By Cuellar, Pitts, et al.                               H.B. No. 66

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to unfunded state mandates on political subdivisions.

 1-3           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-4           SECTION 1.  Subtitle B, Title 3, Government Code, is amended

 1-5     by adding Chapter 320 to read as follows:

 1-6          CHAPTER 320.  UNFUNDED MANDATES ON POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS

 1-7           Sec. 320.001.  DEFINITIONS.  In this chapter:

 1-8                 (1)  "Interagency work group" means the unfunded

 1-9     mandates interagency work group.

1-10                 (2)  "State mandate" means a requirement made by a

1-11     statute enacted by the legislature on or after January 1, 1997,

1-12     that requires a political subdivision to establish, expand, or

1-13     modify an activity in a way that requires the expenditure of

1-14     revenue by the political subdivision that would not have been

1-15     required in the absence of the statutory provision.

1-16           Sec. 320.002.  UNFUNDED MANDATES INTERAGENCY WORK GROUP.  (a)

1-17     The unfunded mandates interagency work group consists of:

1-18                 (1)  the state auditor;

1-19                 (2)  the director of the Legislative Budget Board;

1-20                 (3)  the director of the Sunset Advisory Commission;

1-21                 (4)  the comptroller;

1-22                 (5)  a senator appointed by the lieutenant governor;

1-23     and

1-24                 (6)  a house member appointed by the speaker of the

 2-1     house of representatives.

 2-2           (b)  A member of the interagency work group is not entitled

 2-3     to additional compensation for service on the work group.

 2-4           (c)  A member of the interagency work group may use any

 2-5     person employed by the member's agency to complete the member's

 2-6     work on the interagency work group.

 2-7           (d)  The members of the interagency work group may enter into

 2-8     an interagency memorandum of understanding regarding the completion

 2-9     of the work required by this chapter.

2-10           (e)  The interagency work group shall:

2-11                 (1)  compile a list of unfunded mandates under the

2-12     requirements of Section 320.003; and

2-13                 (2)  present, at the time of each regular legislative

2-14     session, to the legislature and governor a report on the unfunded

2-15     mandates scheduled to be reviewed under Section 320.004.

2-16           Sec. 320.003.  LIST OF UNFUNDED MANDATES.  (a)  On or before

2-17     the September 1 following a regular session of the legislature and

2-18     on or before the 90th day after the last day of a special session

2-19     of the legislature, the interagency work group shall publish a list

2-20     of mandates for which the legislature has not provided

2-21     reimbursement under Subsection (b) and that were enacted by the

2-22     legislature during that legislative session.  By that same date the

2-23     interagency work group shall remove from the list of mandates for a

2-24     previous legislative session those mandates for which the

2-25     legislature has provided reimbursement under Subsection (b), those

2-26     that are no longer subject to reimbursement, and those that are no

2-27     longer in effect.

 3-1           (b)  A mandate is considered to be a mandate for which the

 3-2     legislature has provided reimbursement if the legislature:

 3-3                 (1)  by statute enacted by a record vote of two-thirds

 3-4     of the members elected to each house expressly provides that the

 3-5     mandate is not subject to reimbursement under this section; or

 3-6                 (2)  appropriates or otherwise provides for the payment

 3-7     or reimbursement, from a source other than revenue of the political

 3-8     subdivision, of the costs incurred in the calendar year by the

 3-9     political subdivision in complying with the mandate.

3-10           (c)  This section does not apply to a mandate:

3-11                 (1)  not included in the appropriate list of mandates

3-12     published by the interagency work group under this section;

3-13                 (2)  imposed by the legislature or a state agency to

3-14     comply with a requirement of the Texas Constitution, federal law,

3-15     or a court order or to maximize the receipt of federal funds by the

3-16     state in areas such as education, health and human services, and

3-17     criminal justice; or

3-18                 (3)  approved by the voters of this state at a general

3-19     election.

3-20           Sec. 320.004.  REVIEW OF UNFUNDED MANDATES.  (a)  Before

3-21     September 1 of the even-numbered year before the third anniversary

3-22     of the date of enactment of a mandate identified by the interagency

3-23     work group under Section 320.003, the interagency work group shall:

3-24                 (1)  review the legislative history of the mandate;

3-25                 (2)  conduct an evaluation on the benefits of the

3-26     mandate and the costs of the mandate on affected political

3-27     subdivisions; and

 4-1                 (3)  present a written report to the legislature and

 4-2     the governor on the interagency work group's findings.

 4-3           (b)  During the regular session immediately following the

 4-4     issuance of a report under Subsection (a), the legislature by law

 4-5     may continue the mandate for a period not to exceed three years, by

 4-6     law may repeal the mandate, or may take no action on the mandate.

 4-7           SECTION 2.  The importance of this legislation and the

 4-8     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

 4-9     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

4-10     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

4-11     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,

4-12     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its

4-13     passage, and it is so enacted.