84R17585 DDT-F
By: Parker, Capriglione H.B. No. 2493
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2493:
By: Longoria C.S.H.B. No. 2493
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the self-directed and semi-independent status of the
State Securities Board; authorizing fees.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. The Securities Act (Article 581-1 et seq.,
Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes) is amended by adding Sections 44,
45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, and 52 to read as follows:
Sec. 44. SELF-DIRECTED AND SEMI-INDEPENDENT STATUS. A.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the State Securities
Board is self-directed and semi-independent as specified by this
Act. Any Act of the 84th Legislature that relates to the Board and
that is inconsistent with the agency being self-directed and
semi-independent may be implemented by the Commissioner only on
authorization by the members of the Board.
B. Except as otherwise provided by this Act, the State
Securities Board is subject to a provision of law that applies to
state agencies, including:
(1) state purchasing requirements under Subtitle D,
Title 10, Government Code;
(2) interagency transfer voucher requirements under
Section 2155.327, Government Code;
(3) travel requirements under Chapters 2171 and 2205,
Government Code, using amounts provided by the General
Appropriations Act to guide travel reimbursement rates; and
(4) prompt payment requirements under Chapter 2251,
Government Code.
Sec. 45. BUDGET, REVENUES, AND EXPENSES. A. The
Commissioner shall submit to the members of the Board an annual
budget using generally accepted accounting principles.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, including the General
Appropriations Act, the budget shall be adopted and approved only
by the members of the Board.
B. The State Securities Board is responsible for all direct
and indirect costs of the agency's existence and operation. The
agency may not directly or indirectly cause the general revenue
fund to incur any cost.
C. Subject to any limitations in this Act, the Board may set
the amounts of the respective fees, penalties, charges, and
revenues required or permitted by statute or rule as necessary to
carry out the agency's functions and to fund the budget adopted and
approved under Subsection A of this section.
D. Periodically, the Commissioner shall submit to the
members of the Board, as directed by the Board members, a report of
the receipts and expenditures of the agency.
E. The fiscal year for the agency begins on September 1 and
ends on August 31.
F. All fees and funds collected by the agency under
Subsection A, Section 35, of this Act and any funds appropriated to
the agency shall be deposited in interest-bearing deposit accounts
in the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company to be used
exclusively to pay costs incurred by the agency in administering
this Act. The comptroller shall contract with the agency for the
maintenance of the deposit accounts under terms comparable to a
contract between a commercial banking institution and the
institution's customers. The agency may not hold funds in an
account that is not under the control of the comptroller.
G. Except as provided by Subsection F of this section, all
other money collected by the Commissioner or Board and any other
funds belonging to or under the control of the Board shall be
deposited into the general revenue fund.
H. If the Commissioner or Board determines that all or part
of a registration fee should be refunded, the refund shall be made
by warrant on the state treasury from the fund into which the
registration fee was deposited.
I. The agency shall use the comptroller's uniform statewide
accounting system under Chapter 2101, Government Code, to make all
payments, other than direct payments from the agency's account to
the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company.
Sec. 46. RECORDS; REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. A. The
Commissioner shall keep financial and statistical information as
necessary to disclose completely and accurately the financial
condition and operations of the agency.
B. Before the beginning of each regular session of the
legislature, the Commissioner shall submit to the legislature and
the governor a report describing all of the agency's activities in
the previous biennium. The report must include:
(1) an audit;
(2) a financial report of the two preceding fiscal
years, including reports on financial condition and operations;
(3) a description of all changes in fees imposed on
regulated persons;
(4) a report on changes in the regulatory jurisdiction
of the Board; and
(5) a list of all new rules adopted or repealed.
C. In addition to the reporting requirements of Subsection B
of this section, not later than November 1 of each year, the
Commissioner shall submit to the governor, the committee of each
house of the legislature that has jurisdiction over appropriations,
and the Legislative Budget Board a report that contains:
(1) the salary for Board employees and the total
amount of per diem expenses and travel expenses paid for all Board
employees, including trend performance data for the preceding five
fiscal years;
(2) the total amount of per diem expenses and travel
expenses paid for each member of the Board, including trend
performance data for the preceding five fiscal years;
(3) the agency's operating plan covering a period of
two fiscal years and operating budget, including revenues and a
breakdown of expenditures by program and administrative expenses,
showing:
(a) projected budget data for a period of two
fiscal years; and
(b) trend performance data for the preceding five
fiscal years regarding:
(i) the number of full-time equivalent
positions at the agency;
(ii) the number of complaints received from
the public and the number of complaints initiated by Board
employees;
(iii) the number of complaints dismissed
and the number of complaints resolved by enforcement action;
(iv) the number of enforcement actions by
sanction type;
(v) the number of enforcement cases closed
through voluntary compliance;
(vi) the amount of administrative penalties
assessed and the rate of collection of assessed administrative
penalties;
(vii) the number of enforcement cases that
allege a threat to public health, safety, or welfare or a violation
of professional standards of care and the disposition of those
cases;
(viii) the average time to resolve a
complaint;
(ix) the number of license holders or
regulated persons broken down by type of license and license
status, including inactive status or retired status;
(x) the fee charged to issue and renew each
type of license, certificate, permit, or other similar
authorization issued by the Commissioner under this Act;
(xi) the average time to issue a license;
(xii) litigation costs, broken down by
administrative hearings, judicial proceedings, and outside counsel
costs; and
(xiii) reserve fund balances; and
(4) a detailed report of all revenue received and all
expenses incurred by the agency in the preceding 12 months.
