By: Hamric (Senate Sponsor - Duncan) H.B. No. 82
(In the Senate - Received from the House July 11, 2003;
July 17, 2003, read first time and referred to Committee on
Government Organization; July 21, 2003, reported adversely, with
favorable Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 6, Nays
0; July 21, 2003, sent to printer.)
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 82 By: Armbrister
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the abolition of the state aircraft pooling board.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. The heading to Subchapter A, Chapter 2205,
Government Code, is amended to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER A. STATE AIRCRAFT POOLING [BOARD]; GENERAL PROVISIONS
SECTION 2. Subdivision (1), Section 2205.002, Government
Code, is amended to read as follows:
(1) "Department [Board]" means the Texas Department of
Transportation [State Aircraft Pooling Board].
SECTION 3. Section 2205.032, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 2205.032. CUSTODY, CONTROL, OPERATION, AND
MAINTENANCE. (a) The department [board] shall operate a pool for
the custody, control, operation, and maintenance of all aircraft
owned or leased by the state.
(b) The department [board] may purchase aircraft with funds
appropriated for that purpose.
(c) As part of the strategic plan that the department
[board] develops and submits under Chapter 2056, the department
[board] shall develop a long-range plan for its pool of aircraft.
The department [board] shall include appropriate portions of the
long-range plan in its legislative appropriations request. The
long-range plan must include estimates of future aircraft
replacement needs and other fleet management needs, including any
projected need to increase or decrease the number of aircraft in the
pool. In developing the long-range plan, the department [board]
shall consider at a minimum for each aircraft in the pool:
(1) how much the aircraft is used and the purposes for
which it is used;
(2) the cost of operating the aircraft and the revenue
generated by the aircraft; and
(3) the demand for the aircraft or for that type of
aircraft.
SECTION 4. Section 2205.034, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 2205.034. FACILITIES. (a) The department [board] may
acquire appropriate facilities for the accommodation of all
aircraft owned or leased by the state. The facilities may be
purchased or leased as determined by the department [board] to be
most economical for the state and as provided by legislative
appropriations. The facilities may include adequate hangar space,
an indoor passenger waiting area, a flight-planning area,
communications facilities, and other related and necessary
facilities.
(b) A state agency that operates an aircraft may not use a
facility in Austin other than a facility operated by the department
[board] for the storage, parking, fueling, or maintenance of the
aircraft, whether or not the aircraft is based in Austin. In a
situation the department [board] determines to be an emergency, the
department [board] may authorize a state agency to use a facility in
Austin other than a department [board] facility for the storage,
parking, fueling, or maintenance of an aircraft.
SECTION 5. Section 2205.035, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 2205.035. AIRCRAFT LEASES. (a) The department
[board] by interagency contract may lease state-owned aircraft to a
state agency.
(b) A state agency that is the prior owner or lessee of an
aircraft has the first option to lease that aircraft from the
department [board].
(c) The lease may provide for operation or maintenance by
the department [board] or the state agency.
(d) A state agency may not expend appropriated funds for the
lease of an aircraft unless the department [board] executes the
lease or approves the lease by department [board] order.
(e) A state agency may not use money appropriated by the
legislature to rent or lease aircraft except from the department
[board] or as provided by Subsection (f). For purposes of this
subsection and Subsection (f), payments of mileage reimbursements
provided for by the General Appropriations Act are not rentals or
leases of aircraft.
(f) If the department [board] determines that no
state-owned aircraft is available to meet a transportation need
that has arisen or that a rental or lease of aircraft would reduce
the state's transportation costs, the department [board] shall
authorize a state agency to expend funds for the rental or lease of
aircraft, which may include a helicopter.
SECTION 6. Section 2205.036, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 2205.036. PASSENGER TRANSPORTATION. (a) The
department [board] shall provide aircraft transportation, to the
extent that its aircraft are available, to:
(1) state officers and employees who are traveling on
official business according to the coordinated passenger
scheduling system and the priority scheduling system developed as
part of the aircraft operations manual under Section 2205.038;
(2) persons in the care or custody of state officers or
employees described by Subdivision (1); and
(3) persons whose transportation furthers official
state business.
(b) The department [board] may not provide aircraft
transportation to a passenger if the passenger is to be transported
to or from a place where the passenger:
(1) will make or has made a speech not related to
official state business;
(2) will attend or has attended an event sponsored by a
political party;
(3) will perform a service or has performed a service
for which the passenger is to receive an honorarium, unless the
passenger reimburses the board for the cost of transportation;
(4) will attend or has attended an event at which money
is raised for private or political purposes; or
(5) will attend or has attended an event at which an
audience was charged an admission fee to see or hear the passenger.
