Texas 2023 - 88th 3rd C.S.

Texas House Bill HB126 Compare Versions

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Version 2 (New)

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1	1	By: Guillen H.B. No. 126
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to impeding illegal entry into Texas by providing more
7	7	funding for the construction, operation, and maintenance of border
8	8	barrier infrastructure.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	ARTICLE 1. BORDER BARRIER INFRASTRUCTURE
11	11	SECTION 1.01. Subchapter G, Government Code, is added to
12	12	read as follows:
13	13	SUBCHAPTER G. BORDER BARRIER FUND
14	14	Sec. 421.111. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
15	15	(1) "Border region" has the meaning assigned by
16	16	Section 772.0071.
17	17	(2) "Local government" means a municipality or county.
18	18	(3) "Office" means the trusteed programs within the
19	19	office of the governor.
20	20	Sec. 421.112. USE OF CERTAIN FUNDS. (a) From money
21	21	appropriated for that purpose, the office, as authorized by Chapter
22	22	418, including Subchapter D of that chapter, shall make funds
23	23	available to state agencies and local governments for the following
24	24	purposes:
25	25	(1) the construction and maintenance of temporary
26	26	border security infrastructure, including temporary barriers,
27	27	buoys, fences, wires, roads, trenches, surveillance technology, or
28	28	other improvements, designed or adapted to surveil or impede the
29	29	movement of persons or objects across the Texas-Mexico border at
30	30	locations other than ports of entry;
31	31	(2) the construction of improvements, including
32	32	surveillance and detection technology, to an area in the immediate
33	33	vicinity of a port of entry to enhance vehicle inspection
34	34	capabilities and assist in the investigation, interdiction, and
35	35	prosecution of persons smuggling individuals or contraband,
36	36	including controlled substances, such as fentanyl, cocaine,
37	37	heroin, and methamphetamine, across the Texas-Mexico border; and
38	38	(3) the acquisition and construction of facilities,
39	39	equipment and services to remove illegal immigrants from Texas.
40	40	Sec. 421.113. FEDERAL FUNDS; GIFTS, GRANTS, AND DONATIONS.
41	41	In addition to funds appropriated by the legislature and for
42	42	purposes of this subchapter, the office may:
43	43	(1) seek and apply for any available federal funds;
44	44	and
45	45	(2) solicit and accept gifts, grants, and donations
46	46	from any other source, public or private.
47	47	Sec. 421.114. RULES. The office may adopt rules for the
48	48	administration of this subchapter.
49	49	Sec. 421.115. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. (a) The recipient
50	50	of funds for a purpose described by Section 421.112 shall submit to
51	51	the office reports on an interval prescribed by the office
52	52	regarding the use of the funds and any other issue related to the
53	53	funds as determined by the office.
54	54	(b) Funds received by a state agency for a purpose described
55	55	by Section 421.112 are considered border security funding for
56	56	purposes of reporting requirements in the General Appropriations
57	57	Act.
58	58	Sec. 421.116. ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS. Unless otherwise
59	59	provided by the appropriation, the division may use a reasonable
60	60	amount, not to exceed five percent, of any general revenue
61	61	appropriated for purposes of this subchapter to pay the costs of
62	62	administering this subchapter.
63	63	Sec. 421.120. PURCHASE, DEPLOYMENT AND MAINTENANCE
64	64	GUIDELINES FOR CERTAIN TECHNOLOGY AND EQUIPMENT. (a) The office
65	65	shall develop guidelines for the purchase, deployment and
66	66	maintenance of technology and equipment to enhance the state's
67	67	ability to detect and suppress criminal activity along the
68	68	Texas-Mexico border, including:
69	69	(1) temporary border security infrastructure,
70	70	including temporary barriers, buoys, fences, wires, roads,
71	71	trenches, surveillance technology, or other improvements, designed
72	72	or adapted to surveil or impede the movement of persons or objects
73	73	across the Texas-Mexico border at locations other than ports of
74	74	entry; and
75	75	(2) surveillance and detection technology to be
76	76	deployed at and near each port of entry along the Texas-Mexico
77	77	border to detect and deter the improper entry of individuals from
78	78	foreign nations and the smuggling of individuals and controlled
79	79	substances, such as fentanyl, cocaine, heroin, and
