BILL ANALYSIS
C.S.H.B. 2313
By: Stiles (Galloway)
Education
05-11-95
Senate Committee Report (Substituted)
BACKGROUND
The Lamar University System was created by the Texas Legislature in
1983 and is composed of the system office and five components:
Lamar University at Beaumont, Lamar University at Port Arthur,
Lamar University at Orange, the Lamar Institute of Technology, and
the John Gray Institute.
In March 1993, the State Auditor's Office released a management
control audit of the system citing several areas of concern: cash
management, management information, financial and automation
controls, and attention to prior recommendations for improvement.
The audit stated that there was lack of direction and oversight by
the board of regents. However, in December 1994, the state auditor
reported that the Lamar University System board of regents had made
progress in fulfilling its fiduciary and oversight roles.
PURPOSE
As proposed, C.S.H.B. 2313 abolishes the Lamar University System
and transfers all duties, infrastructure, responsibilities and
powers to the Texas State University System.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that rulemaking authority is granted
under SECTIONS 2(b) and 7 (Sections 96.704(c) and 96.707(f),
Education Code) of this bill.
SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS
SECTION 1. ABOLITION OF BOARD AND SYSTEM. Abolishes the Lamar
University System (system) and the system's board of regents
(board).
SECTION 2. TRANSFER OF INSTITUTIONS. (a) Transfers the
governance, operation, management, and control of Lamar University
(LU) and its educational centers (centers), including LU at Orange
(LUO), LU at Port Arthur (LUPA), and LU Institute of Technology
(LUIT) along with all right, title, and interest in the land,
buildings, facilities, improvements, equipment, supplies, and
property comprising those institutions from the board of regents of
the system to the board of the Texas State University System
(TSUS).
(b) Provides that rules and policies adopted by the board of
LU system to govern the component institutions of that system
that are in effect when the transfer takes effect are
continued in effect until adopted, repealed, or superseded by
the board of TSUS. Authorizes the board of TSUS to adopt
rules and policies applicable to the component institutions of
LU system in anticipation of the transfer authorized by this
Act.
SECTION 3. POWERS AND DUTIES. Requires the board of TSUS to
undertake to govern, operate, manage, and control LU and its
centers, including LUO, LUPA, and LUIT and all land, buildings,
facilities, improvements, equipment, supplies, and property
comprising that institution pursuant to the powers, duties, and
responsibilities that are or may be conferred by law upon the board
of TSUS for the governance, operation, management, and control of
component institutions comprising that system.
SECTION 4. APPROPRIATIONS. Transfers the appropriations made by
the legislature for the use and benefit of LU and its centers,
including LUO, LUPA, and LUIT, under the governance of the board of
the system to the board of TSUS for the use and benefit of the
institution. Requires other funds held for the use and benefit of
LU, including LUO, LUPA, and LUIT, to continue to be available for
the use and benefit of those institutions notwithstanding the
change in governance made by this Act.
SECTION 5. CONTRACTS AND WRITTEN OBLIGATIONS. Ratifies, confirms,
and validates contracts and written obligations of every kind and
character, including bonds, entered into by the board of the system
for and on behalf of LU and its centers, including LUO, LUPA, and
LUIT. Provides that the board of TSUS is substituted for and
stands and acts in the place of the board of the system in those
contracts and written obligations.
SECTION 6. EFFECT OF TRANSFER. (a) Provides that the transfer of
governance, operation, management, and control of LU and its
centers, including LUO, LUPA, and LUIT, from the board of the
system to the board of TSUS does not affect the credit hours earned
by students at those institutions before the effective date of this
Act or the employment status on the effective date of this Act of
the administrative, faculty, or support staff of those
institutions.
(b) Provides that this section does not limit the authority
of the board of TSUS to evaluate or reassign staff or to take
any other personnel action relating to the staff of those
institutions as the board determines in the best interest of
the university.
SECTION 7. AMENDMENT. Amends Chapter 96, Education Code, by adding
Subchapter E, as follows:
SUBCHAPTER E. LAMAR UNIVERSITY AND RELATED INSTITUTIONS
Sec. 96.701. LAMAR UNIVERSITY. Provides that LU is a
coeducational institution of higher education located in the
city of Beaumont. Provides that LU is under the management
and control of the board of regents of TSUS.
