Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB2029 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R3365 JG-D
2	2	By: Rodríguez S.B. No. 2029
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to funding for new and existing migrant labor housing
8	8	facilities; establishing an interagency task force to provide
9	9	support for migrant agricultural workers.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Section 12.0271, Agriculture Code, is amended by
12	12	amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as
13	13	follows:
14	14	(b) Financial assistance under Subsection (a) may be used
15	15	only for a project relating to:
16	16	(1) the acquisition or development of land, easements,
17	17	or rights-of-way;
18	18	(2) attracting new private enterprises to the county
19	19	or municipality, including:
20	20	(A) manufacturing facilities;
21	21	(B) freight storage facilities;
22	22	(C) distribution warehouse centers; and
23	23	(D) other nonretail private enterprises;
24	24	(3) the construction, extension, or other improvement
25	25	of:
26	26	(A) water or waste disposal facilities; [or]
27	27	(B) transportation infrastructure; or
28	28	(C) migrant labor housing facilities as defined
29	29	by Section 2306.921, Government Code; or
30	30	(4) any other activity relating to private economic
31	31	development that the commissioner determines will encourage
32	32	economic and infrastructure development in a rural area.
33	33	(b-1) Financial assistance for projects described by
34	34	Subsection (b)(3)(C) may only be awarded if the commissioner
35	35	determines that the construction, extension, or improvement of
36	36	migrant labor housing facilities will result in the creation and
37	37	retention of jobs for migrant agricultural workers on a recurring
38	38	basis or will otherwise encourage economic development in the area.
39	39	In this subsection, "migrant agricultural worker" has the meaning
40	40	assigned by Section 2306.921, Government Code.
41	41	SECTION 2. Section 12.046, Agriculture Code, is amended by
42	42	amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (c-1) to read as
43	43	follows:
44	44	(c) The fund may be used by the department only to:
45	45	(1) pay for grants or loans to public or private
46	46	entities for projects in rural communities that have strong local
47	47	support, provide positive return on the state's investment, and
48	48	stimulate one or more of the following:
49	49	(A) local entrepreneurship;
50	50	(B) job creation or retention;
51	51	(C) new capital investment;
52	52	(D) strategic economic development planning;
53	53	(E) individual economic and community
54	54	development leadership training;
55	55	(F) housing development, including the
56	56	development of migrant labor housing facilities as defined by
57	57	Section 2306.921, Government Code; or
58	58	(G) innovative workforce education; and
59	59	(2) administer the grant and loan program under this
60	60	section.
61	61	(c-1) Grants or loans for projects related to migrant labor
62	62	housing facilities described by Subsection (c)(1)(F) may only be
63	63	awarded for the purpose of establishing, maintaining, or operating
64	64	a migrant labor housing facility if the recipient of the grant or
65	65	loan commits to creating and retaining jobs for migrant
66	66	agricultural workers on a recurring basis. In this subsection,
67	67	"migrant agricultural worker" has the meaning assigned by Section
68	68	2306.921, Government Code.
69	69	SECTION 3. Section 481.078, Government Code, is amended by
70	70	amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (d-2) to read as
71	71	follows:
72	72	(c) Except as provided by Subsections (d), [and] (d-1), and
73	73	(d-2), the fund may be used only for economic development,
74	74	infrastructure development, community development, job training
75	75	programs, and business incentives.
76	76	(d-2) Money from the fund may be used by a farmer to
77	77	establish, maintain, or operate a migrant labor housing facility.
78	78	The governor may transfer appropriations from the fund to the Texas
79	79	Department of Housing and Community Affairs to award grants for a
80	80	purpose specified by this subsection. Subsections (e-1), (f),
81	81	(f-1), (f-2), (g), (h), (h-1), (i), and (j) and Section 481.080 do
82	82	not apply to a grant awarded for a purpose specified by this
83	83	subsection. In this subsection, "farmer" means the owner or
84	84	operator of an agricultural facility that is licensed as a migrant
85	85	labor housing facility under Subchapter LL, Chapter 2306, or the
86	86	owner or operator of an agricultural facility who seeks to
87	87	establish a new migrant labor housing facility requiring licensure
88	88	under that subchapter.
89	89	SECTION 4. Subchapter DD, Chapter 2306, Government Code, is
90	90	amended by adding Section 2306.67141 to read as follows:
91	91	Sec. 2306.67141. MIGRANT LABOR HOUSING FACILITY SET-ASIDE.
92	92	(a) In this section:
93	93	(1) "Migrant labor housing facility" has the meaning
94	94	assigned by Section 2306.921.
95	95	(2) "Person" has the meaning assigned by Section
96	96	2306.921.
97	97	(b) The department shall set aside for eligible persons a
98	98	portion, as determined by department rule, of the housing tax
99	99	credits available for allocation in the calendar year.
100	100	(c) A person is eligible to be awarded the housing tax
101	101	credits set aside under Subsection (b) if the person:
102	102	(1) has applied to receive federal financial
103	103	assistance under Section 514 or 516, Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C.
104	104	Section 1484 or 1486); or
105	105	(2) has received federal financial assistance
106	106	provided under Section 514 or 516, Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C.
107	107	Section 1484 or 1486).
108	108	(d) The department shall develop threshold, scoring, and
109	109	underwriting criteria for applications from persons eligible to be
110	110	awarded the set-aside.
