1-1     By:  Seaman, et al. (Senate Sponsor - Armbrister)     H.B. No. 1223
 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House May 10, 1999;
 1-3     May 10, 1999, read first time and referred to Committee on State
 1-4     Affairs; May 14, 1999, reported favorably by the following vote:
 1-5     Yeas 8, Nays 0; May 14, 1999, sent to printer.)
 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-7                                   AN ACT
 1-8     relating to a historical artifacts program under the Texas
 1-9     Historical Commission.
1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-11           SECTION 1.  Chapter 442, Government Code, is amended by
1-12     adding Section 442.0145 to read as follows:
1-13           Sec. 442.0145.  TEXAS HISTORICAL ARTIFACTS PROGRAM; FUND.
1-14     (a)  The commission shall administer a program to assist
1-15     municipalities, counties, museums, and county historical
1-16     commissions with the development or improvement of museum
1-17     facilities used to display historical artifacts discovered in Texas
1-18     that are significant in Texas or American history.
1-19           (b)  The Texas Historical Artifacts Program fund is created
1-20     as a separate account in the general revenue fund.  The fund is
1-21     composed of  money appropriated to the fund, money deposited to the
1-22     fund under Subsection (c), and interest received from investments
1-23     of money in the fund that the comptroller shall allocate to the
1-24     fund. Sections 403.095 and 404.071 do not apply to the fund or to
1-25     interest received from investments of money in the fund. Money in
1-26     the fund may be spent only as provided by the commission under this
1-27     section.
1-28           (c)  The commission may accept, for deposit in the Texas
1-29     Historical Artifacts Program fund, grants or other donations from
1-30     any source.
1-31           (d)  The commission shall establish rules governing the use,
1-32     administration, and distribution of the Texas Historical Artifacts
1-33     Program fund. The rules must ensure that money in the fund is used
1-34     only for the purposes prescribed by Subsection (a), including
1-35     paying the expenses of administering the program.
1-36           SECTION 2.  The importance of this legislation and the
1-37     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
1-38     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
1-39     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
1-40     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
1-41     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
1-42     passage, and it is so enacted.
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