H.B. No. 2206
AN ACT
relating to the transfer of the oversight of the Texas State
Cemetery to the State Preservation Board and to the creation of the
State Cemetery preservation trust fund.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 2165.007(b), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) Notwithstanding any other law, the commission shall
provide facilities management services in relation to all state
agency facilities in Travis County or a county adjacent to Travis
County. The commission's duty does not apply to:
(1) a facility owned or operated by an institution of
higher education;
(2) military facilities;
(3) facilities owned or operated by the Texas
Department of Criminal Justice;
(4) facilities owned or operated by the Texas Juvenile
Justice Department;
(5) facilities owned or operated by the Texas
Department of Transportation;
(6) the Capitol, including the Capitol Extension, the
General Land Office building, the Bob Bullock Texas State History
Museum, any museum located on the Capitol grounds, the Governor's
Mansion, and any property maintained by the Texas Historical
Commission under Sections 442.0072 and 442.0073;
(7) a facility determined by the commission to be
completely residential;
(8) a regional or field office of a state agency;
(9) a facility located within or on state park
property;
(10) the property known as the Finance Commission
Building described by deed recorded in Volume 5080, Page 1099, of
the Deed Records of Travis County, Texas;
(11) the property known as the Credit Union Department
Building described by deed recorded in Volume 6126, Page 27, of the
Deed Records of Travis County, Texas;
(12) facilities owned or operated by the Texas School
for the Blind and Visually Impaired; [or]
(13) facilities owned or operated by the Texas School
for the Deaf; or
(14) the property known as the Texas State Cemetery
described as 17.376 acres located at 801 Comal, Lot 5, Division B,
City of Austin, Travis County, Texas.
SECTION 2. Section 2165.256, Government Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a), (e), (i), and (m) and adding Subsection
(a-1) to read as follows:
(a) In this section:
(1) "Board" means the State Preservation Board.
(2) "Committee" means the State Cemetery Committee.
(a-1) The board, in cooperation with the committee, shall
govern and provide oversight, adopt rules and policies, and provide
for the operation of the State Cemetery [State Cemetery Committee
shall oversee all operations of the State Cemetery. The committee
shall develop a budget for the operations of the commission
relating to the State Cemetery and determine the salary of
employees of the commission whose duties primarily relate to the
operation of the State Cemetery].
(e) The committee shall review the names of state officials
presented to the committee for consideration under Subsection
(d)(3), in proclamations under Subsection (d)(4), and in
resolutions under Subsection (d)(5). A person whose name is
presented to the committee or who is specified in a proclamation or
resolution is eligible for burial in the State Cemetery only if the
committee, following its review, finds that the person specified
made a significant contribution to Texas history and only if, based
on that finding, the committee approves the person's burial in the
cemetery. The committee may by order authorize a burial under
Subsection (d)(6) only if the committee finds that the person made a
significant contribution to Texas history, which may include a
person who served this state through public administration or
governmental service.
(i) The board, in collaboration with the committee, shall
adopt rules regulating the monuments erected in the State Cemetery.
(m) The committee shall consider for burial in the State
Cemetery persons who have made significant contributions to Texas
history and culture in the following fields: air and space,
agriculture, art and design, business and labor, city building,
education, governmental service, industry, justice, military
affairs, law enforcement, oil and gas, performing arts,
philanthropy, public administration, ranching, religion, science
and medicine, sports, and writing.
SECTION 3. Section 2165.2561, Government Code, is amended
by amending Subsections (a), (c), (g), (m), (p), (q), and (r) and
adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:
(a) In this section:
(1) "Board" means the State Preservation Board.
(2) "Committee" means the State Cemetery Committee.
(a-1) The committee [State Cemetery Committee] is composed
of:
(1) three voting members appointed as follows:
(A) one member of the general public appointed by
the governor;
(B) one member of the general public appointed by
the governor from a list submitted by the lieutenant governor; and
(C) one member of the general public appointed by
the governor from a list submitted by the speaker of the house of
representatives; and
(2) three nonvoting advisory members appointed as
follows:
(A) one employee of the Texas Historical
Commission appointed by the executive director of the Texas
Historical Commission;
(B) one employee of the board [Texas Building and
Procurement Commission] appointed by the executive director of the
board [Texas Building and Procurement Commission]; and
(C) one employee of the Parks and Wildlife
Department appointed by the executive director of the Parks and
Wildlife Department.
(c) The voting members of the committee [appointed by the
governor] are appointed for staggered terms of six years with one
member's term expiring February 1 of each odd-numbered year. The
advisory members of the committee serve at the will of the
appointing authority.
(g) A person is not eligible for appointment to the
committee under Subsection (a-1)(1) [by the governor] 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
committee;
(2) owns or controls, directly or indirectly, more
than a 10 percent interest in a business entity or other
organization receiving funds from the committee; or
(3) uses or receives a substantial amount of tangible
goods, services, or funds from the committee, other than
compensation or reimbursement authorized by law for committee
membership, attendance, or expenses.
(m) The board, in collaboration with the committee, may
adopt rules as necessary for the administration of the State
Cemetery.