Sec. 47. ABILITY TO CONTRACT. A. To carry out and promote
the objectives of this Act, the Commissioner may enter into
contracts and do all other acts incidental to those contracts that
are necessary for the administration of the agency's affairs and
for the attainment of the agency's purposes, except as limited by
Subsection B of this section.
B. Any indebtedness, liability, or obligation of the agency
incurred under this section may not:
(1) create a debt or other liability of this state or
another entity other than the agency; or
(2) create any personal liability on the part of the
members of the Board or the Board's employees.
Sec. 48. PROPERTY. The Commissioner, on behalf of the
agency, may:
(1) acquire by purchase, lease, gift, or any other
manner provided by law and maintain, use, and operate any real,
personal, or mixed property, or any interest in property, necessary
or convenient to the exercise of the powers, rights, privileges, or
functions of the agency;
(2) sell or otherwise dispose of any real, personal,
or mixed property, or any interest in property, that the
Commissioner determines is not necessary or convenient to the
exercise of the agency's powers, rights, privileges, or functions;
(3) construct, extend, improve, maintain, and
reconstruct, or cause to construct, extend, improve, maintain, and
reconstruct, and use and operate all facilities necessary or
convenient to the exercise of the powers, rights, privileges, or
functions of the agency; and
(4) borrow money, as may be authorized from time to
time by an affirmative vote of a three-fifths majority of the Board,
for a period not to exceed five years if necessary or convenient to
the exercise of the agency's powers, rights, privileges, or
functions.
Sec. 49. POST-PARTICIPATION LIABILITY. A. If the State
Securities Board no longer has status under this Act as a
self-directed semi-independent agency for any reason, the agency
shall be liable for any expenses or debts incurred by the agency
during the time the agency was a self-directed semi-independent
agency. The agency's liability under this section includes
liability for any lease entered into by the agency. This state is
not liable for any expense or debt covered by this subsection, and
money from the general revenue fund may not be used to repay the
expense or debt.
B. If the Board no longer has status under this Act as a
self-directed semi-independent agency for any reason, ownership of
any property or other asset acquired by the agency during the time
the agency was a self-directed semi-independent agency, including
unexpended fees in a deposit account in the Texas Treasury
Safekeeping Trust Company, shall be transferred to this state.
Sec. 50. DUE PROCESS; OPEN GOVERNMENT. The State Securities
Board is:
(1) a governmental body for purposes of Chapters 551
and 552, Government Code; and
(2) a state agency for purposes of Chapters 2001 and
2005, Government Code.
Sec. 51. MEMBERSHIP IN EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM.
Employees of the State Securities Board are members of the
Employees Retirement System of Texas under Chapter 812, Government
Code, and the Board's transition to independent status as provided
by this Act has no effect on their membership or any benefits under
that system.
Sec. 52. GIFTS. A. Notwithstanding any other law, the
Commissioner may not accept a gift, grant, or donation on behalf of
the agency:
(1) from a party to an enforcement action; or
(2) to pursue a specific investigation or enforcement
action.
B. The Commissioner must:
(1) report each gift, grant, or donation that the
agency receives as a separate item in the agency's report required
under Subsection B, Section 46, of this Act; and
(2) include with the report a statement indicating the
purpose for which each gift, grant, or donation was donated and
used.
SECTION 2. Subsections D, G, K, and O, Section 2, The
Securities Act (Article 581-2, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), are
amended to read as follows:
D. Each member of the Board is entitled to reimbursement for
travel expenses incurred [per diem as set by legislative
appropriation] for each day that the member engages in the business
of the Board.
The Governor shall designate a member of the Board as the
presiding officer of the Board to serve in that capacity at the will
of the Governor. A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum
for the transaction of any business.
