86R10359 JXC-D
By: Flynn H.B. No. 1315
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the continuation and functions of the School Land
Board.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 32.003, Natural Resources Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 32.003. APPLICATION OF SUNSET ACT. The School Land
Board is subject to Chapter 325, Government Code (Texas Sunset
Act). Unless continued in existence as provided by that chapter,
the board is abolished September 1, 2031 [2019].
SECTION 2. Section 32.012, Natural Resources Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 32.012. MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. (a) The board is
composed of:
(1) the commissioner;
(2) two citizens [a citizen] of the state appointed by
the governor with the advice and consent of the senate; and
(3) two citizens [a citizen] of the state appointed by
the attorney general with the advice and consent of the senate.
(a-1) One citizen appointed by the governor and one citizen
appointed by the attorney general must be selected from lists of
nominees submitted by the State Board of Education. The State Board
of Education shall submit to the governor or the attorney general,
as applicable, a list of six nominees for a vacant position
described by this subsection. The governor or attorney general, as
applicable, may request that the State Board of Education submit a
second list of six nominees if the governor or attorney general does
not choose to appoint a nominee from the first list.
(b) The authority of the attorney general to appoint [one of
the] members of the board, including the authority to make
appointments during the recess of the senate, is the same as the
authority of the governor to fill vacancies in state offices under
the Texas Constitution.
(c) Each appointment made by the governor and the attorney
general shall be made in accordance with and subject to the
provisions of the Texas Constitution authorizing the filling of
vacancies in state offices by appointment of the governor.
SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 32, Natural Resources
Code, is amended by adding Section 32.0161 to read as follows:
Sec. 32.0161. ANNUAL JOINT MEETING. The board and the State
Board of Education shall hold an annual joint public meeting to
discuss the allocation of the assets of the permanent school fund
and the investment of the money in the fund.
SECTION 4. Subchapter B, Chapter 32, Natural Resources
Code, is amended by adding Section 32.0191 to read as follows:
Sec. 32.0191. SEPARATION OF RESPONSIBILITIES. The board
shall develop and implement policies that clearly separate the
policymaking responsibilities of the board and the management
responsibilities of the commissioner and the staff of the land
office.
SECTION 5. Subchapter B, Chapter 32, Natural Resources
Code, is amended by adding Section 32.027 to read as follows:
Sec. 32.027. MEMBER TRAINING. (a) A person who is
appointed to and qualifies for office as a member of the board may
not vote, deliberate, or be counted as a member in attendance at a
meeting of the board until the person completes a training program
that complies with this section.
(b) The training program must provide the person with
information regarding:
(1) the law governing board operations;
(2) the programs, functions, rules, and budget of the
board;
(3) the board's investment programs and strategies;
(4) the permanent school fund, including a
comprehensive overview of the law governing the fund;
(5) the scope of and limitations on the rulemaking
authority of the board;
(6) the results of the most recent formal audit of the
board;
(7) the requirements of:
(A) laws relating to open meetings, public
information, administrative procedure, and disclosure of conflicts
of interest; and
(B) other laws applicable to members of a state
policymaking body in performing their duties; and
(8) any applicable ethics policies adopted by the
board or the Texas Ethics Commission.
(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.
(d) The commissioner shall create a training manual that
includes the information required by Subsection (b).
(e) The commissioner shall distribute a copy of the training
manual annually to each appointed member of the board. On receipt
of the training manual, each appointed member of the board shall
sign and submit to the commissioner a statement acknowledging
receipt of the training manual.
SECTION 6. Subchapter B, Chapter 32, Natural Resources
Code, is amended by adding Section 32.028 to read as follows:
Sec. 32.028. COMPLAINTS. (a) The board shall maintain a
system to promptly and efficiently act on complaints filed with the
board. The board shall maintain information about parties to the
complaint, the subject matter of the complaint, a summary of the
results of the review or investigation of the complaint, and its
disposition.
(b) The board shall make information available describing
its procedures for complaint investigation and resolution.
(c) The board shall periodically notify the complaint
parties of the status of the complaint until final disposition.