(p) If the executive director of the board [commission] has
knowledge that a potential ground for removal from the committee
exists, the executive director shall notify the presiding officer
of the committee of the potential ground. The presiding officer
shall then notify the governor 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 ranking officer of the committee, who
shall then notify the governor and the attorney general that a
potential ground for removal exists.
(q) The executive director of the board [commission] or the
executive director's designee shall provide to members of the
committee, as often as necessary, information regarding the
requirements for office under this chapter, including information
regarding a person's responsibilities under applicable laws
relating to standards of conduct for state officers.
(r) A person who is appointed to and qualifies for office as
a member of the committee may not vote, deliberate, or be counted as
a member in attendance at a meeting of the committee until the
person completes a training program that complies with this
subsection. The training program must provide the person with
information regarding:
(1) the legislation that created the State Cemetery
and the committee [State Cemetery Committee];
(2) the programs operated by the committee;
(3) the role and functions of the committee;
(4) the rules of the committee, with an emphasis on any
rules that relate to disciplinary and investigatory authority;
(5) [the current budget for the committee;
[(6)] the results of the most recent formal audit of
cemetery operations;
(6) [(7)] the requirements of:
(A) the open meetings law, Chapter 551;
(B) the public information law, Chapter 552;
(C) the administrative procedure law, Chapter
2001; and
(D) other laws relating to public officials,
including conflict-of-interest laws; and
(7) [(8)] any applicable ethics policies adopted by
the board [commission], the committee, or the Texas Ethics
Commission.
SECTION 4. Subchapter F, Chapter 2165, Government Code, is
amended by adding Section 2165.2565 to read as follows:
Sec. 2165.2565. STATE CEMETERY PRESERVATION TRUST FUND.
(a) The State Cemetery preservation trust fund is created as a
trust fund outside the state treasury to be held with the
comptroller in trust. The State Preservation Board, in
consultation with the State Cemetery Committee, shall administer
the fund as trustee on behalf of the people of this state. The fund
consists of money:
(1) transferred or appropriated to the fund; and
(2) received by the State Cemetery Committee under
Section 2165.256(s) and deposited to the fund by the State
Preservation Board for the committee.
(b) The interest received from investment of money in the
fund shall be credited to the fund.
(c) Money in the fund may be used only to:
(1) maintain, renovate, make major repairs or capital
improvements to, or preserve the State Cemetery, as determined by
the State Preservation Board; or
(2) acquire land in close proximity to the State
Cemetery for expansion of the cemetery.
SECTION 5. The following provisions of the Government Code
are repealed:
(1) Sections 2165.256(b), (b-1), and (r); and
(2) Sections 2165.2561(k), (l), and (t).
SECTION 6. (a) On the effective date of this Act:
(1) an employee of the Texas Facilities Commission who
was performing duties exclusively related to the Texas State
Cemetery becomes an employee of the State Preservation Board;
(2) all money, contracts, leases, rights, and
obligations of the Texas Facilities Commission related to the Texas
State Cemetery are transferred to the State Preservation Board;
(3) all property, including records, in the custody of
the Texas Facilities Commission related to the Texas State Cemetery
becomes the property of the State Preservation Board; and
(4) all funds appropriated by the legislature to the
Texas Facilities Commission related to the Texas State Cemetery are
transferred to the State Preservation Board and may be disbursed to
the State Cemetery Committee as provided by this Act.
(b) A rule adopted by the State Cemetery Committee or the
Texas Facilities Commission related to the Texas State Cemetery
before the effective date of this Act is continued in effect as a
rule of the State Preservation Board until amended or repealed by
the board.
(c) A function or activity performed by the Texas Facilities
Commission related to the Texas State Cemetery is transferred to
the State Preservation Board as provided by this Act.
(d) As soon as practicable after the effective date of this
Act, the State Preservation Board shall appoint a nonvoting
advisory member to the State Cemetery Committee as required by
Section 2165.2561(a-1)(2), Government Code, as amended by this Act.
SECTION 7. Notwithstanding Section 222.002, Transportation
Code, or any other law, as soon as practicable after the sale of
property that is the subject of Section 2165.256(b-1), Government
Code, as that section existed immediately before the effective date
of this Act, the comptroller of public accounts shall transfer from
the state highway fund to the State Cemetery preservation trust
fund, as created by this Act, an amount of money equal to the
portion of the proceeds attributable to the sale of that property
that is required to be deposited by the Texas Department of
Transportation in a subaccount in the state highway fund for use by
the State Preservation Board for the State Cemetery Committee under
the terms of a memorandum of understanding entered into between the
department and the State Cemetery Committee.
SECTION 8. To the extent of any conflict, this Act controls
over another Act of the 84th Legislature, Regular Session, 2015,
that is enacted and becomes law, relating to the creation of the
State Cemetery preservation trust fund.
SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2206 was passed by the House on May
15, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 139, Nays 0, 2 present, not
voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B.
No. 2206 on May 30, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 144, Nays 0,
2 present, not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2206 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on May 26, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays
0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________
Date
__________________
Governor