By: Truan S.B. No. 383
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
1-1 relating to the existence, composition, and expenses of state
1-2 agency advisory committees.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Title 110A, Revised Statutes, is amended by
1-5 adding Article 6252-33 to read as follows:
1-6 Art. 6252-33. STATE AGENCY ADVISORY COMMITTEES
1-7 Sec. 1. DEFINITION. In this article, "advisory committee"
1-8 means a committee, council, commission, task force, or other entity
1-9 in the executive branch of state government that:
1-10 (1) is not a state agency;
1-11 (2) is created by or under state law; and
1-12 (3) has as its primary function advising a state
1-13 agency.
1-14 Sec. 2. COMPOSITION OF ADVISORY COMMITTEES. Notwithstanding
1-15 other law, an advisory committee must be composed of a reasonable
1-16 number of members not to exceed 24 members. The composition of the
1-17 committee must also provide a balanced representation between:
1-18 (1) industries or occupations regulated or directly
1-19 affected by the advised state agency; and
1-20 (2) consumers of services provided either by the
1-21 advised state agency or by industries or occupations regulated by
1-22 the agency.
1-23 Sec. 3. PRESIDING OFFICER. (a) An advisory committee shall
1-24 select from among its members a presiding officer, unless a
2-1 different procedure for selecting the presiding officer is
2-2 prescribed by other law.
2-3 (b) The presiding officer shall preside over the advisory
2-4 committee and report to the advised state agency.
2-5 Sec. 4. REIMBURSEMENT OF MEMBERS' EXPENSES; APPROPRIATIONS
2-6 PROCESS. (a) Notwithstanding other law, the manner and amount of
2-7 reimbursement for expenses, including travel expenses, of members
2-8 of an advisory committee may be prescribed only:
2-9 (1) by the General Appropriations Act; or
2-10 (2) through the budget execution process under Chapter
2-11 317, Government Code, if the advisory committee is created after it
2-12 is practicable to address the existence of the committee in the
2-13 General Appropriations Act.
2-14 (b) A state agency that is advised by an advisory committee
2-15 must request authority to reimburse the expenses of members of the
2-16 committee through the appropriations or budget execution process,
2-17 as appropriate, if the agency determines that the expenses of
2-18 committee members should be reimbursed. The request must:
2-19 (1) identify the costs related to the advisory
2-20 committee's existence, including the cost of agency staff time
2-21 spent in support of the committee's activities;
2-22 (2) state the reasons the advisory committee should
2-23 continue in existence; and
2-24 (3) identify any other advisory committees created to
2-25 advise the agency that should be consolidated or abolished.
2-26 (c) As part of the appropriations and budget execution
2-27 process, the governor and the Legislative Budget Board shall
3-1 jointly identify advisory committees that should be abolished. The
3-2 comptroller may recommend to the governor and the Legislative
3-3 Budget Board that an advisory committee should be abolished.
3-4 (d) The General Appropriations Act may provide for
3-5 reimbursing the expenses of members of certain advisory committees
3-6 without providing for reimbursing the expenses of members of other
3-7 advisory committees.
3-8 Sec. 5. AGENCY-DEVELOPED STATEMENT OF PURPOSE; REPORTING
3-9 REQUIREMENTS. A state agency that is advised by an advisory
3-10 committee shall adopt rules that:
3-11 (1) state the purpose of the committee; and
3-12 (2) describe the task of the committee and the manner
3-13 in which the committee will report to the agency.
3-14 Sec. 6. AGENCY EVALUATION OF COMMITTEE COSTS AND
3-15 EFFECTIVENESS. A state agency that is advised by an advisory
3-16 committee shall annually evaluate:
3-17 (1) the committee's work;
3-18 (2) the committee's usefulness; and
3-19 (3) the costs related to the committee's existence,
3-20 including the cost of agency staff time spent in support of the
3-21 committee's activities.