(c) The department [board] may not provide aircraft
transportation to a destination unless:
(1) the destination is not served by a commercial
carrier;
(2) the time required to use a commercial carrier
interferes with passenger obligations; or
(3) the number of passengers traveling makes the use
of state aircraft cost-effective.
(d) The department shall monitor and ensure compliance with
the requirements of this section.
SECTION 7. Section 2205.038, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 2205.038. AIRCRAFT OPERATIONS MANUAL. (a) The
department [board] shall:
(1) prepare a manual that establishes minimum
standards for the operation of aircraft by state agencies; and
(2) adopt procedures for the distribution of the
manual to state agencies.
(b) The manual must include provisions for:
(1) pilot certification standards, including medical
requirements for pilots;
(2) recurring training programs for pilots;
(3) general operating and flight rules;
(4) coordinated passenger scheduling; and
(5) other issues the department [board] determines are
necessary to ensure the efficient and safe operation of aircraft by
a state agency.
(c) The department [board] shall confer with and solicit the
written advice of state agencies the department [board] determines
are principal users of aircraft operated by the department [board]
and, to the extent practicable, incorporate that advice in the
development of the manual and subsequent changes to the manual.
(d) The department [board] shall give an officer normally
elected by statewide election priority in the scheduling of
aircraft. The department [board] by rule may require a 12-hour
notice by the officer to obtain the priority in scheduling.
SECTION 8. Section 2205.039, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 2205.039. TRAVEL LOG. (a) The Legislative Budget
Board, in cooperation with the department [board], shall prescribe:
(1) a travel log form for gathering information about
the use of state-operated aircraft;
(2) procedures to ensure that individuals who travel
as passengers on or operate state-operated aircraft provide in a
legible manner the information requested of them by the form; and
(3) procedures for each state agency that operates an
aircraft for sending the form to the department [board] and the
Legislative Budget Board.
(b) The travel log form must request the following
information about a state-operated aircraft each time the aircraft
is flown:
(1) a mission statement, which may appear as a
selection to be identified from general categories appearing on the
form;
(2) the name, state agency represented, destination,
and signature of each person who is a passenger or crew member of
the aircraft;
(3) the date of each flight;
(4) a detailed and specific description of the
official business purpose of each flight; and
(5) other information determined by the Legislative
Budget Board and the department [board] to be necessary to monitor
the proper use of the aircraft.
(c) A state agency other than the department [board] shall
send travel logs to the department [board] each month in which the
agency operates an aircraft.
(d) The department shall monitor and ensure compliance by
state agencies with the requirements of this section.
(e) The department shall annually report to the Legislative
Budget Board on air travel information received under this section.
SECTION 9. Section 2205.040, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 2205.040. RATES AND BILLING PROCEDURES. (a) The
department [board] shall adopt rates for interagency aircraft
services that are sufficient to recover[, in the aggregate and to
the extent possible,] all expenses incurred under this chapter
[direct costs for the services provided], including current
obligations for capital equipment financed under the Texas Public
Finance Authority's master lease purchase program and aircraft
replacement costs [a state agency's pro rata share of major
maintenance, overhauls of equipment and facilities, and pilots'
salaries].
(b) The department shall deposit all revenue received under
this chapter to the credit of the state highway fund. Money
deposited to the credit of the state highway fund under this chapter
is exempt from the application of Section 403.095, Government Code
[Legislative Budget Board, in cooperation with the board and the
state auditor, shall prescribe a billing procedure for passenger
travel on state-operated aircraft].
(c) The department may spend money from the state highway
fund for expenses incurred under this chapter.
(d) It is the intent of the legislature that receipts and
expenditures that relate to the state highway fund under this
chapter be balanced over time so that, to the extent practicable,
the receipts and expenditures do not result in a net gain or net
loss to the fund.
SECTION 10. Subsection (a), Section 2205.041, Government
Code, is amended to read as follows:
(a) The Legislative Budget Board, in cooperation with the
department [board], shall prescribe:
(1) an annual aircraft use form for gathering
information about the use of state-operated aircraft, including the
extent to which and the methods by which the goal provided by
Section 2205.031(b) is being met; and
(2) procedures for each state agency that operates an
aircraft for sending the form to the department [board] and the
Legislative Budget Board.
SECTION 11. Section 2205.042, Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 2205.042. PILOTS. An individual who is not a pilot
employed by the department [board] may not operate a state-operated
aircraft unless the department [board] grants the individual a
specific exemption from that requirement.
SECTION 12. Subsection (b), Section 2205.043, Government
Code, is amended to read as follows:
(b) The department [board] shall adopt rules, consistent
with federal regulations and Subtitle A, Title 11 [Article 6139f,
Revised Statutes], governing the color, size, and location of marks
of identification required by this section.
