HBA-MPM H.B. 597 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 597 By: Flores Public Education 6/7/1999 Enrolled BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Prior to the 76th Legislative Session, state agencies were required by law to give preference to Texas agricultural products during their food purchasing process, if the Texas product was equal in cost and quality to those produced elsewhere. Due to a lack of enforcement, vagueness of current law, and variances in agricultural products' packaging specifications, most school districts in Texas bought only a small percentage of Texas-grown or processed agricultural products. An increase in purchases by Texas bidders could mean additional dollars not only for Texas farmers, but for the state's economy. H.B. 597 requires school districts to give preference to products produced, processed, or grown in Texas if the cost to the districts is equal and the quality is equal. This bill also requires districts to give preference to Texas vegetation, including plants, for landscaping purposes. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Subchapter B, Chapter 44, Education Code, by adding Section 44.042, as follows: Sec. 44.042. PREFERENCE TO TEXAS AND UNITED STATES PRODUCTS. (a) Requires a school district (district) that purchases agricultural products (products) to give preference to those produced, processed, or grown in this state if the cost and quality are comparable. (b) Requires a district, if products produced, processed, or grown in this state are not equal in cost and quality, to give preference to those produced, processed, or grown in other states of the United States over foreign products if the cost and quality are equal. (c) Requires a district to give preference to Texas vegetation in purchases of vegetation for landscaping purposes, including plants, if the cost is equal and the quality is not inferior. (d) Requires the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to conduct an analysis of purchases by districts to determine the effectiveness of this section and to report the analysis results to the governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker of the house of representatives no later than December 31 of each even-numbered year. (e) Authorizes a district to receive assistance from and use the resources of the Texas Department of Agriculture, including information on availability of agricultural products. (f) Prohibits a district from adopting purchasing specifications that unnecessarily exclude agricultural products produced, processed, or grown in this state. (g) Defines "agricultural products" and "processed" for purposes of this section. SECTION 2. Requires TEA to conduct an analysis of purchases by districts to determine the effectiveness of this Act and to report the results to the governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker of the house of representatives no later than January 1, 2001. SECTION 3. Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 4. Emergency clause.