SECTION 7. Sections 51.402(a) and (c), Natural Resources
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) The board may use funds [the money] designated under
Section 51.401 for any of the following purposes:
(1) to add to a tract of public school land to form a
tract of sufficient size to be manageable;
(2) to add contiguous land to public school land;
(3) to acquire, as public school land, interests in
real property for biological, commercial, geological, cultural, or
recreational purposes;
(4) to acquire mineral and royalty interests for the
use and benefit of the permanent school fund;
(5) to protect, maintain, or enhance the value of
public school land;
(6) to acquire interests in real estate;
(7) to pay reasonable fees for professional services
related to a permanent school fund investment; or
(8) to acquire, sell, lease, trade, improve, maintain,
protect, or use land, mineral and royalty interests, or real estate
investments, an investment or interest in public infrastructure, or
other interests, at such prices and under such terms and conditions
the board determines to be in the best interest of the permanent
school fund.
(c) Notwithstanding Subsection (a) of this section, on
January 1 of each even-numbered year, the sum of any funds
designated under Section 51.401 not being used for a purpose listed
in Subsection (a) of this section and the market value of the
investments in real estate made under this section [on January 1 of
each even-numbered year] may not exceed an amount that is equal to
15 percent of the sum of:
(1) the funds held by the board and the State Board of
Education as part of the permanent school fund; and
(2) the market value of the assets held by the board
and the State Board of Education as part of the permanent school
fund [on that date].
SECTION 8. Sections 51.4021(a) and (b), Natural Resources
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) The board may appoint investment managers, consultants,
or advisors to invest or assist the board in investing funds [the
money] designated under Section 51.401 by contracting for
professional investment management or investment advisory services
with one or more organizations that are in the business of managing
or advising on the management of real estate investments.
(b) To be eligible for appointment under this section, an
investment manager, consultant, or advisor shall agree to abide by
the policies, requirements, or restrictions, including ethical
standards and disclosure policies and criteria for determining the
quality of investments and for the use of standard rating services,
that the board adopts for real estate investments of the permanent
school fund. Funds [Money] designated under Section 51.401 may not
be invested in a real estate investment trust, as defined by Section
200.001, Business Organizations Code.
SECTION 9. Section 51.412, Natural Resources Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 51.412. REPORTS TO LEGISLATURE. (a) Not later than
September 1 of each even-numbered year, the board shall submit to
the legislature a report that, specifically and in detail, assesses
the direct and indirect economic impact, as anticipated by the
board, of the investment of funds designated under Section 51.401
for deposit in the real estate special fund account of the permanent
school fund.
(b) The board may not disclose information under this
section that is confidential under applicable state or federal law.
(c) The report must include the following information:
(1) the total amount of the funds [money] designated
by Section 51.401 for deposit in the real estate special fund
account of the permanent school fund that the board intends to
invest;
(2) the rate of return the board expects to attain on
the investment;
(3) the amount of the funds [money] the board expects
to distribute to the available school fund or the State Board of
Education for investment in the permanent school fund after making
the investments;
(4) the distribution of the board's investments by
county;
(5) the effect of the board's investments on the level
of employment, personal income, and capital investment in the
state; and
(6) any other information the board considers
necessary to include in the report.
[(b) Not later than January 1 of each odd-numbered year, the
board shall submit to the legislature a report that assesses the
return and economic impact of the investments reported to the
legislature before the preceding regular legislative session.]
SECTION 10. Section 51.413(b), Natural Resources Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(b) The board shall adopt rules to establish the procedure
that will be used by the board to determine the date a transfer will
be made and the amount of the funds [money] that will be transferred
to the available school fund or to the State Board of Education for
investment in the permanent school fund from the real estate
special fund account as provided by Subsection (a).
SECTION 11. Section 51.4131, Natural Resources Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 51.4131. REPORT ON ANTICIPATED TRANSFER OF FUNDS. Not
later than September 1 of each even-numbered year, the board shall
submit to the legislature, comptroller, State Board of Education,
and Legislative Budget Board a report that, specifically and in
detail, states the date a transfer will be made and the amount of
the funds [money] the board will transfer during the subsequent
state fiscal biennium from the real estate special fund account of
the permanent school fund established under Section 51.401 to the
available school fund or the State Board of Education for
investment in the permanent school fund.
SECTION 12. Not later than September 1, 2020, the governor
and the attorney general shall appoint members to the School Land
Board in accordance with Section 32.012(a-1), Natural Resources
Code, as added by this Act.
SECTION 13. Section 32.027, Natural Resources Code, as
added by this Act, applies to a member of the School Land Board
appointed before, on, or after the effective date of this Act. A
member of the School Land Board may not vote, deliberate, or be
counted as a member in attendance at a meeting of the board held on
or after December 1, 2019, until the member completes the training.
SECTION 14. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.