1-1     By:  Chisum (Senate Sponsor - Fraser)                 H.B. No. 3125
 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House May 3, 1999;
 1-3     May 4, 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 the management of vehicles owned by the state.
 1-9           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-10           SECTION 1.  Section 2171.101, Government Code, is amended by
1-11     adding Subsections (d) and (e) to read as follows:
1-12           (d)  The office shall file an annual report with the
1-13     legislature containing:
1-14                 (1)  vehicle information submitted by state agencies;
1-15     and
1-16                 (2)  the names of state agencies that fail to report
1-17     complete vehicle information.
1-18           (e)  The office shall review the operation of each state
1-19     agency's vehicle fleet and report to the legislature not later than
1-20     January 1 of each odd-numbered year the status of the agency's
1-21     vehicle fleet and the office's recommendations to improve
1-22     operations of the agency's vehicle fleet.
1-23           SECTION 2.  Subchapter C, Chapter 2171, Government Code, is
1-24     amended by adding Sections 2171.104, 2171.1045, and 2171.105 to
1-25     read as follows:
1-26           Sec. 2171.104.  MANAGEMENT PLAN.  (a)  The office of vehicle
1-27     fleet management, as directed by the State Council on Competitive
1-28     Government, shall develop a management plan with detailed
1-29     recommendations for improving the administration and operation of
1-30     the state's vehicle fleet.
1-31           (b)  The Texas Department of Transportation, Department of
1-32     Public Safety of the State of Texas, Texas Department of Mental
1-33     Health and Mental Retardation, Parks and Wildlife Department, and
1-34     Texas Department of Criminal Justice shall assist the office of
1-35     vehicle fleet management in preparing the management plan for the
1-36     state's vehicle fleet.
1-37           (c)  The management plan must address:
1-38                 (1)  opportunities for consolidating and privatizing
1-39     the operation and management of vehicle fleets in areas where there
1-40     is a concentration of state agencies, including the Capitol Complex
1-41     and the Health and Human Services Complex in Austin;
1-42                 (2)  the number and type of vehicles owned by each
1-43     agency and the purpose each vehicle serves;
1-44                 (3)  procedures to increase vehicle use and improve the
1-45     efficiency of the state vehicle fleet;
1-46                 (4)  procedures to reduce the cost of maintaining state
1-47     vehicles;
1-48                 (5)  the sale of excess state vehicles; and
1-49                 (6)  lower-cost alternatives to using state-owned
1-50     vehicles, including:
1-51                       (A)  using rental cars; and
1-52                       (B)  reimbursing employees for using personal
1-53     vehicles.
1-54           (d)  The commission shall sell the excess vehicles identified
1-55     by the management plan and deposit the proceeds from the sale into
1-56     the account that the agency used to purchase the vehicles.
1-57           Sec. 2171.1045.  RESTRICTIONS ON ASSIGNMENT OF VEHICLES.
1-58     Each state agency shall adopt rules, consistent with the management
1-59     plan adopted under Section 2171.104, relating to the assignment and
1-60     use of the agency's vehicles.  The rules must require that:
1-61                 (1)  each agency vehicle, with the exception of a
1-62     vehicle assigned to a field employee, be assigned to the agency
1-63     motor pool and be available for checkout; and
1-64                 (2)  an agency may assign a vehicle to an individual
 2-1     administrative or executive employee on a regular or everyday basis
 2-2     only if the agency makes a written documented finding that the
 2-3     assignment is critical to the needs and mission of the agency.
 2-4           Sec. 2171.105.  PURCHASE OF VEHICLES PROHIBITED.  (a)  Except
 2-5     as provided by Subsections (b) and (c), a state agency may not
 2-6     purchase a vehicle before June 1, 2000, unless the purchase is
 2-7     approved by the commission. On or after June 1, 2000, a state
 2-8     agency may purchase a vehicle as provided by the management plan.
 2-9           (b)  A state agency may purchase a vehicle for law
2-10     enforcement, emergency, or safety purposes or for performing crash
2-11     tests or related research.
2-12           (c)  A state agency may purchase heavy equipment, including
2-13     tractors, bulldozers, and vehicles designed to transport 15 persons
2-14     or more, if the agency has purchased heavy equipment in previous
2-15     years.
2-16           (d)  This section expires September 1, 2001.
2-17           SECTION 3.  (a)  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
2-18           (b)  The office of vehicle fleet management shall prepare the
2-19     management plan required by Section 2171.104, Government Code, as
2-20     added by this Act, and present the plan to the legislature not
2-21     later than May 31, 2000.
2-22           (c)  The General Services Commission shall sell the excess
2-23     vehicles identified by the management plan adopted under Section
2-24     2171.104, Government Code, as added by this Act, not later than
2-25     August 31, 2001.
2-26           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
2-27     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-28     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-29     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-30     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
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