1-1     By:  Jones of Dallas (Senate Sponsor - Bernsen)       H.B. No. 1227
 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House May 5, 1999;
 1-3     May 6, 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 7, Nays 0; May 14, 1999, sent to printer.)
 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-7                                   AN ACT
 1-8     relating to special license plates to support reading programs of
 1-9     public libraries.
1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-11           SECTION 1.  Subchapter F, Chapter 502, Transportation Code,
1-12     is amended by adding Section 502.2663 to read as follows:
1-13           Sec. 502.2663.  NEW MILLENNIUM LICENSE PLATES.  (a)  The
1-14     department shall issue specially designed new millennium license
1-15     plates for passenger cars and light trucks.
1-16           (b)  The license plates must bear the words "New Millennium"
1-17     and be of a color, quality, and design approved by the department
1-18     from entries submitted by middle school students in a competition
1-19     conducted by the department.
1-20           (c)  The department shall issue license plates under this
1-21     section to a person who:
1-22                 (1)  applies to the assessor-collector of the county in
1-23     which the person resides on the form for original registration or
1-24     annual renewal of registration provided by the department; and
1-25                 (2)  pays an annual fee in the amount set under
1-26     Subsection (d), in addition to the fee prescribed by Section
1-27     502.161 and, if personalized prestige license plates are issued, in
1-28     addition to the fee prescribed by Section 502.251.
1-29           (d)  The department shall set the annual fee for license
1-30     plates under this section at:
1-31                 (1)  an amount, not to exceed $5, necessary to
1-32     administer this section; and
1-33                 (2)  an additional amount of:
1-34                       (A)  $25 for each set of plates, except as
1-35     provided by Paragraph (B); or
1-36                       (B)  $15 for each set of plates, if the person is
1-37     purchasing plates under this section for a fleet of 50 or more
1-38     vehicles.
1-39           (e)  The fee collected under Subsection (d)(1) may be used
1-40     only to defray the cost of administering this section.
1-41           (f)  The department shall deposit each fee collected under
1-42     Subsection (d)(2) to the credit of an account in the general
1-43     revenue fund to be known as the new millennium reading program
1-44     account.  Money from the account may be used only to make grants
1-45     under Section 441.0092, Government Code.  The account is composed
1-46     of:
1-47                 (1)  money required to be deposited to the credit of
1-48     the account under this subsection; and
1-49                 (2)  donations made to the account.
1-50           SECTION 2.  Subchapter A, Chapter 441, Government Code, is
1-51     amended by adding Section 441.0092 to read as follows:
1-52           Sec. 441.0092.  NEW MILLENNIUM READING PROGRAM GRANTS.  (a)
1-53     From money in the new millennium reading program account the
1-54     commission shall make grants to fund programs to promote reading
1-55     provided by public libraries.
1-56           (b)  The commission shall:
1-57                 (1)  determine standards that a reading promotion
1-58     program must meet to be eligible for a grant under this section;
1-59                 (2)  provide procedures for application for a grant;
1-60     and
1-61                 (3)  determine the recipient and amount of each grant.
1-62           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
1-63           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
1-64     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
 2-1     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
 2-2     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
 2-3     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
 2-4                                  * * * * *