3-22 Sec. 7. REPORT TO THE LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD. A state
3-23 agency that is advised by an advisory committee shall report to the
3-24 Legislative Budget Board the information developed in the
3-25 evaluation required by Section 6 of this article. The report shall
3-26 be filed biennially in connection with the agency's request for
3-27 appropriations.
4-1 Sec. 8. DURATION OF ADVISORY COMMITTEES. (a) A state
4-2 agency that is advised by an advisory committee shall establish by
4-3 rule a date on which the committee will automatically be abolished.
4-4 The advisory committee may continue in existence after that date
4-5 only if the governing body of the agency affirmatively votes to
4-6 continue the committee in existence.
4-7 (b) An advisory committee is automatically abolished on the
4-8 fourth anniversary of the date of its creation unless the governing
4-9 body of the agency establishes a different date under Subsection
4-10 (a) of this section.
4-11 (c) This section does not apply to an advisory committee
4-12 that has a specific duration prescribed by statute.
4-13 SECTION 2. As soon as possible after the effective date of
4-14 this Act, a state agency that is advised by an advisory committee
4-15 that is not composed in accordance with Section 2, Article 6252-33,
4-16 Revised Statutes, as added by this Act, shall add or subtract
4-17 members of the advisory committee, as appropriate, to bring the
4-18 composition of the committee into compliance with Section 2. If
4-19 the law, order, or resolution that created the advisory committee
4-20 provided that more than one appointing authority would appoint a
4-21 stated number of members to the committee, the agency shall
4-22 preserve the ratio of members appointed by the different appointing
4-23 authorities. The agency may subtract members of an advisory
4-24 committee as necessary to bring its composition into compliance
4-25 with Section 2 by agreement among the affected members, by lot, or
4-26 by some other reasonable method.
4-27 SECTION 3. An advisory committee as defined in Article
5-1 6252-33, Revised Statutes, as added by this Act, that exists as of
5-2 September 1, 1993, is automatically abolished September 1, 1997,
5-3 unless:
5-4 (1) the governing body of the agency establishes a
5-5 different date under Section 8, Article 6252-33, Revised Statutes;
5-6 or
5-7 (2) the advisory committee has a specific duration
5-8 prescribed by statute.
5-9 SECTION 4. The following advisory entities are abolished:
5-10 (1) the Transportation Audit Committee, created by
5-11 Chapter 23, Acts of the 68th Legislature, 2nd Called Session, 1984
5-12 (Article 6663d, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes);
5-13 (2) the Campaign Finance Reform Task Force, created by
5-14 executive order;
5-15 (3) the Committee on Water Resources, created by
5-16 executive order;
5-17 (4) the Health Maintenance Organization Advisory
5-18 Committee to the Texas Department of Health;
5-19 (5) the Criminal Justice Education Project Advisory
5-20 Committee, created by executive order;
5-21 (6) the Task Force on Public Utility Regulation,
5-22 created by executive order;
5-23 (7) the Task Force on Waste Management Policy, created
5-24 under the authority of legislative resolutions;
5-25 (8) the Texas Science and Technology Council, created
5-26 by executive order;
5-27 (9) the State Complete Count Census Committee, created
6-1 by executive order;
6-2 (10) the Governor's Welfare Reform Task Force, created
6-3 by executive order; and
6-4 (11) the Design Advisory Panel to the General Services
6-5 Commission created by Subsection (b), Section 5.20, State
6-6 Purchasing and General Services Act (Article 601b, Vernon's Texas
6-7 Civil Statutes).
6-8 SECTION 5. The following laws are repealed:
6-9 (1) Subsection (b), Section 5.20, State Purchasing and
6-10 General Services Act (Article 601b, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes);
6-11 and
6-12 (2) Chapter 23, Acts of the 68th Legislature, 2nd
6-13 Called Session, 1984 (Article 6663d, Vernon's Texas Civil
6-14 Statutes).
6-15 SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 1993.
6-16 SECTION 7. The importance of this legislation and the
6-17 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
6-18 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
6-19 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
6-20 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.