By Serna                                               H.B. No. 724

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to transfers of contributions to the optional retirement

 1-3     program for faculty members of institutions of higher education.

 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 830.202, Government Code, is amended by

 1-6     amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsections (e) and (f) to read

 1-7     as follows:

 1-8           (c)  The disbursing officer of an institution of higher

 1-9     education and, if applicable, of the Texas [Central] Education

1-10     Agency shall pay the contributions collected under this section to

1-11     a [the] company providing an [the] optional retirement program for

1-12     that institution not later than the third business day after the

1-13     date the funds become legally available.  If possible, the

1-14     disbursing officer shall send the state's contributions and the

1-15     participants' contributions together, and otherwise shall send the

1-16     participants' contributions at the time of withholding and the

1-17     state's contributions on receipt from the comptroller.

1-18           (e)  The disbursing officer of an institution of higher

1-19     education and, if applicable, of the Texas Education Agency, shall:

1-20                 (1)  send contributions to a company providing an

1-21     optional retirement program for the institution by electronic

1-22     transfer; or

1-23                 (2)  certify to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating

1-24     Board that the company is unable to receive funds by electronic

 2-1     transfer and send  contributions by paper check.

 2-2           (f)  At least once each fiscal year, an institution of higher

 2-3     education and the Texas Education Agency shall give notice to each

 2-4     participant in the optional retirement program at the institution

 2-5     or agency indicating which companies are unable to receive funds by

 2-6     electronic transfer.

 2-7           SECTION 2.  (a)  In addition to the substantive changes made

 2-8     by this Act, this Act conforms Section 830.202(c), Government

 2-9     Code, to Section 80, Chapter 260, Acts of the 74th Legislature,

2-10     Regular Session, 1995.

2-11           (b)  To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails over

2-12     another Act of the 75th Legislature, Regular Session, 1997,

2-13     relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted

2-14     codes.

2-15           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

2-16           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-17     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-18     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-19     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-20     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.