1-1     By:  Ellis                                             S.B. No. 851

 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed February 27, 1997; March 5, 1997, read

 1-3     first time and referred to Committee on State Affairs;

 1-4     April 11, 1997, reported favorably by the following vote:  Yeas 13,

 1-5     Nays 0; April 11, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-7                                   AN ACT

 1-8     relating to including a multiracial classification on all forms

 1-9     requesting information on racial identification and providing for

1-10     reporting racial information to federal agencies.

1-11           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-12           SECTION 1.  Chapter 2051, Government Code, is amended by

1-13     adding Subchapter D to read as follows:

1-14          SUBCHAPTER D.  REQUESTING RACIAL OR ETHNIC IDENTIFICATION

1-15           Sec. 2051.101.  DEFINITIONS.  In this chapter:

1-16                 (1)  "Multiracial" means having parents of different

1-17     races.

1-18                 (2)  "State agency" means a department, board,

1-19     commission, committee, or other agency in any branch of state

1-20     government.

1-21           Sec. 2051.102.  MULTIRACIAL CLASSIFICATION REQUIRED.  A form,

1-22     application, questionnaire, or other document or material produced

1-23     by or for or used by any state agency or political subdivision that

1-24     requests information on the racial or ethnic identification of a

1-25     person and that contains a list of racial and ethnic

1-26     classifications from which a person must select one must include

1-27     among the choices a multiracial classification.

1-28           Sec. 2051.103.  FEDERAL REQUIREMENTS.  Whenever it is

1-29     required that racial information collected by a state agency or

1-30     political subdivision be reported to a federal agency, the

1-31     computation of the number of persons classified on forms or other

1-32     documents as multiracial shall be reported by the agency or

1-33     political subdivision under the multiracial classification.

1-34     However, if the federal agency considers the multiracial

1-35     classification unacceptable, the reporting state agency or

1-36     political subdivision shall, on resubmission of the information,

1-37     reclassify the multiracial population by allocating a percentage of

1-38     the number of persons composing that population to each federally

1-39     acceptable racial or ethnic classification at the same percentage

1-40     that the classification composes in the general population of the

1-41     collected group.

1-42           SECTION 2.  Chapter 1, Education Code, is amended by adding

1-43     Section 1.004 to read as follows:

1-44           Sec. 1.004.  MULTIRACIAL CLASSIFICATION REQUIRED.  (a)  In

1-45     this section, "multiracial" means having parents of different

1-46     races.

1-47           (b)  A form, application, questionnaire, or other document or

1-48     material produced by or for or used by any public school district

1-49     or state institution of higher education that requests information

1-50     on the racial or ethnic identification of a person and that

1-51     contains a list of racial and ethnic classifications from which a

1-52     person must select one must include among the choices a multiracial

1-53     classification.

1-54           (c)  Whenever it is required that racial information

1-55     collected by a public school district or state institution of

1-56     higher education be reported to a federal agency, the computation

1-57     of the number of persons classified on forms or other documents as

1-58     multiracial shall be reported by the public school district or

1-59     state institution of higher education under the multiracial

1-60     classification.  However, if the federal agency considers the

1-61     multiracial classification unacceptable, the reporting public

1-62     school district or state institution of higher education shall, on

1-63     resubmission of the information, reclassify the multiracial

1-64     population by allocating a percentage of the number of persons

 2-1     composing that population to each federally acceptable racial or

 2-2     ethnic classification at the same percentage that the

 2-3     classification composes in the general population of the collected

 2-4     group.

 2-5           SECTION 3.  Chapter 52, Labor Code, is amended by adding

 2-6     Subchapter G to read as follows:

 2-7          SUBCHAPTER G.  REQUESTING RACIAL OR ETHNIC IDENTIFICATION

 2-8           Sec. 52.061.  DEFINITION.  In this subchapter, "multiracial"

 2-9     means having parents of different races.

2-10           Sec. 52.062.  MULTIRACIAL CLASSIFICATION REQUESTED.  A form,

2-11     application, questionnaire, or other document or material produced

2-12     by or for or used by any person employing labor in this state that

2-13     requests information on the racial or ethnic identification of an

2-14     employee and that contains a list of racial and ethnic

2-15     classifications from which the employee must select one should

2-16     include among the choices a multiracial classification.

2-17           Sec. 52.063.  CAUSE OF ACTION NOT CREATED.  The failure of a

2-18     person to comply with this subchapter does not create any civil

2-19     cause of action.

2-20           Sec. 52.064.  FEDERAL REQUIREMENTS.  Whenever it is required

2-21     that racial information collected by a person subject to this

2-22     subchapter be reported to a federal agency and the federal agency

2-23     considers reporting under the multiracial classification

2-24     unacceptable, the person subject to this subchapter shall report

2-25     the information in the manner acceptable to the federal agency.

2-26           SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997, but the

2-27     requirements of Subchapter D, Chapter 2051, Government Code;

2-28     Section 1.004, Education Code; and Subchapter G, Chapter 52, Labor

2-29     Code, as added by this Act, apply only to forms, applications,

2-30     questionnaires, and other documents or materials used after January

2-31     1, 1998.  In addition, all documents and materials printed and in

2-32     stock on January 1, 1998, that do not include a multiracial

2-33     classification may be used after that date and the stock depleted

2-34     before documents and materials that comply with this Act are

2-35     ordered.

2-36           SECTION 5.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-37     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-38     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-39     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-40     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.

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