By Culberson                                          H.B. No. 2344
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the transfer of funds to optional retirement programs
 1-3     for certain employees of public schools.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1.  Chapter 22, Acts of the 57th Legislature, 3rd
 1-6     Called Session, 1962 (Article 6228a-5, Vernon's Texas Civil
 1-7     Statutes), is amended by adding Section 4 to read as follows:
 1-8           Sec. 4.  (a)  Local boards of education of the public schools
 1-9     of this  state shall send an employee's funds covered under Section
1-10     1 of this Act to the  employee's designee not later than the fifth
1-11     day after the date the funds become legally available.
1-12           (b)  Local boards of education of the public schools of this
1-13     state shall:
1-14                 (1)  send funds  under Section 1 of this Act to an
1-15     employee's designee by electronic transfer; or
1-16                 (2)  certify to the comptroller that the employee's
1-17     designee is unable to receive funds by electronic transfer and send
1-18     contributions by paper check.
1-19           (c)  At least once each fiscal year, local boards of
1-20     education of the public schools of this state shall give notice to
1-21     each participating employee indicating whether the employee's
1-22     designee is able to receive funds by electronic transfer.
1-23           SECTION 2.  Subchapter B, Chapter 609, Government Code, is
1-24     amended by adding Section 609.1085 to  read as follows:
 2-1           Sec. 609.1085.  INVESTMENT OF DEFERRED AMOUNTS AND INCOME BY
 2-2     INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICTS.  (a)  The plan administrator of an
 2-3     independent school district shall send an employee's deferred
 2-4     amount or investment income for investment in the employee's
 2-5     qualified investment product not later than the fifth day after the
 2-6     date the deferred amount or investment income becomes legally
 2-7     available.
 2-8           (b)  The plan administrator of an independent school district
 2-9     shall:
2-10                 (1)  send a deferred amount or investment income for
2-11     investment in an employee's qualified investment product by
2-12     electronic transfer; or
2-13                 (2)  certify to the comptroller that the employee's
2-14     qualified investment product is unable to receive the deferred
2-15     amount or investment income by electronic transfer and send the
2-16     deferred amount or investment income by paper check.
2-17           (c)  At least once each fiscal year, the plan administrator
2-18     of an independent school district shall give notice to each
2-19     participating employee indicating whether the employee's qualified
2-20     investment product is able to receive the employee's deferred
2-21     amounts or investment income by electronic transfer.
2-22           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
2-23           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
2-24     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-25     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-26     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-27     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.