By Carona                                             S.B. No. 1529
         76R3754 JJT-D                           
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the management of software and software licenses by
 1-3     state agencies.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1.  Subchapter F, Chapter 2054, Government Code, is
 1-6     amended by adding Sections 2054.121 and 2054.122 to read as
 1-7     follows:
 1-8           Sec. 2054.121.  STATE AGENCY SOFTWARE PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
 1-9     TRAINING.  (a)  The department, General Services Commission, state
1-10     auditor, and comptroller shall create an interagency panel of
1-11     representatives appointed by those agencies and officers to develop
1-12     and establish a training program to assist state agencies in
1-13     performing software audits, managing software, and purchasing
1-14     software and software licenses.  Each state agency shall cooperate
1-15     with the panel in the evaluation of the agency's needs for software
1-16     management and shall donate agency resources to the evaluation of
1-17     the agency as the panel requires.
1-18           (b)  The interagency panel initially shall concentrate on the
1-19     software purchasing and management needs of the 20 state agencies
1-20     that have the largest amounts budgeted for expenditures related to
1-21     software.
1-22           (c)  As soon as practicable, the interagency panel shall
1-23     begin to conduct training programs in software management for
1-24     employees and officers of state agencies.  The panel may schedule a
 2-1     training program for an agency after consulting with the governing
 2-2     body of the agency.  Each state agency shall cooperate with the
 2-3     panel in the training program and shall provide agency resources
 2-4     for the training program as the panel requires at no cost to the
 2-5     panel.
 2-6           Sec. 2054.122.  STATE AGENCY SOFTWARE LICENSE AUDIT.  (a)
 2-7     Each state agency shall perform a biennial audit of software
 2-8     licenses for software  installed in the agency's desktop and
 2-9     portable computers.
2-10           (b)  The audit shall report whether the agency is paying for
2-11     a license for software that is not being used by the agency or that
2-12     the agency does not need.  The agency shall report the results of
2-13     the audit to the department in a form and including information
2-14     prescribed by rules of the department.  The report must be included
2-15     in the agency's operating plan submitted under Section 2054.100(a).
2-16           (c)  An agency that determines it is paying for a license for
2-17     software the agency is not using or does not need shall take
2-18     necessary actions to eliminate the unnecessary license expense.
2-19           (d)  The department shall compile the results of the audit
2-20     reports it receives under this section into a report.  The report
2-21     must summarize the savings realized by the software audits under
2-22     this chapter.  The department shall submit the report together with
2-23     the department's legislative appropriations request.
2-24           SECTION 2.  Subchapter A, Chapter 2157, Government Code, is
2-25     amended by adding Section 2157.006 to read as follows:
2-26           Sec. 2157.006.  SOFTWARE ENTERPRISE OR SITE LICENSES.  (a)
2-27     The commission shall undertake to negotiate with software vendors a
 3-1     statewide or agency-wide software enterprise license or site
 3-2     license for software commonly used by state agencies or for
 3-3     software for which one or more state agencies incur unnecessary
 3-4     expenses for licenses related to single computers.
 3-5           (b)  Notwithstanding Subchapters B and C, a state agency that
 3-6     seeks to purchase a software license shall inquire of the
 3-7     commission whether an enterprise license or site license negotiated
 3-8     by the commission may reduce the agency's license expenses.  The
 3-9     agency may purchase a software license by another method only if
3-10     the commission determines that the commission cannot negotiate a
3-11     license agreement that would reduce software license expenses for
3-12     the agency.
3-13           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
3-14           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
3-15     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
3-16     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
3-17     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
3-18     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.