1-1  By:  Jones of Dallas (Senate Sponsor - Cain)          H.B. No. 2540
    1-2        (In the Senate - Received from the House May 8, 1995;
    1-3  May 9, 1995, read first time and referred to Committee on State
    1-4  Affairs; May 22, 1995, reported favorably by the following vote:
    1-5  Yeas 10, Nays 0; May 22, 1995, sent to printer.)
    1-6                         A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-7                                AN ACT
    1-8  relating to allowing the Texas State Library and Archives
    1-9  Commission to assist public libraries with public information
   1-10  technology grants.
   1-11        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
   1-12        SECTION 1.  Section 441.135(b), Government Code, is amended
   1-13  to read as follows:
   1-14        (b)  The program of state grants shall include one or more of
   1-15  the following:
   1-16              (1)  system operation grants, to strengthen major
   1-17  resource system services to member public libraries and regional
   1-18  library system services to member libraries, including grants to
   1-19  reimburse other libraries for providing specialized services to
   1-20  major resource systems and regional library systems;
   1-21              (2)  incentive grants, to encourage public libraries to
   1-22  join together into larger units of service in order to meet
   1-23  criteria for major resource system membership or regional library
   1-24  system membership;
   1-25              (3)  establishment grants, to help establish public
   1-26  libraries that will qualify for major resource system membership or
   1-27  regional library system membership in communities without public
   1-28  library service; <and>
   1-29              (4)  equalization grants, to help public libraries in
   1-30  communities with relatively limited taxable resources to meet
   1-31  criteria for major resource system membership or regional library
   1-32  system membership; and
   1-33              (5)  public information technology grants, to help
   1-34  public libraries make state, local, and federal government
   1-35  information that is accessible through the Internet or electronic
   1-36  bulletin board systems available to the public through computer
   1-37  terminals at a library.
   1-38        SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
   1-39        SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
   1-40  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   1-41  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
   1-42  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   1-43  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
   1-44                               * * * * *