1-1 By: Hunter (Senate Sponsor - Bivins) H.B. No. 3591
1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House April 23, 2001;
1-3 April 24, 2001, read first time and referred to Committee on
1-4 Business and Commerce; May 11, 2001, reported favorably by the
1-5 following vote: Yeas 6, Nays 0; May 11, 2001, sent to printer.)
1-6 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-7 AN ACT
1-8 relating to including certain libraries of nonprofit corporations
1-9 in the TexShare consortium and authorizing grants from the
1-10 telecommunications infrastructure fund to those libraries.
1-11 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-12 SECTION 1. Section 441.221, Government Code, is amended by
1-13 amending Subdivision (3) and adding Subdivision (4) to read as
1-14 follows:
1-15 (3) "Nonprofit corporation" means a nonprofit
1-16 corporation established under the Texas Non-Profit Corporation Act
1-17 (Article 1396-1.01 et seq., Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes) that
1-18 provides extensive library services and collections in the fields
1-19 of clinical medicine and the history of medicine.
1-20 (4) "Public library" has the meaning assigned by
1-21 Section 441.122.
1-22 SECTION 2. Section 441.222, Government Code, is amended to
1-23 read as follows:
1-24 Sec. 441.222. CREATION OF CONSORTIUM. The commission shall
1-25 establish and maintain the TexShare consortium as a
1-26 resource-sharing consortium operated as a program within the
1-27 commission for libraries at institutions of higher education, [and]
1-28 for public libraries, and for libraries of nonprofit corporations.
1-29 SECTION 3. Section 441.223, Government Code, is amended to
1-30 read as follows:
1-31 Sec. 441.223. FINDINGS; PURPOSE AND METHODS. The
1-32 legislature finds that it is necessary to assist libraries at
1-33 public and private or independent institutions of higher education,
1-34 [and] public libraries, and libraries of nonprofit corporations to
1-35 promote the public good by achieving the following public purposes
1-36 through the following methods:
1-37 (1) to promote the future well-being of the citizenry,
1-38 enhance quality teaching and research excellence at institutions of
1-39 higher education through the efficient exchange of information and
1-40 the sharing of library resources, [and] improve educational
1-41 resources in all communities, and expand the availability of
1-42 information about clinical medical research and the history of
1-43 medicine;
1-44 (2) to maximize the effectiveness of library
1-45 expenditures by enabling libraries to share staff expertise and to
1-46 share library resources in print and in an electronic form,
1-47 including books, journals, technical reports, and databases;
1-48 (3) to increase the intellectual productivity of
1-49 students and faculty at the participating institutions of higher
1-50 education by emphasizing access to information rather than
1-51 ownership of documents and other information sources; and
1-52 (4) to facilitate joint purchasing agreements for
1-53 purchasing information services and encourage cooperative research
1-54 and development of information technologies.
1-55 SECTION 4. Section 441.224, Government Code, is amended to
1-56 read as follows:
1-57 Sec. 441.224. MEMBERSHIP; FEES. Membership in the
1-58 consortium is open to all institutions of higher education, [and
1-59 to] all public libraries that are members of the state library
1-60 system, and all libraries of nonprofit corporations. The director
1-61 and librarian may establish categories of consortium services and
1-62 assess different fees to members for different categories of
1-63 consortium services.
1-64 SECTION 5. Section 441.226(f), Government Code, is amended to
2-1 read as follows:
2-2 (f) The advisory board may recommend to the commission that
2-3 the consortium enter into cooperative projects with entities other
2-4 than public libraries, [or] institutions of higher education, or
2-5 nonprofit corporations.
2-6 SECTION 6. Section 57.042(6), Utilities Code, is amended to
2-7 read as follows:
2-8 (6) "Library" means:
2-9 (A) a public library or regional library system
2-10 as those terms are defined by Section 441.122, Government Code;
2-11 [or]
2-12 (B) a library operated by an institution of
2-13 higher education or a school district; or
2-14 (C) a library operated by a nonprofit
2-15 corporation as defined by Section 441.221(3), Government Code.
2-16 SECTION 7. The Texas State Library and Archives Commission
2-17 shall add libraries of nonprofit corporations to the TexShare
2-18 consortium as required by this Act only to the extent that the
2-19 commission may efficiently do so without reducing services to
2-20 libraries at institutions of higher education and public libraries.
2-21 SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
2-22 * * * * *