1-1     By:  Alexander (Senate Sponsor - Ratliff)             H.B. No. 2491

 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House May 7, 1997;

 1-3     May 8, 1997, read first time and referred to Committee on

 1-4     Education; May 18, 1997, reported adversely, with favorable

 1-5     Committee Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 9, Nays 0;

 1-6     May 18, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-7     COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 2491                  By:  Bivins

 1-8                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-9                                   AN ACT

1-10     relating to participation by community colleges in the state

1-11     employee charitable contribution program.

1-12           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-13           SECTION 1.  Subchapter H, Chapter 659, Government Code, as

1-14     added by Chapter 76, Acts of the 74th Legislature, Regular Session,

1-15     1995, is amended by adding Section 659.1311 to read as follows:

1-16           Sec. 659.1311.  PUBLIC JUNIOR COLLEGES.  (a)  For purposes of

1-17     this subchapter, a public junior college is considered to be an

1-18     institution of higher education and employees of the public junior

1-19     college are considered to be state employees during a state fiscal

1-20     year unless an affirmative decision not to participate under this

1-21     subchapter is made by the governing board of the public junior

1-22     college not later than April 1 of the preceding state fiscal year.

1-23           (b)  An employee of a public junior college that elects not

1-24     to participate in the state employee charitable contribution

1-25     program may authorize a deduction from the employee's salary or

1-26     wage payment for a charitable contribution as provided by the

1-27     policy of the governing board of the public junior college.

1-28           (c)  Participation by an employee of a public junior college

1-29     under this section is voluntary.

1-30           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

1-31           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-32     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

1-33     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

1-34     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

1-35     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.

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