By Armbrister                                          S.R. No. 979

         75R17470 PAM-D                           

                                 R E S O L U T I O N

 1-1           BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the State of Texas, 75th

 1-2     Legislature, Regular Session, 1997, That Senate Rule 12.03 be

 1-3     suspended in part as provided by Senate Rule 12.08 to enable the

 1-4     conference committee appointed to resolve the differences on S.B.

 1-5     No. 700 to consider and take action on the following matters:

 1-6           Senate Rule 12.03(4) is suspended to permit the committee to

 1-7     add a new SECTION 24 to the bill to read as follows:

 1-8           SECTION 24.  Section 74.3012, Property Code, is amended to

 1-9     read as follows:

1-10           Sec. 74.3012.  DELIVERY OF MONEY TO TEXAS NEW HORIZONS

1-11     [URBAN] SCHOLARSHIP TRUST FUND.  (a)  The comptroller shall pay any

1-12     portion of the total amount delivered by local exchange companies

1-13     under this chapter in excess of $2 million in any state fiscal year

1-14     to the Texas New Horizons Scholarship Trust Fund established under

1-15     Section 54.216, Education Code [Notwithstanding and in addition to

1-16     any other provision of this chapter or other law, a local exchange

1-17     company may deliver reported money to a scholarship fund for urban

1-18     students instead of delivering the money to the state treasurer as

1-19     prescribed by Section 74.301].

1-20           (b)  [A local exchange company may deliver the money under

1-21     this section only to a scholarship fund established by one or more

1-22     local exchange companies in this state to enable needy students

1-23     from urban areas to attend college, technical school, or another

1-24     postsecondary educational institution.]

 2-1           [(c)  A local exchange company shall file with the state

 2-2     treasurer a verification of money delivered under this section that

 2-3     complies with Section 74.302.]

 2-4           [(d)  A claim for money delivered to a scholarship fund under

 2-5     this section must be filed with the local exchange company that

 2-6     delivered the money.  The local exchange company shall forward the

 2-7     claim to the administrator of the scholarship fund to which the

 2-8     money was delivered.  The scholarship fund shall pay the claim if

 2-9     the fund determines in good faith that the claim is valid.  A

2-10     person aggrieved by a claim decision may file a suit against the

2-11     fund in a district court in the county in which the administrator

2-12     of the scholarship fund is located in accordance with Section

2-13     74.506.]

2-14           [(e)  The state treasurer shall prescribe forms and

2-15     procedures governing this section, including forms and procedures

2-16     relating to:]

2-17                 [(1)  notice of presumed abandoned property;]

2-18                 [(2)  delivery of reported money to a scholarship fund;

2-19     and]

2-20                 [(3)  filing of a claim.]

2-21           [(f)]  In this section, "local exchange company" means a

2-22     telecommunications utility certificated to provide local exchange

2-23     telephone service within the state and that has 50,000 or more

2-24     access lines in service in this state and is not a telephone

2-25     cooperative.

2-26           [(g)  During the 1995-1996 fiscal year, the total amount of

2-27     money that may be transferred by all local exchange companies under

 3-1     this section may not exceed $400,000.  During each subsequent state

 3-2     fiscal year, the total amount of money that may be transferred by

 3-3     all local exchange companies under this section may not exceed the

 3-4     total amount of money transferred to rural scholarship funds under

 3-5     Section 74.3011 during the previous state fiscal year.  The state

 3-6     treasury shall keep a record of the total amount of money

 3-7     transferred annually.  If the total amount of money transferred

 3-8     during a state fiscal year equals the amount allowed by this

 3-9     subsection, the treasury shall notify each local exchange company

3-10     that the company may not transfer any additional money to the

3-11     company's scholarship fund during the remainder of that state

3-12     fiscal year.]

3-13           Explanation:  This change is necessary to authorize the

3-14     comptroller to transfer to the Texas New Horizons Scholarship Trust

3-15     Fund amounts in excess of $2 million delivered by

3-16     telecommunications utilities under the unclaimed property statutes.