H.B. No. 43
AN ACT
relating to the funding of and the making of grants by the Texas
Council on Environmental Technology.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 387.002(b), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(b) The Texas Council on Environmental Technology shall
work to enhance the entrepreneurial and inventive spirit of Texans
to assist in developing solutions to air, water, and waste problems
by:
(1) identifying and evaluating new technologies and
seeking the approval of the United States Environmental Protection
Agency for and facilitating the deployment of those technologies;
[and]
(2) assisting the commission and the United States
Environmental Protection Agency in the process of ensuring credit
for new, innovative, and creative technological advancements;
(3) competing for and managing federal grants and
funds from other sources available for carrying out the objectives
of the council; and
(4) entering into public-private partnerships to
facilitate development of environmental technology infrastructure
in this state.
SECTION 2. Section 387.003, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
(c) When making a grant under the program, the Texas Council
on Environmental Technology may collect a fee from the grant
recipient in an amount not to exceed five percent of the amount of
the grant to be used by the council only to:
(1) monitor project progress;
(2) disseminate information about project
accomplishments;
(3) track technology deployment into the marketplace;
and
(4) provide estimates of the impact that
commercialization of funded projects will have on the environment.
SECTION 3. Section 387.005, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subsection (f) to read as follows:
(f) If a member of the Texas Council on Environmental
Technology is an employee or owner of an entity that applies for a
grant under this chapter, the member, before a vote on the grant,
shall disclose the fact of the member's employment or ownership.
The disclosure must be entered into the minutes of the meeting. The
member may not vote on or otherwise participate in the awarding of
the grant. If the member does not comply with this subsection, the
entity is not eligible for the grant.
SECTION 4. Section 387.008(a), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) The environmental research fund is an account in the
general revenue fund. The fund consists of fees collected under
Section 387.003(c) and money from gifts, grants, or donations to
the fund for designated or general use and from any other source
designated by the legislature.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately 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 immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2003.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 43 was passed by the House on March
18, 2003, by a non-record vote; and that the House concurred in
Senate amendments to H.B. No. 43 on April 30, 2003, by the following
vote: Yeas 136, Nays 0, 2 present, not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 43 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on April 25, 2003, by the following vote: Yeas 31,
Nays 0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________
Date
__________________
Governor