Sec. 96.702. SPINDLETOP MEMORIAL MUSEUM. Authorizes the
board to create the Spindletop Memorial Museum at LU and to
administer the museum as the board considers appropriate.
Sec. 96.703. LAMAR UNIVERSITY INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY. (a)
Requires the board to establish and maintain an education
center of LU as a separate degree-granting institution to be
known as Lamar University Institute of Technology.
(b) Provides that the primary purpose of the institute is
to teach technical and vocational courses and related
supporting courses. Authorizes the board to confer degrees
appropriate to the institute's curriculum.
Sec. 96.704. EDUCATION CENTERS AT PORT ARTHUR AND ORANGE.
(a) Requires the board to establish and maintain
coeducational lower-division institutions of higher education
as separate degree-granting institutions in the counties of
Jefferson and Orange, to be known as Lamar University-Port
Arthur and Lamar University-Orange, to teach only freshman-
and sophomore-level courses.
(b) Authorizes the board to acquire, construct, or
otherwise make provision for adequate physical facilities
for use by LUPA and LUO and to accept and administer, on
terms and conditions satisfactory to the board, grants or
gifts of money or property tendered by any reason for the
use and benefit of the school.
(c) Authorizes the board with the approval of the Texas
Higher Education Coordinating Board to prescribe courses
leading to customary degrees, and make other rules and
regulations for the operation, control, and management of
LUPA and LUO as necessary for each school to be a first-class institution for freshman and sophomore students.
(d) Provides that nothing in this section shall be
construed to limit the powers of the board as conferred by
law.
(e) Authorizes the board to expend funds allocated to LU
under Chapter 62 for any of the purposes listed in Section
17, Article VII, Texas Constitution, in the manner and under
the same circumstances as expenditures for those purposes
for separate degree-granting institutions for LUPA and LUO.
Sec. 96.705. APPLICATION OF OTHER LAW. Provides that all
other provisions of law, including provisions for student
fees, applicable to institutions of TSUS apply to LU and its
centers.
Sec. 96.706. HAZARDOUS WASTE RESEARCH CENTER. (a) Provides
that the Hazardous Waste Research Center (HRC) is established
at Lamar University at Beaumont. Provides that HRC is under
the authority of the board of TSUS. Authorizes HRC to employ
such personnel as are necessary.
(b) Requires HRC to carry out a program of research,
evaluation, testing, development, and demonstration of
alternative or innovative technologies that may be used in
minimization, destruction, or handling of hazardous wastes
to achieve better protection of human health and the
environment.
(c) Requires HRC to provide coordination of the activities
of a consortium of Texas universities initially consisting
of the Texas Engineering Experiment Station of the Texas A&M
University System, the University of Houston, the University
of Texas at Austin, and the Lamar University at Beaumont,
and other entities that may become affiliated.
(d) Requires HRC to develop and maintain a database
relevant to its programs.
(e) Authorizes the programs of HRC to include certain
services.
(f) Authorizes HRC to enter into agreements with certain
entities in carrying out its established programs.
(g) Creates a policy board with certain responsibilities.
Describes the policy board's composition.
(h) Requires the institutions of higher education that are
members of the policy board to appoint an advisory council
to develop recommendations on the priorities for research
and to serve as a resource group on the projects. Requires
each institution to appoint two members from private
industry and two members to serve for terms to be set by the
policy board.
(i) Requires HRC to seek grant and contract support from
federal and other sources to the extent possible and accept
gifts and donations to support its purposes and programs.
(j) Authorizes HRC to receive state appropriated funds as
considered appropriate by the legislature.
(k) Requires disbursement of funds received by the center
on behalf of the consortium to be on an equitable basis and
in accordance with policy determined by the policy board
subject to laws of the state and policies of member
institutions. Requires disbursement policy to recognize the
need for core program support at each consortium
institution, matching requirements for federal grants and
contracts, general administration, and new initiatives.
Requires disbursement of funds received in response to
specific proposals to be in accordance with those proposals.
Sec. 96.707. TEXAS ACADEMY OF LEADERSHIP IN THE HUMANITIES.
(a) Establishes the Texas Academy of Leadership in the
Humanities (academy) as a two-year program at LU-Beaumont for
secondary school students selected under this section. Places
the academy under the management and control of the board of
TSUS.
(b) Sets forth the goals of the academy.
(c) Sets forth eligibility requirements for admission to
the academy.
