By Keffer                                             H.B. No. 2415
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to a junior college district branch campus, center, or
 1-3     extension facility.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 130.086, Education Code, is amended by
 1-6     amending Subsections (a), (c), (d), and (f) and by adding
 1-7     Subsections (g) and (h) to read as follows:
 1-8           (a)  The board of trustees of a junior college district may
 1-9     establish and operate branch campuses, centers, or extension
1-10     facilities within the junior college district's service area [,
1-11     without regard to the geographical bounds of the junior college
1-12     district], provided that each branch campus, center, or extension
1-13     facility and each course or program offered in such locations is
1-14     subject to the prior and continuing approval of the Texas Higher
1-15     Education Coordinating Board[, Texas College and University
1-16     System].
1-17           (c)  The board of trustees of a junior college district may
1-18     accept or acquire by purchase or rent land and facilities in the
1-19     name of the junior college district within the junior college
1-20     district's service area [without regard to the geographical bounds
1-21     of the junior college district].
1-22           (d)  Before any course may be offered by a public junior
1-23     college within the service area [district] of another operating
1-24     public junior college, it must be established that the second
 2-1     public junior college is not capable of or is unable to offer the
 2-2     course.  [If the course is to be offered in a county which has a
 2-3     population of more than 115,000 persons, according to the last
 2-4     preceding federal census, and which has no state-supported senior
 2-5     college or university within its boundaries, it must also be
 2-6     established that any other college or university in the county is
 2-7     not able and willing to offer the course.]  After the need is
 2-8     established and the course is not locally available, then the first
 2-9     public junior college may offer the course when approval is granted
2-10     by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board[, under the
2-11     provisions of Subsection (a)].
2-12           (f)  Notwithstanding Subchapter J, the service area of a
2-13     junior college district does not include territory within the
2-14     boundaries of the taxing district of another junior college
2-15     district.  If a branch campus, center, or extension facility
2-16     operated by a junior college district outside its taxing district
2-17     becomes located within the taxing district of another junior
2-18     college district when the other district is established or annexes
2-19     the territory that includes the campus, center, or facility, the
2-20     junior college district operating the campus, center, or facility
2-21     must discontinue the campus, center, or facility within a
2-22     reasonable period, not to exceed one academic year.  The junior
2-23     college district in which the campus, center, or facility is
2-24     located must fairly compensate the junior college district that
2-25     discontinues the campus, center, or facility for any capital
2-26     improvements that the discontinuing district acquired or
2-27     constructed for the campus, center, or facility, to the extent the
 3-1     discontinuing district is otherwise unable to recover the current
 3-2     value of its investment in that capital improvement, as determined
 3-3     by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board [Out-of-district
 3-4     branch campuses, centers, or extension facilities of junior
 3-5     colleges existing prior to September 1, 1971, shall be reviewed by
 3-6     the Coordinating Board, Texas College and University System, to
 3-7     determine their feasibility and desirability with respect to the
 3-8     junior college and the population of the geographical area served
 3-9     by the branch campus, center, or extension facility].
3-10           (g)  Subsections (a) and (c) do not apply to a branch campus,
3-11     center, or extension facility that is established before September
3-12     1, 1999.
3-13           (h)  This section does not affect the authority of the Texas
3-14     Higher Education Coordinating Board regarding the continued
3-15     operation of a branch campus, center, or extension facility.
3-16           SECTION 2.  Section 130.087(k), Education Code, is amended to
3-17     read as follows:
3-18           (k)  The proceeds of the junior college district branch
3-19     campus maintenance tax may be used only to operate and maintain a
3-20     junior college district branch campus and to support its programs
3-21     and services [only] in the area of a jurisdiction that levies a
3-22     junior college district branch campus maintenance tax to operate,
3-23     maintain, and support the same junior college district branch
3-24     campus [:]
3-25                 [(1)  the area of the jurisdiction levying the junior
3-26     college district branch campus maintenance tax; or]
3-27                 [(2)  the area of a jurisdiction contiguous to the
 4-1     jurisdiction levying the tax that also levies a junior college
 4-2     district branch campus maintenance tax to operate, maintain, and
 4-3     support the same junior college district branch campus].
 4-4           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
 4-5           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
 4-6     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
 4-7     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
 4-8     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
 4-9     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.