BILL ANALYSIS C.S.H.B. 2892 By: Patterson April 13, 1995 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND In 1993, legislation was passed that established the boll weevil eradication program. This program is administered by the Texas Boll Weevil Eradication Foundation Board which is elected by cotton growers. The goal of the program is to eradicate the boll weevil through the use of integrated pest management (IPM). IPM calls for "...the coordinated use of pest and environmental information with available pest control methods to prevent unacceptable levels of pest damage by the most economical means and with the least possible hazard to people, property, and the environment" per the established law. During the establishment of the program over the past two years some issues unaddressed in the original legislation have arisen. Because federal funds have been slow in payment, the Foundation has sought commercial loans, but found that the original legislation does not have provisions for this. Some counties that were not originally included in a zone because no cotton was grown there, now have cotton. The Foundation felt that the success of the program should be the first priority of the program above the priority to protect the certification of organic producers. These are equal priorities in current law. PURPOSE The purpose of this legislation is to allow the Texas Boll Weevil Eradication Foundation Board to borrow funds, annex counties into eradication zones, and set program priorities. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 74.102, Agriculture Code, by expanding the definitions of "cotton grower", "High Plains Boll Weevil Suppression Program Area", and "St. Lawrence Cotton Growers Boll Weevil Control Zone". SECTION 2. Amends Section 74.107(a), Agriculture Code. Permits a county in the St. Lawrence Cotton Growers Boll Weevil Control Zone to transfer to another zone. SECTION 3. Amends Section 74.108, Agriculture Code. Provides the board with the authority to: (5) accept gifts and grants. (6) borrow money. (7) exercise authority necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter. (8) annex cotton producing counties adjacent to an eradication zone if the addition is approved in a referendum. Requires the board to hold informational meetings detailing the program and assessments by the 60th day prior to the average planting date for the area. Prohibits an area from being removed from the High Plains Boll Weevil Suppression Program Area. SECTION 4. Amends Section 74.109, Agriculture Code. (c) Requires the foundation to provide fidelity bonds, in amounts determined by the board, for persons who manage foundation funds. (d) Sets forth that the foundation and board are state agencies for the purposes of tax exemption and indemnification. (f) Establishes that the foundation is a "governmental unit" entitled to governmental immunity and subjects tort claims against the foundation to Chapter 101 of the Texas Civil Practices and Remedies Code. SECTION 5. Amends Section 74.110(a), Agriculture Code. Extends liability protection to the foundation and its directors. SECTION 6. Amends Section 74.113(f), Agriculture Code. Sets forth that the foundation's operating costs include payments on foundation debt. Prohibits the funds of one zone being used to pay another zone's bank loans. SECTION 7. Amends Section 74.114, Agriculture Code, by amending Subsections (f) and (i) and adding (j). (f) Requires ballots to be mailed to a central location to be determined by the commissioner until a board is elected. Sets forth that eligible voters who have not received a ballot may request a ballot by mail or obtain a ballot from their county agricultural extension agent or a government office distributing ballots. Deletes language that allowed a county agent to hold completed ballots. (i) Requires the foundation to hold a public hearing offering information on the eradication program and its regulations. Limits the coverage area for each hearing to six contiguous counties that are producing cotton at the time of the hearing. (j) Sets forth that all voter information is confidential and is not subject to the Texas Open Records Act. SECTION 8. Amends Section 74.115, Agriculture Code, Subsections (b) and (c). (b) Reduces the amount of time that a cotton grower has to pay overdue assessments and penalties to 10 days. Sets forth that the grower will be held responsible for the costs of destroying his host plants. (c) Allows the department of agriculture (the department) to perfect a lien on cotton produced that year from the acreage subject to the overdue and unpaid assessment. SECTION 9. Amends Section 74.116(b), Agriculture Code. Specifies that exemption from assessments is based on the grower's federal income taxation for the previous year. SECTION 10. Amends Section 74.120(c), Agriculture Code. Extends rulemaking authority to the department. SECTION 11. Amends Section 74.125, Agriculture Code. Sets forth that in all events the board shall maintain the effectiveness of the program. Prohibits the board from treating certified organic cotton fields with chemicals. Sets forth that plow-up is an alternative to chemicals. Allows the board to pay an indemnity less the proceeds from an alternative crop to organic producers who are prohibited from planting cotton or whose cotton is destroyed. SECTION 12. Amends Section 74.126, Agriculture Code. Extends the authority to find a person in violation of this subchapter to the foundation. Also permits the foundation to request a suit be filed for appropriate relief. SECTION 13. Amends Section 74.127(c), Agriculture Code. Sets forth that if the foundation is abolished, assessments will be extended to meet the foundation's financial obligations. SECTION 14. Effective Date: September 1, 1995. SECTION 15. Emergency Clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE The substitute allows counties to be annexed into an existing zone only if the addition is approved in a referendum; prohibits an area being removed from the existing High Plains Boll Weevil Suppression Program Area zone; prohibits the funds of one zone being used to pay another zones's bank loans; and allows the department to perfect a lien on cotton produced during the year that an assessment was unpaid. The original bill allowed a lien on any cotton produced on the acreage for the next five years. The original bill set forth that the board would endeavor to develop rules to protect organic cotton production, but must give highest priority to the eradication program. The substitute sets forth that in all events the board shall maintain the effectiveness of the program, but must not endanger the certification of an organic cotton grower by the spraying of chemicals. The substitute establishes an indemnity provision for the organic growers. SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION H.B. 2892 was considered by the committee in a public hearing on April 4, 1995. The following persons testified in favor of the bill: Mr. Woody Anderson representing himself and the Texas Boll Weevil Eradication Foundation; Mr. Wayne Huffaker representing himself and the Plains Cotton Growers; Mr. Craig D. Shook representing Texas Cotton Producers; Mr. Durwood Tucker representing the Texas Farm Bureau; and Mr. Ed Small representing the Texas Boll Weevil Eradication Foundation. The following persons testified against the bill: Mr. Laurance Kriegel representing himself and the Texas Organic Cotton Marketing Cooperative; Mr. James L. Wedel representing himself and the Texas Organic Cotton Marketing Cooperative; Mr. Terry Pepper representing himself; Mr. Cliff Bingham representing the Texas Organic Cotton Marketing Cooperative; Mr. Tommy D. Fondren representing himself; Mr. Joe Rankin representing himself and the Texas Farmers Union; Mr. Reggie James representing Consumers Union; and Mr. Scott Royder repenting the Sierra Club, Lone Star Chapter. The following person testified neutrally on the bill: Ms. Susan Pitman representing The Chemical Connection, A Public Health Network of Texans Sensitive to Chemicals. The bill was left pending. H.B. 2892 was considered by the committee in a public hearing on April 11, 1995. The committee considered a complete substitute for the bill. The substitute was withdrawn without objection. The bill was left pending. H.B. 2892 was considered by the committee in a formal meeting on April 11, 1995. The committee considered a complete substitute for the bill. The substitute was adopted without objection. The bill was reported favorably as substituted, with the recommendation that it do pass and be printed, by a record vote of 7 ayes, 0 nays, 0 pnv, and 2 absent.