By Ellis                                        S.B. No. 1527

      75R7699 JRD-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to establishing a home buyer education program.

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

 1-4           SECTION 1.  Subchapter K, Chapter 2306, Government Code, is

 1-5     amended by adding Section 2306.253 to read as follows:

 1-6           Sec. 2306.253.  HOME BUYER EDUCATION PROGRAM.  (a)  The

 1-7     department shall develop and implement a statewide home buyer

 1-8     education program designed to provide information and counseling to

 1-9     prospective home buyers about the home buying process. The

1-10     department shall implement the program by cooperating with the

1-11     Texas Agricultural Extension Service, the Real Estate Research

1-12     Center at Texas A&M University, other appropriate state agencies,

1-13     experienced providers of home buyer education, mortgage lenders,

1-14     the Federal National Mortgage Association, the Neighborhood

1-15     Reinvestment Corporation, and other appropriate organizations to

1-16     develop and provide a standard system of instruction, curriculum,

1-17     and counseling.

1-18           (b)  The department and the entities with which it is

1-19     cooperating shall make full use of existing training and

1-20     informational materials available from sources such as the federal

1-21     Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Neighborhood

1-22     Reinvestment Corporation.

1-23           (c)  To pay the costs of providing the information and

1-24     counseling to prospective home buyers in this state, the department

 2-1     may use money available to the department for housing purposes that

 2-2     the department is not prohibited from spending on the home buyer

 2-3     education program, including:

 2-4                 (1)  the amount of administrative or service fees the

 2-5     department receives from the issuance or refunding of bonds that

 2-6     exceeds the amount the department needs to pay its overhead costs

 2-7     in administering its bond programs; and

 2-8                 (2)  money the department receives from other entities

 2-9     by gift or grant or under a contract.

2-10           (d)  The department annually shall report to the legislature

2-11     the number of home loans made in this state during the previous

2-12     year to persons and families of low income, of moderate income, and

2-13     of high income.

2-14           SECTION 2.  The Texas Department of Housing and Community

2-15     Affairs shall implement throughout the state the home buyer

2-16     education program established under Section 2306.253, Government

2-17     Code, as added by this Act, not later than January 31, 1999.

2-18           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-19     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-20     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-21     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-22     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,

2-23     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its

2-24     passage, and it is so enacted.