SECTION 13. Section 2205.044, Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 2205.044. FUEL AND MAINTENANCE CONTRACTS. The
department [board] may contract with a state or federal
governmental agency or a political subdivision to provide aircraft
fuel or to provide aircraft maintenance services.
SECTION 14. Subsection (a), Section 2205.045, Government
Code, is amended to read as follows:
(a) The department [board] may purchase insurance to
protect the department [board] from loss caused by damage, loss,
theft, or destruction of aircraft owned or leased by the state and
shall purchase liability insurance to protect the officers and
employees of each state agency from loss arising from the operation
of state-owned aircraft.
SECTION 15. Section 2205.046, Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 2205.046. AIRCRAFT FOR FLIGHT TRAINING PROGRAMS. (a)
The department [board] may transfer aircraft to a public technical
institute or other public postsecondary educational institution
for use in the institution's flight training program. Except as
provided by this section, the department [board] has no
responsibility for continued maintenance of aircraft transferred
under this section.
(b) As a condition to the transfer of the aircraft, the
institution must certify in writing to the department [board] that
the institution will accept full responsibility for maintenance of
the aircraft and that it will be properly maintained while in the
custody and control of the institution. The department [board] is
entitled to inspect the aircraft without notice for the purpose of
insuring that the aircraft are properly maintained.
(c) The department [board] may immediately reassume custody
and control of a transferred aircraft on a finding by the department
[board] that:
(1) the aircraft is not being properly maintained;
(2) the aircraft is being used for a purpose other than
flight training; or
(3) the institution has discontinued its flight
training program.
SECTION 16. Section 2205.047, Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 2205.047. INFORMATION POSTED ON THE INTERNET. The
department [board] shall post information related to travel and
other services provided by the department under this chapter
[board] on an Internet site maintained by or for the department
[board]. The site must be generally accessible to state agencies,
persons who use the department's [board's] services, and, to the
extent appropriate, the general public.
SECTION 17. Sections 2205.003-2205.019, Government Code,
are repealed.
SECTION 18. On the effective date of this Act:
(1) the State Aircraft Pooling Board is abolished, and
all powers, duties, obligations, rights, contracts, bonds,
appropriations, records, and real or personal property, and
personnel of the State Aircraft Pooling Board are transferred to
the Texas Department of Transportation;
(2) a rule, policy, procedure, or decision of the
State Aircraft Pooling Board continues in effect as a rule, policy,
procedure, or decision of the Texas Department of Transportation
until superseded by an act of the Texas Department of
Transportation;
(3) a reference in law to the State Aircraft Pooling
Board means the Texas Department of Transportation; and
(4) the number of full-time equivalent positions
intended to be allocated to the State Aircraft Pooling Board by H.B.
No. 1, Acts of the 78th Legislature, Regular Session, 2003, is
reduced by 39 for fiscal years 2004 and 2005, and the number of
full-time equivalent positions allocated to the Texas Department of
Transportation is increased by 39 for fiscal years 2004 and 2005 for
the purpose of administering Chapter 2205, Government Code.
SECTION 19. (a) All money collected by the Texas Department
of Transportation under Chapter 2205, Government Code, during the
state fiscal biennium beginning September 1, 2003, is appropriated
to the Texas Department of Transportation for that biennium for the
purpose of administering Chapter 2205, Government Code.
(b) The unexpended balance of the appropriation to the State
Aircraft Pooling Board for all or part of the state fiscal biennium
ending August 31, 2003, is appropriated to the Texas Department of
Transportation for the state fiscal biennium beginning September 1,
2003, for the purpose of administering Chapter 2205, Government
Code.
(c) For the purpose of administering Chapter 2205,
Government Code, the Texas Department of Transportation is
appropriated $3,741,068 from the state highway fund for fiscal year
2004 and $3,660,494 from the state highway fund for fiscal year
2005. It is the intent of the legislature that, to the extent
possible, the appropriations under this subsection shall be funded
from money collected under Chapter 2205, Government Code, and that
any expenditures not immediately offset by money collected under
Chapter 2205, Government Code, be repaid from money collected under
Chapter 2205, Government Code, in the future.
SECTION 20. Before March 1, 2004, the Texas Department of
Transportation shall file with the governor, the lieutenant
governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, and the
Legislative Budget Board a complete and detailed report on the
transfer of powers and duties from the State Aircraft Pooling Board
to the Texas Department of Transportation.
SECTION 21. This Act takes effect September 1, 2003, if it
receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for effect on that
date, this Act takes effect November 1, 2003.
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