1-1     By:  Delisi (Senate Sponsor - Fraser)                 H.B. No. 1460

 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House April 14, 1997;

 1-3     April 16, 1997, read first time and referred to Committee on

 1-4     Education; May 8, 1997, reported favorably by the following vote:

 1-5     Yeas 11, Nays 0; May 8, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-7                                   AN ACT

 1-8     relating to the name of a public junior or community college.

 1-9           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-10           SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 130, Education Code, is

1-11     amended by adding Section 130.0051 to read as follows:

1-12           Sec. 130.0051.  OTHER CHANGE OF NAME BY JUNIOR COLLEGE

1-13     DISTRICT.  (a)  The board of trustees of a junior college district

1-14     by resolution may change the name of the district or a college

1-15     within the district by eliminating the words "community" or

1-16     "junior" from the name of the district or college, unless the

1-17     change would cause the district or college to have the same or

1-18     substantially the same name as an existing district, college, or

1-19     other public or private institution of higher education in this

1-20     state.

1-21           (b)  The board of trustees shall file with the Texas Higher

1-22     Education Coordinating Board a copy of a resolution adopted under

1-23     Subsection (a) that is certified by the secretary of the board of

1-24     trustees.  The name change is effective on the date the resolution

1-25     is filed with the coordinating board. After a name change is filed,

1-26     the college or district shall use the new name in all official

1-27     actions, communications, or records.

1-28           SECTION 2.  Section 130.082(c), Education Code, is amended to

1-29     read as follows:

1-30           (c)  The official name of a junior college district shall be

1-31     the "__________ Junior College District" unless the board of

1-32     trustees of the district elects to call the district a community

1-33     college district, in which event the official name of the junior

1-34     college district shall be the "________ Community College

1-35     District."  The [and the] board shall designate an appropriate and

1-36     locally pertinent descriptive word or words to be filled in the

1-37     appropriate [aforesaid] blank (and may change such designation when

1-38     deemed advisable) by resolution or order;  provided that no two

1-39     districts shall have the same or substantially similar names. A

1-40     district may change its name under Section 130.005 or 130.0051. All

1-41     resolutions or orders designating or changing names shall  be filed

1-42     immediately with the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board[,

1-43     Texas College and University System,] and the first name filed

1-44     shall  have priority, and the district shall be advised of any

1-45     previous filing of any identical or substantially similar name.

1-46     The name of any junior college district existing on September 1,

1-47     1997, [the effective date of this code] shall remain the same until

1-48     and unless it is changed under this chapter [pursuant hereto], and

1-49     any change in the name of a junior college district made before

1-50     that date is validated and is deemed to have been properly made.

1-51     Another [no other] district may not [shall] use the name of any

1-52     [such existing] district whose name change is validated under this

1-53     subsection.

1-54           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

1-55           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-56     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

1-57     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

1-58     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

1-59     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.

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