By Lucio                                               S.B. No. 384
         77R3700 SGA-D                           
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to establishing a clearinghouse of information on
 1-3     available funding and technical or other assistance to providers of
 1-4     health and human services.    
 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-6           SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 531, Government Code, is
 1-7     amended by adding Section 531.0317 to read as follows:
 1-8           Sec. 531.0317.  INFORMATION CLEARINGHOUSE FOR ASSISTANCE TO
 1-9     PROVIDERS OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES. (a)  The commission shall
1-10     establish as part of the Texas Information and Referral Network an
1-11     office that maintains a clearinghouse of information relating to
1-12     assistance available from local, state, federal, and private
1-13     agencies in the form of grants, pilot project or other funding, and
1-14     technical or other assistance to providers of programs in the
1-15     general area of health and human services.
1-16           (b)  The office shall ensure that the clearinghouse
1-17     information described by Subsection (a) is available to the public
1-18     through:
1-19                 (1)  inclusion as an electronic database in the
1-20     Internet site for the Texas Information and Referral Network; and
1-21                 (2)  a published toll-free telephone number.
1-22           (c)  The commission shall use existing staff to perform the
1-23     research, maintain the database, and respond to inquiries.
1-24           SECTION 2. The staff assignments, design, and research
 2-1     necessary to implement the clearinghouse provided by Section
 2-2     531.0317, Government Code, as added by this Act, shall begin as
 2-3     soon as practicable after the effective date of this Act.  An
 2-4     initial version of the clearinghouse must be functioning not later
 2-5     than August 31, 2002.
 2-6           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
 2-7     a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
 2-8     provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this
 2-9     Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
2-10     Act takes effect September 1, 2001.