By:  Ratliff                                          S.B. No. 1841
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
                                       AN ACT
 1-1     relating to the abolition of the Texas eminent scholars program.
 1-2           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-3           SECTION 1.  Subchapter I, Chapter 51, Education Code, is
 1-4     repealed.
 1-5           SECTION 2.  (a)  The eminent scholars fund in the state
 1-6     treasury is abolished.
 1-7           (b)  Any restrictions under state law on the use of eligible
 1-8     gifts or the disbursement of income from an eligible gift,
 1-9     including any requirement of the provision of state matching funds
1-10     from the eminent scholars fund, are waived and abolished and any
1-11     requirement of any state action before the eligible gifts may be
1-12     used or income from the gifts may be disbursed are considered
1-13     fulfilled.
1-14           (c)  The abolition of the Texas eminent scholars program does
1-15     not affect an action taken by an institution of higher education
1-16     relating to a gift to the Texas eminent scholars program made
1-17     before the effective date of this Act.
1-18           (d)  An institution of higher education shall examine the
1-19     institution's records and make a good faith effort to notify each
1-20     person who made an eligible gift.  In the notice, the institution
1-21     shall describe the abolition of the Texas eminent scholars program
1-22     and provide the name of a person at the institution to contact for
1-23     more information.  The person making an eligible gift may request
1-24     the gift to be returned to the person.
 2-1           (e)  If an eligible gift is not requested to be returned or
 2-2     if a donor, after a good faith effort by the institution, is not
 2-3     able to be notified, the eligible gift vests in the institution.
 2-4           (f)  Eligible gifts not returned under Subsection (e) of this
 2-5     section  may be used for any purpose that is consistent with the
 2-6     original intent of the person making an eligible gift to the Texas
 2-7     eminent scholars program and that carries out the purpose of the
 2-8     gift as nearly as is practicable.  Income from eligible gifts may
 2-9     be used for any purpose for which the income may have been used
2-10     under the Texas eminent scholars program.
2-11           (g)  In this section, "eligible gift" means a gift made to an
2-12     institution of higher education under a written agreement that made
2-13     the gift conditional upon state matching funds being provided under
2-14     the Texas eminent scholars program.
2-15           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
2-16           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
2-17     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-18     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-19     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-20     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.