111	111	(e) An allocation of housing tax credits under Subsection
112	112	(c)(1) is conditional on the actual receipt of federal financial
113	113	assistance provided under Section 514 or 516, Housing Act of 1949
114	114	(42 U.S.C. Section 1484 or 1486). If an eligible person does not
115	115	receive the assistance required by this subsection, the department
116	116	shall rescind the allocation of housing tax credits and award those
117	117	credits to another eligible person described by Subsection (c).
118	118	(f) Any amount of housing tax credits set aside under this
119	119	section that remains after the initial allocation of housing tax
120	120	credits is available for allocation to any eligible applicant as
121	121	provided by the qualified allocation plan.
122	122	SECTION 5. Subchapter LL, Chapter 2306, Government Code, is
123	123	amended by adding Sections 2306.934, 2306.935, and 2306.936 to read
124	124	as follows:
125	125	Sec. 2306.934. FARMER INCENTIVE PROGRAM. (a) In this
126	126	section, "farmer" means the owner or operator of an agricultural
127	127	facility who seeks to establish, maintain, or operate a migrant
128	128	labor housing facility under this subchapter.
129	129	(b) The department shall develop and administer an
130	130	incentive program for farmers who have applied to receive federal
131	131	financial assistance provided under Section 514 of the Housing Act
132	132	of 1949 (42 U.S.C. Section 1484).
133	133	Sec. 2306.935. CONDITIONAL FORWARD COMMITMENT OF FUNDS.
134	134	(a) The department shall establish a fund in the department for the
135	135	conditional forward commitment of funds to establish migrant labor
136	136	housing facilities. The department may contribute money to the
137	137	fund from any available source of revenue that the department
138	138	considers appropriate, including money allocated to the department
139	139	under the federal HOME Investment Partnerships program established
140	140	under Title II of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing
141	141	Act (42 U.S.C. Section 12701 et seq.), money allocated to the
142	142	department under the community development block grant program
143	143	authorized by Title I of the Housing and Community Development Act
144	144	of 1974 (42 U.S.C. Section 5301 et seq.), and money from the housing
145	145	trust fund under Section 2306.201.
146	146	(b) A person licensed under this subchapter and who has
147	147	applied to receive federal financial assistance provided under
148	148	Section 514 or 516, Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. Section 1484 or
149	149	1486), is eligible to be awarded a conditional forward commitment
150	150	of funds.
151	151	(c) An award of a forward commitment of funds under this
152	152	section is conditional on the actual receipt of federal financial
153	153	assistance provided under Section 514 or 516, Housing Act of 1949
154	154	(42 U.S.C. Section 1484 or 1486). If a person licensed under this
155	155	subchapter does not receive the assistance required by this
156	156	subsection, the department shall rescind the award.
157	157	(d) The department shall develop threshold, scoring, and
158	158	underwriting criteria for applications from persons who are
159	159	licensed under this subchapter.
160	160	Sec. 2306.936. INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE. (a) The department
161	161	shall establish an interagency task force to coordinate efforts to
162	162	improve housing conditions and housing options for migrant
163	163	agricultural workers.
164	164	(b) The interagency task force shall:
165	165	(1) help coordinate interagency efforts to improve
166	166	housing conditions and housing options for migrant agricultural
167	167	workers;
168	168	(2) provide migrant agricultural workers with
169	169	information regarding available support services;
170	170	(3) establish a complaint system for migrant
171	171	agricultural workers to report poor housing conditions or poor
172	172	treatment;
173	173	(4) investigate complaints made by migrant
174	174	agricultural workers using the complaint system established under
175	175	Subdivision (3); and
176	176	(5) create strategies to increase the number of
177	177	migrant labor housing facilities.
178	178	(c) The interagency task force shall be composed of the
179	179	following nine members:
180	180	(1) one representative of the department who is
181	181	designated by the director of the department;
182	182	(2) one representative of the Texas Department of
183	183	Agriculture who is designated by the commissioner of the Texas
184	184	Department of Agriculture;
185	185	(3) one representative of the Health and Human
186	186	Services Commission who is designated by the executive commissioner
187	187	of the Health and Human Services Commission;
188	188	(4) one representative of a local workforce
189	189	development board who is designated by the executive director of
190	190	the Texas Workforce Commission;
191	191	(5) one representative from a nonprofit provider of
192	192	affordable housing who is designated by the governor;
193	193	(6) one representative from a nonprofit representing
194	194	migrant agricultural workers who is designated by the governor; and
195	195	(7) three migrant agricultural worker advocates who
196	196	are designated by the governor.
197	197	(d) The governor shall designate a member of the interagency
198	198	task force to serve as presiding officer.
199	199	(e) A vacancy on the interagency task force shall be filled
200	200	in the same manner as the initial appointment.
201	201	(f) A member on the interagency task force may not receive
202	202	compensation for service on the task force, but is entitled to
203	203	reimbursement for actual and necessary expenses incurred in
204	204	performing task force duties.
205	205	(g) The interagency task force may accept gifts and grants
206	206	from any source to be used to carry out a function of the task force.
207	207	(h) The interagency task force shall meet at least quarterly
208	208	at the call of the presiding officer and at other times as
209	209	determined by the presiding officer.
210	210	(i) Not later than December 1 of each even-numbered year,
211	211	the interagency task force shall prepare and submit to the
212	212	governor, the lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of
213	213	representatives a report with recommendations on improving housing
214	214	conditions and housing options for migrant agricultural workers.
215	215	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.