number of participants
114	114	who receive matching funds under the program in any year is limited
115	115	by the amount of money available for that purpose in that year.
116	116	Sec. 40.207. WITHDRAWALS; TERMINATION OF ACCOUNT FOR
117	117	UNQUALIFIED WITHDRAWALS. (a) The executive commissioner by rule
118	118	shall establish guidelines to ensure that a participant does not
119	119	withdraw money from the participant's individual development
120	120	account except for a qualified expenditure described by Section
121	121	40.204(c).
122	122	(b) The sponsoring organization shall instruct the
123	123	financial institution to terminate a participant's account if the
124	124	participant does not comply with the guidelines established by
125	125	executive commissioner rule.
126	126	(c) A participant whose individual development account is
127	127	terminated under this section is entitled to withdraw from the
128	128	participant's account the amount of money the participant
129	129	contributed to the account and any interest that has accrued on that
130	130	amount.
131	131	Sec. 40.208. FUNDING. (a) The legislature may appropriate
132	132	money for the purposes of this subchapter.
133	133	(b) The department may solicit and accept gifts, grants, and
134	134	donations from any public or private source for the purposes of this
135	135	subchapter.
136	136	(c) If money is not appropriated to the department for the
137	137	purposes of this subchapter, the department is only required to
138	138	implement Section 40.209.
139	139	(d) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), money from the general
140	140	revenue fund and other state money may not be used for the purposes
141	141	of this subchapter for the state fiscal biennium ending August 31,
142	142	2015. This subsection expires September 1, 2015.
143	143	Sec. 40.209. COORDINATION. The department shall:
144	144	(1) serve as a clearinghouse for information relating
145	145	to state and local and public and private programs that facilitate
146	146	asset development; and
147	147	(2) post the information described by Subdivision (1)
148	148	on the department's Internet website.
149	149	Sec. 40.210. INTERAGENCY CONTRACTS. The department may
150	150	enter into interagency contracts with other state agencies to
151	151	facilitate the effective administration of this subchapter.
152	152	Sec. 40.211. AGENCY COOPERATION. To the extent allowed by
153	153	law, the commission shall provide information to the department as
154	154	necessary to implement this subchapter.
155	155	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.