Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1270 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R10143 KLA-D
2	2	By: Miles S.B. No. 1270
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the allocation and use of certain border security
8	8	funding to secure Gulf of Mexico ports.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 411, Government Code, is
11	11	amended by adding Section 411.0133 to read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 411.0133. ALLOCATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR BORDER
13	13	SECURITY. (a) In this section:
14	14	(1) "Border security appropriation" means an amount of
15	15	money appropriated or transferred in a General Appropriations Act
16	16	or another act of the legislature for the purpose of the Texas
17	17	Border Security Initiative or to otherwise secure the borders of
18	18	this state.
19	19	(2) "Gulf of Mexico port" means a port in this state
20	20	located on the Gulf of Mexico or on a bay, inlet, or other waterway
21	21	opening into the Gulf of Mexico.
22	22	(b) Notwithstanding any geographic limitation or limitation
23	23	on covered activities specified by a definition of "border
24	24	security" provided in a General Appropriations Act or another act
25	25	of the legislature that applies to a border security appropriation,
26	26	the term as used in any of those acts includes projects designed for
27	27	the purpose of securing Gulf of Mexico ports.
28	28	(c) Subject to Subsection (d) and except as provided by
29	29	Subsection (e), the department shall allocate 10 percent of each
30	30	border security appropriation made to the department to, through
31	31	the award of grants under Subchapter P, addressing the security
32	32	needs and maintaining the security of Gulf of Mexico ports to
33	33	protect this state from acts of terrorism, illegal drug smuggling
34	34	activities, human trafficking, and similar acts that would threaten
35	35	this state's security and could be effected through this state's
36	36	border with the Gulf of Mexico.
37	37	(d) If a provision of a General Appropriations Act or
38	38	another act of the legislature allocates a percentage or an amount
39	39	of a border security appropriation made to the department to the
40	40	grant program under Subchapter P and the amount resulting from that
41	41	provision exceeds the amount that would result from the percentage
42	42	specified by Subsection (c) to be allocated to that purpose, the
43	43	department shall allocate the greater amount to that purpose.
44	44	(e) The department is not required under Subsection (c) to
45	45	allocate any amount of the total amount of border security
46	46	appropriations made to the department in a General Appropriations
47	47	Act or another act of the legislature to the purpose specified by
48	48	that subsection if:
49	49	(1) the act makes a separate appropriation to the
50	50	department for the grant program under Subchapter P; and
51	51	(2) the amount of that separate appropriation is equal
52	52	to or greater than 10 percent of the sum of that separate
53	53	appropriation and all other border security appropriations made to
54	54	the department in the act.
55	55	SECTION 2. Chapter 411, Government Code, is amended by
56	56	adding Subchapter P to read as follows:
57	57	SUBCHAPTER P. GULF OF MEXICO PORT SECURITY GRANT PROGRAM
58	58	Sec. 411.441. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
59	59	(1) "Border security appropriation amount" means the
60	60	amount of money appropriated or allocated under Section 411.0133 to
61	61	the department for a state fiscal biennium for the grant program
62	62	under this subchapter.
63	63	(2) "Gulf of Mexico port" has the meaning assigned by
64	64	Section 411.0133.
65	65	Sec. 411.442. GRANT PROGRAM TO FUND PORT SECURITY PROJECTS.
66	66	(a) The commission by rule shall develop and the department shall
67	67	implement a grant program to provide funding to address the
68	68	security needs and maintain the security of Gulf of Mexico ports for
69	69	the purpose of protecting this state from acts of terrorism,
70	70	illegal drug smuggling activities, human trafficking, and similar
71	71	acts that would threaten this state's security and could be
72	72	effected through this state's border with the Gulf of Mexico.
73	73	(b) The department shall use the border security
74	74	appropriation amount for a state fiscal biennium to provide grants
75	75	under the program during that biennium.
76	76	(c) The rules adopted under Subsection (a) must provide a
77	77	process by which a Gulf of Mexico port may apply for a grant.
78	78	Sec. 411.443. ELIGIBILITY FOR GRANT. To be eligible for a
79	79	grant under this subchapter, a Gulf of Mexico port must:
80	80	(1) submit an application to the department in
81	81	accordance with commission rules;
82	82	(2) specify in the application each security project
83	83	to be funded with the grant money and demonstrate the need for the
84	84	project;
85	85	(3) demonstrate in the manner required by the
86	86	department that the port is able to provide as local matching money
87	87	other money available to the port in an amount at least equal to
88	88	33.33 percent of the requested amount of the grant;
89	89	(4) agree to use the local matching money described by
90	90	Subdivision (3) in addition to the grant money for the security
91	91	projects specified in the application; and
92	92	(5) comply with any other requirements specified by
93	93	commission rules.
94	94	Sec. 411.444. MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF GRANT. (a) In this section,
95	95	"annual cargo volume proportion" means the proportion a Gulf of
96	96	Mexico port's annual cargo volume, measured by tonnage, for a year
97	97	bears to the total annual cargo volume, measured by tonnage, of all
98	98	Gulf of Mexico ports for the same year.
99	99	(b) The maximum amount of a grant the department may award
100	100	to a Gulf of Mexico port for a state fiscal biennium is an amount
101	101	equal to a proportionate share of the border security appropriation
102	102	amount for that biennium equal to that port's annual cargo volume
103	103	proportion for the year preceding the year in which the port applies
104	104	for the grant.
105	105	Sec. 411.445. EVALUATION OF FUNDED PORT SECURITY PROJECTS.
106	106	(a) The department shall evaluate and document the effectiveness
107	107	of each port security project funded with a grant under this
108	108	subchapter in maintaining or increasing the security of this state.
109	109	The commission by rule shall establish the criteria for purposes of
110	110	making the required evaluations.
111	111	(b) A Gulf of Mexico port to which a grant is awarded under
112	112	this subchapter shall collect, maintain, and report relevant data
113	113	as required by the department for purposes of an evaluation
114	114	required by this section.
115	115	SECTION 3. Section 411.0133, Government Code, as added by
116	116	this Act, applies to an appropriation or transfer of money to the
117	117	Department of Public Safety for the purpose of securing the borders
118	118	of this state made in an act of the legislature that takes effect
119	119	after the effective date of this Act.
120	120	SECTION 4. The Public Safety Commission shall adopt the
121	121	rules required by Subchapter P, Chapter 411, Government Code, as
122	122	added by this Act, not later than January 1, 2018.
123	123	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.