80	80	methamphetamine.
81	81	(3) the acquisition and construction of facilities,
82	82	equipment and services to remove illegal immigrants from Texas.
83	83	(b) The guidelines to acquire goods and services under
84	84	Subsection (a) shall consider any procurement method that provides
85	85	the best value to the state. In developing the guidelines, the
86	86	office shall consider the best value standards listed in Section
87	87	2155.074.
88	88	Sec. 421.121. OPERATIONAL PLAN TO COORDINATE BORDER
89	89	PROTECTION TECHNOLOGY AND EQUIPMENT.
90	90	(a) The office shall convene an advisory council on border
91	91	protection technology and equipment.
92	92	(b) The governor shall determine the makeup of the advisory
93	93	council on border protection technology and equipment, considering
94	94	domestic and international subject matter experts.
95	95	(c) The advisory council on border protection technology
96	96	and equipment shall develop and recommend to the governor and the
97	97	legislature, a strategic plan that establishes the framework for
98	98	the budgeting, procurement, implementation, and operations of
99	99	border protection technology and equipment for state agencies and
100	100	local governments.
101	101	(d) The strategic plan under Subsection (c) must include:
102	102	(1) goals and performance measures that involve
103	103	collaboration and interoperability of state agencies and local
104	104	governments;
105	105	(2) an evaluation of 8 U.S.C. Section 1325(a) and
106	106	other federal laws relating to the requirement that the admission
107	107	of aliens into the United States occur only at ports of entry; and
108	108	(3) an evaluation of the relationship between the
109	109	financial efficiency and operation effectiveness of various types
110	110	of border protection technology and equipment.
111	111	(c) The advisory council on border protection technology
112	112	and equipment shall twice a year report to the governor and the
113	113	legislature, on the recommendations of the strategic plan.
114	114	(d) The office of the governor shall hold an annual
115	115	technology fair at which vendors of emerging border protection
116	116	technology and equipment demonstrate the capabilities of the
117	117	products.
118	118	(e) The inaugural event required by Subsection (d) of this
119	119	section must be held no later than September 1, 2024.
120	120	Sec. 421.122. TECHNOLOGY POLICY; REVIEW. (a) The office
121	121	shall implement a policy requiring state agencies to use
122	122	appropriate technological solutions to improve the state's
123	123	homeland security efforts. The policy must ensure that the state's
124	124	capability to conduct border security operations and similar
125	125	functions is not impeded by the use of obsolete or outdated
126	126	technologies.
127	127	(b) The office shall, based upon the recommendations of the
128	128	advisory council on border protection technology and equipment,
129	129	periodically review emerging technologies that may be deployed for
130	130	border security operations, including technologies and equipment
131	131	described by Section 421.120(a), to ensure the state agencies
132	132	consistently adopt innovative technologies and solutions for those
133	133	operations.
134	134	SECTION 1.02. As soon as practicable after the effective
135	135	date of this article, the office of the governor shall adopt rules
136	136	as necessary to implement Subchapter G, Chapter 421, Government
137	137	Code, as added by this article.
138	138	ARTICLE 2. SEVERABILITY; EFFECTIVE DATE
139	139	SECTION 2.01. It is the intent of the legislature that every
140	140	provision, section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, or word
141	141	in this Act, and every application of the provisions in this Act to
142	142	every person, group of persons, or circumstances, is severable from
143	143	each other. If any application of any provision in this Act to any
144	144	person, group of persons, or circumstances is found by a court to be
145	145	invalid for any reason, the remaining applications of that
146	146	provision to all other persons and circumstances shall be severed
147	147	and may not be affected.
148	148	SECTION 2.02. This Act takes effect immediately if it
149	149	receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
150	150	house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
151	151	If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
152	152	effect, this Act takes effect on the 91st day after the last day of
153	153	the legislative session.