1-1     By:  West                                              S.B. No. 656
 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed February 12, 2001; February 13, 2001,
 1-3     read first time and referred to Committee on Administration;
 1-4     March 21, 2001, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
 1-5     Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 5, Nays 0; March 21, 2001,
 1-6     sent to printer.)
 1-7     COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 656                 By:  Moncrief
 1-8                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-9                                   AN ACT
1-10     relating to the designation and functions of a state demographer.
1-11           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-12           SECTION 1.  Subtitle E, Title 4, Government Code, is amended
1-13     by adding Chapter 468 to read as follows:
1-14                       CHAPTER 468.  STATE DEMOGRAPHER
1-15           Sec. 468.001.  DEFINITION.  In this section, "state agency"
1-16     means a department, commission, board, office, or other agency in
1-17     the executive branch of state government, including a university
1-18     system or institution of higher education as defined by Section
1-19     61.003, Education Code.
1-20           Sec. 468.002.  DESIGNATION OF STATE DEMOGRAPHER.  (a)  The
1-21     governor shall appoint an employee or officer of a state agency as
1-22     the state demographer from a list submitted by the speaker of the
1-23     house of representatives and the lieutenant governor.
1-24           (b)  To be eligible for designation as state demographer, a
1-25     person must have:
1-26                 (1)  a graduate degree with specialization in
1-27     demography or a closely related field of study; and
1-28                 (2)  extensive experience in employing demographic and
1-29     related socioeconomic data for use by legislative, public, and
1-30     private entities.
1-31           Sec. 468.003.  PERSONNEL AND FACILITIES.  (a)  The state
1-32     agency that employs the person designated as the state demographer
1-33     shall provide:
1-34                 (1)  staff necessary for the state demographer to
1-35     perform the demographer's duties; and
1-36                 (2)  the main office for the state demographer.
1-37           (b)  The Texas Legislative Council shall provide office space
1-38     and other support in Austin necessary for the state demographer to
1-39     perform the demographer's duties for the legislature.
1-40           Sec. 468.004.  POWERS AND DUTIES.  The state demographer
1-41     shall:
1-42                 (1)  disseminate demographic and related socioeconomic
1-43     data to the public, with emphasis on data that may be useful to
1-44     public policymakers;
1-45                 (2)  provide annual population estimates for all
1-46     counties and municipalities in the state;
1-47                 (3)  provide biennial population projections for the
1-48     state and all counties of the state;
1-49                 (4)  provide information to the legislature relating to
1-50     the impact that demographic and socioeconomic changes in the
1-51     population of the state have on the demand for state services; and
1-52                 (5)  evaluate the type and quality of data needed to:
1-53                       (A)  adequately monitor demographic and
1-54     socioeconomic changes in the population of the state; and
1-55                       (B)  assess the effectiveness of delivery of
1-56     state services.
1-57           SECTION 2.  Section 88.214, Education Code, is transferred to
1-58     Chapter 468, Government Code, redesignated as Section 468.005,
1-59     Government Code, and amended to read as follows:
1-60           Sec. 468.005 [88.214].  ADMINISTRATOR OF THE UNITED STATES
1-61     BUREAU OF THE CENSUS FEDERAL-STATE COOPERATIVE.  The state agency
1-62     that employs the state demographer [Texas Agricultural Experiment
1-63     Station] shall serve as the official cognizant administrator for
1-64     the State of Texas of the United States Bureau of the Census
 2-1     federal-state cooperative program for population estimates and the
 2-2     federal-state cooperative program for population projections and as
 2-3     coordinating agency for the State Data Center program.
 2-4           SECTION 3.  As soon as is practicable after the effective
 2-5     date of this Act, the speaker of the house of representatives and
 2-6     the lieutenant governor shall submit to the governor their list of
 2-7     potential appointees as required by Section 468.002, Government
 2-8     Code, as added by this Act.  For purposes of Section 12, Article
 2-9     IV, Texas Constitution, the state demographer is a state officer.
2-10           SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
2-11                                  * * * * *