The resolution would propose an amendment to Article VII of the Texas Constitution.
The proposed amendment would establish the Permanent Technical Institution Infrastructure Fund (PTIFF or permanent fund) and the Available Workforce Education Fund (AWEF or available fund) as special funds in the state treasury outside of the General Revenue fund for the purpose of providing funding for certain capital projects and equipment purchases related to career and technical education programs offered by the Texas State Technical College (TSTC) System. The amendment stipulates that the permanent fund would consist of money transferred or deposited to the fund and any interest or other earnings of the fund and would be administered by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. The Legislature could not appropriate money from the permanent fund for any purpose.
The proposed amendment would require the Comptroller, each fiscal year, to determine the amount available for distribution from the permanent fund to the available fund. The distribution must preserve the purchasing power of the assets of the permanent fund over a full economic cycle and may not exceed 5.5 percent of the average fair market value of the investment assets of the permanent fund.
The amendment provides that the total amount of the distribution from the permanent fund to the available fund would be appropriated to the TSTC board of regents for the purposes of acquiring land, constructing and equipping buildings, major repair and rehabilitation of buildings, acquiring capital equipment, acquiring library books and materials, the payment of principal and interest due on bonds and notes issued by the board of regents to finance permanent improvements as authorized by other law, and any other purpose authorized by general law. Funds may not be used for the purpose of constructing, equipping, repairing, or rehabilitating buildings or other permanent improvements that are to be used for intercollegiate athletics or auxiliary enterprises.
The proposed amendment would direct the Comptroller, on January 1, 2024, to transfer $750.0 million of the unencumbered balance of the General Revenue Fund to the comptroller of public accounts for immediate deposit to the credit of the permanent fund.
The proposed amendment would remove the TSTC System and its campuses from Higher Education Fund (HEF) eligibility. The transfer of the TSTC System from HEF to permanent fund, as provided by the proposed amendment, would apply with the fiscal year beginning September 1, 2025. Any HEF funds that would have been allocated to the TSTC System as of that date would be allocated to other HEF-eligible institutions proportionally, until the Legislature or designated agency eliminated the TSTC System from the HEF allocations.
The proposed amendment would be submitted to voters at an election to be held November 7, 2023.