Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas House Bill HB327 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		86R232 MM-D
2		-	By: Ortega, Moody, Blanco, Fierro, H.B. No. 327
3		-	González of El Paso
	2	+	By: Ortega H.B. No. 327
4	3
5	4
6	5		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
7	6		AN ACT
8	7		relating to the establishment of a public law school in El Paso
9	8		County.
10	9		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	10		SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 61, Education Code, is
12	11		amended by adding Section 61.0907 to read as follows:
13	12		Sec. 61.0907. EL PASO SCHOOL OF LAW. (a) The governing
14	13		board of a university system may establish and operate, as a
15	14		professional school of the system, a school of law in El Paso County
16	15		as the governing board considers appropriate.
17	16		(b) In administering the law school, the governing board may
18	17		prescribe courses leading to customary degrees offered at other
19	18		leading American schools of law and may award those degrees.
20	19		(c) The governing board may assign responsibility for the
21	20		management of the law school to a general academic teaching
22	21		institution in the university system.
23	22		(d) The governing board may accept and administer gifts and
24	23		grants from any public or private person or entity for the use and
25	24		benefit of the law school. Notwithstanding any other provision of
26	25		this section, establishment of a law school is subject to the
27	26		availability of funding, either through appropriation or from
28	27		another source.
29	28		(e) The governing board of a university system that intends
30	29		to establish a law school under this section shall notify the Texas
31	30		Higher Education Coordinating Board. If the coordinating board
32	31		receives notice from a governing board under this subsection, the
33	32		coordinating board shall provide a statement regarding that
34	33		intention on its Internet website and provide the other governing
35	34		boards with a reasonable opportunity to notify the coordinating
36	35		board of an intent to establish a law school under this section. If
37	36		the coordinating board receives notice from more than one governing
38	37		board under this subsection, the coordinating board, based on
39	38		community and student input, available system resources, the
40	39		feasibility of the specific proposal of each system, and other
41	40		appropriate criteria, shall determine which of those governing
42	41		boards may establish a law school under this section.
43	42		(f) Before a governing board establishes a law school under
44	43		this section, the governing board shall request the coordinating
45	44		board to prepare a feasibility study to determine the actions the
46	45		system must take to obtain accreditation of the law school. The
47	46		coordinating board shall deliver a copy of the study to the
48	47		governing board and to the chair of each legislative standing
49	48		committee with jurisdiction over higher education.
50	49		(g) Not more than one law school may be established under
51	50		this section.
52	51		SECTION 2. Subchapter B, Chapter 55, Education Code, is
53	52		amended by adding Section 55.178 to read as follows:
54	53		Sec. 55.178. UNIVERSITY SYSTEM ESTABLISHING EL PASO SCHOOL
55	54		OF LAW; ADDITIONAL BONDS. (a) In addition to the other authority
56	55		granted by this subchapter, the governing board of the university
57	56		system that establishes an El Paso school of law under Section
58	57		61.0907 may acquire, purchase, construct, improve, renovate,
59	58		enlarge, or equip property, buildings, structures, or other
60	59		facilities, including roads and related infrastructure, for the law
61	60		school for projects to be financed by the issuance of bonds in
62	61		accordance with this subchapter, including bonds issued in
63	62		accordance with a systemwide revenue financing program and secured
64	63		as provided by that program, in an aggregate principal amount not to
65	64		exceed $40 million.
66	65		(b) The governing board may pledge irrevocably to the
67	66		payment of the bonds authorized by this section all or any part of
68	67		the revenue funds of an institution, branch, or entity of the
69	68		university system described by Subsection (a), including student
70	69		tuition charges. The amount of a pledge made under this subsection
71	70		may not be reduced or abrogated while the bonds for which the pledge
72	71		is made, or bonds issued to refund those bonds, are outstanding.
73	72		(c) If sufficient funds are not available to the governing
74	73		board to meet its obligations under this section, the board may
75	74		transfer funds among institutions, branches, and entities of the
76	75		university system described by Subsection (a) to ensure the most
77	76		equitable and efficient allocation of available resources for each
78	77		institution, branch, or entity to carry out its duties and
79	78		purposes.
80	79		SECTION 3. (a) If this Act receives a vote of at least
81	80		two-thirds of the membership of each house of the legislature, and
82	81		if an El Paso school of law is created by The University of Texas
83	82		System or The Texas A&M University System under Section 61.0907,
84	83		Education Code, as added by this Act, the El Paso school of law is
85	84		entitled to participate in the funding provided by Section 18,
86	85		Article VII, Texas Constitution, for the appropriate university
87	86		system.
88	87		(b) If this Act receives a vote of at least two-thirds of the
89	88		membership of each house of the legislature, and if an El Paso
90	89		school of law is created under Section 61.0907, Education Code, as
91	90		added by this Act, by a university system other than a system
92	91		described by Subsection (a) of this section, the El Paso school of
93	92		law is entitled to participate in the funding provided by Section
94	93		17, Article VII, Texas Constitution. Before the first periodic
95	94		allocation of funding under Section 17, Article VII, is made that
96	95		includes the El Paso school of law, the legislature may reallocate
97	96		the total amount allocated to institutions under that section to
98	97		allow for the allocation to the law school.
99	98		SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
100	99		a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
101	100		provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
102	101		Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
103	102		Act takes effect September 1, 2019.