1-1     By:  Ratliff                                          S.B. No. 1841
 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed March 26, 1999; March 29, 1999, read
 1-3     first time and referred to Committee on Finance; April 22, 1999,
 1-4     reported adversely, with favorable Committee Substitute by the
 1-5     following vote:  Yeas 11, Nays 0; April 22, 1999, sent to printer.)
 1-6     COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1841                 By:  Ratliff
 1-7                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-8                                   AN ACT
 1-9     relating to the abolition of the Texas eminent scholars program.
1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-11           SECTION 1.  Subchapter I, Chapter 51, Education Code, is
1-12     repealed.
1-13           SECTION 2.  (a)  The eminent scholars fund in the state
1-14     treasury is abolished.
1-15           (b)  Any restrictions under state law on the use of eligible
1-16     gifts or the disbursement of income from an eligible gift,
1-17     including any requirement of the provision of state matching funds
1-18     from the eminent scholars fund, are waived and abolished and any
1-19     requirement of any state action before the eligible gifts may be
1-20     used or income from the gifts may be disbursed are considered
1-21     fulfilled.
1-22           (c)  The abolition of the Texas eminent scholars program does
1-23     not affect an action taken by an institution of higher education
1-24     relating to a gift to the Texas eminent scholars program made
1-25     before the effective date of this Act.
1-26           (d)  An institution of higher education shall examine the
1-27     institution's records and make a good faith effort to notify each
1-28     person who made an eligible gift.  In the notice, the institution
1-29     shall describe the abolition of the Texas eminent scholars program
1-30     and provide the name of a person at the institution to contact for
1-31     more information.  The person making an eligible gift may request
1-32     the gift to be returned to the person.
1-33           (e)  If an eligible gift is not requested to be returned or
1-34     if a donor, after a good faith effort by the institution, is not
1-35     able to be notified, the eligible gift vests in the institution.
1-36           (f)  Eligible gifts not returned under Subsection (e) of this
1-37     section  may be used for any purpose that is consistent with the
1-38     original intent of the person making an eligible gift to the Texas
1-39     eminent scholars program and that carries out the purpose of the
1-40     gift as nearly as is practicable.  Income from eligible gifts may
1-41     be used for any purpose for which the income may have been used
1-42     under the Texas eminent scholars program.
1-43           (g)  In this section, "eligible gift" means a gift made to an
1-44     institution of higher education under a written agreement that made
1-45     the gift conditional upon state matching funds being provided under
1-46     the Texas eminent scholars program.
1-47           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
1-48           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
1-49     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
1-50     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
1-51     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
1-52     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
1-53                                  * * * * *