G. The Board shall appoint a Securities Commissioner who
serves at the pleasure of the Board and who shall, under the
supervision of the Board, administer the provisions of this Act.
The Board shall determine the Commissioner's salary. Each member of
the Board shall have access to all offices and records under his
supervision, and the Board, or a majority thereof, may exercise any
power or perform any act authorized to the [Securities]
Commissioner by the provisions of this Act.
K. The Commissioner shall determine the number of Board
employees and the employees' salaries. The Commissioner or his
designee shall develop an intraagency career ladder program, one
part of which shall be the intraagency posting of all nonentry level
positions for at least ten (10) days before any public posting. The
Commissioner or his designee shall develop a system of annual
performance evaluations based on measurable job tasks. All merit
pay for Board employees must be based on the system established
under this section.
O. The Sunset Advisory Commission shall examine the State
Securities Board's performance as a self-directed and
semi-independent agency as part of the commission's periodic review
of the agency under [The State Securities Board is subject to]
Chapter 325, Government Code (Texas Sunset Act). The agency shall
pay the cost incurred by the commission in performing a review of
the agency. The commission shall determine the cost and submit to
the agency a statement detailing the cost. The agency shall pay the
amount promptly after receiving the statement. Unless continued in
existence as provided by that chapter, the State Securities Board
[board] is abolished and this Act expires September 1, 2019.
SECTION 3. Subsection C, Section 2-3, The Securities Act
(Article 581-2-3, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), is amended to
read as follows:
C. A person appointed to the Board is entitled to
reimbursement[, as provided by the General Appropriations Act,] 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 4. Subsection A, Section 35, The Securities Act
(Article 581-35, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), is amended to read
as follows:
A. The Board shall establish the following fees to produce
[in amounts so that the aggregate amount that exceeds the amount of
the fees on September 1, 2002, produces] sufficient revenue to
cover the costs of administering and enforcing this Act:
(1) for the filing of any original, amended, or
renewal application to sell or dispose of securities[, an amount
not to exceed $100];
(2) for the filing of any original application of a
dealer or investment adviser or for the submission of a notice
filing for a federal covered investment adviser[, an amount not to
exceed $100];
(3) for the filing of any renewal application of a
dealer or investment adviser or for the submission of a renewal
notice filing for a federal covered investment adviser[, an amount
not to exceed $100];
(4) for the filing of any original application for
each agent, officer, or investment adviser representative or for
the submission of a notice filing for each representative of a
federal covered investment adviser[, an amount not to exceed $100];
and
(5) for the filing of any renewal application for each
agent, officer, or investment adviser representative or for the
submission of a renewal notice filing for each representative of a
federal covered investment adviser[, an amount not to exceed $100].
SECTION 5. The following provisions of The Securities Act
(Article 581-l et seq., Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes) are
repealed:
(1) Subsections J and N, Section 2;
(2) Subsections C and D, Section 35; and
(3) Section 36.
SECTION 6. Subject to Section 45, The Securities Act
(Article 581-45, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), as added by this
Act, the appropriations made by an Act of the 84th Legislature,
Regular Session, 2015, may be spent by the State Securities Board as
the Securities Commissioner directs. The board shall repay to the
general revenue fund the appropriation made to the agency for the
state fiscal year ending August 31, 2016, not later than that date
and as funds become available. The board shall repay to the general
revenue fund the appropriation made to the board for the state
fiscal year ending August 31, 2017, not later than that date and as
funds become available.
SECTION 7. The transfer of the State Securities Board to
self-directed and semi-independent status under this Act, and the
expiration of self-directed and semi-independent status may not act
to cancel, suspend, or prevent:
(1) any debt owed to or by the State Securities Board;
(2) any fine, tax, penalty, or obligation of any
party;
(3) any contract or other obligation of any party; or
(4) any action taken by the State Securities Board,
the Securities Commissioner, or the board's employees in the
administration or enforcement of the agency's duties.
SECTION 8. The State Securities Board shall continue to
have and exercise the powers and duties allocated to the board in
the board's enabling legislation, except as specifically amended by
this Act.
SECTION 9. Title to or ownership of all supplies,
materials, records, equipment, books, papers, and furniture used by
the State Securities Board is transferred to the State Securities
Board in fee simple. This Act does not affect any property owned by
the State Securities Board on or before the effective date of this
Act.
SECTION 10. Beginning September 1, 2015, the State
Securities Board shall pay rent to this state in a reasonable amount
to be determined by the Texas Facilities Commission for its use and
occupancy of state-owned office space.
SECTION 11. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.