(d) Requires the board to recruit minority secondary school
students to apply for admission to the academy.
(e) Requires the board to select for admission to the
academy eligible students based on additional testing
required by the board and on a personal interview by a
selection committee appointed by the board. Requires the
board to send written notice to the student and the
student's school district if the board selects an eligible
student for admission to the academy.
(f) Requires the board to establish a tuition and fee
scholarship for each student who enrolls in the academy.
Provides that a student who enrolls in the academy is
responsible for room, board, and book costs and must live in
a residence determined by board rule.
(g) Provides that academy courses are taught by the faculty
members of LU. Authorizes the board to employ additional
staff for the academy.
(h) Requires the board to provide each student enrolled in
the academy with a mentor who is a faculty member at LU to
assist the student in completing the student's course of
study in the academy.
(i) Authorizes a student of the academy to attend a college
course offered by LU and receive college credit for that
course.
(j) Authorizes the board to accept gifts and grants from a
public or private source for the academy.
SECTION 8. AMENDMENT. Amends Section 54.523, Education Code, by
amending Subsections (a) and (c) and adding Subsection (e), as
follows:
(a) Makes conforming changes.
(c) Requires the chief fiscal officer of each university
operating a student center, either on its central campus or at
an educational center of the university, to collect the
student center fee and to deposit the money received into an
account known as the student center account.
(e) Authorizes the board to charge a student center fee under
this section at LU or an educational center of LU in the
amount charged at the appropriate institution in the 1994-1995
academic year under former Section 54.517 or 108.361 as
approved by a majority of the students of the institution
voting in an election called for that purpose, as if the fee
had been approved by a majority vote of the students under
this section. Authorizes revenue from the fee charged under
this section at a center of LU to be used to pay the principal
of and interest on revenue bonds issued under former Section
108.361 for the purpose of constructing a student center at
the center.
SECTION 9. AMENDMENT. Amend Section 62.021, Education Code, by
adding Subsection (e), to provide that the amount allocated by
Subsection (a) to LU and its centers is considered part of the
amount allocated by Subsection (a) to the TSUS administration and
its component institutions, to be spent as provided by Subsection
(b) in the sole discretion of the governing board of TSUS for the
system and its institutions.
SECTION 10. AMENDMENT. Amends Section 12.1105(e), Parks and
Wildlife Code, to make a conforming change.
SECTION 11. Repealer: Section 54.517 (Student Center Fees;
Lamar University), Chapter 108 (Lamar University System), and
Section 54.523(e) (Relating to the prohibition of state
appropriated funds to construct or maintain the student center),
Education Code
SECTION 12. VALIDATION. (a) Validates, confirms, and ratifies
all proceedings of the board of LU system authorizing the issuance
of bonds, notes or other evidences of indebtness entered into, by,
or on behalf of, the board of LU system prior to the effective date
of this Act to the extent and in the manner set forth in the
proceedings of the board of LU system. Authorizes the board of
TSUS to fix, collect, pledge and apply rentals, rates, charges,
and/or fees from students and others attending the institutions of
the LU system to the same extent with the same effect and in the
same manner as said board, fixes, collects, pledges, applies
rentals, rates, charges, and/or fees from students attending other
TSU components, any other provision of law notwithstanding.
(b) Requires the board of TSUS to assume all of the rights,
duties and obligations of the board of LU system with respect
to all outstanding bonds, notes, and other evidences of
indebtness as of the effective date of this Act. Requires any
actions taken by the board of TSUS, its members, officers or
employees with respect to the transition and merger of LU
system into TSUS to be presumed as a matter of law to have
been taken within the board's, member's, officer's, or
employee's official capacity, in good faith, and within the
exercise of discretionary governmental authority. Provides
that the sovereign immunity of the state is affirmed to the
limited extent of actions taken under this Act; and requires
the board of TSUS, its members, officers, employees and
institutions to be immune from legal action relating to
actions taken with respect to the transition and merger of LU
system, any other provision of the law notwithstanding.
(c) Prohibits the provisions of this section from being
construed as validating any actions or proceedings or bonds,
notes, evidences of indebtedness, contracts or agreements
which are involved in litigation questioning the validity
thereof on the effective date of this Act if such litigation
is ultimately determined against the validity thereof.
SECTION 13. Emergency clause.
Effective date: upon passage.