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By:  Lucio                                                        S.B. No. 1403
	(In the Senate - Filed March 13, 2003; March 20, 2003, read 
first time and referred to Committee on Government Organization; 
May 2, 2003, reported adversely, with favorable Committee 
Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 5, Nays 0; May 2, 2003, sent 
to printer.)


COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1403                                   By:  Brimer


A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT


relating to requiring the Texas State Library and Archives 
Commission and the Department of Information Resources to establish 
a searchable database for grants awarded by state agencies.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 441, Government Code, is 
amended by adding Section 441.010 to read as follows:
	Sec. 441.010.  ELECTRONICALLY SEARCHABLE CENTRAL GRANT 
DATABASE.  (a)  In this section:
		(1)  "Department" means the Department of Information 
Resources.     
		(2)  "Grant" means a grant, contract, or other 
cooperative agreement under which a state agency awards financial 
assistance in the form of money, property, a loan, or another thing 
of value to a governmental or nongovernmental entity and the 
governmental or nongovernmental entity receiving the award is 
responsible for implementing a state or federal program in 
accordance with guidelines provided by the agency awarding the 
grant.  The term does not include a contract to obtain a 
professional or consulting service subject to Chapter 2254.
	(b)  The commission, in cooperation with the department, 
shall establish an electronically searchable central database 
accessible through the commission's on-line access system that will 
allow a person to:
		(1)  use keyword searches to discover all available 
state agency grant opportunities;
		(2)  obtain basic information regarding each available 
state agency grant opportunity, including basic information about 
the program that the grant recipient will implement, the geographic 
area in which the grant recipient will implement the program, the 
eligibility requirements for obtaining the grant, and the grant 
application process; and
		(3)  electronically link to the portion of the granting 
agency's website at which the person may obtain more detailed 
information about each available state agency grant opportunity.
	(c)  The department shall provide a link on TexasOnline to 
the database established under Subsection (b).  In this subsection, 
"TexasOnline" has the meaning assigned by Section 2054.003.
	(d)  Each state agency that will award a grant shall, 
concurrently with any other action the agency takes to inform the 
public or any person about the grant opportunity, report to the 
commission information related to the grant that the commission 
requires in a form prescribed by the commission so that the 
commission may include information about the grant in the 
electronically searchable central database established under 
Subsection (b).
	(e)  The governor shall appoint an advisory committee 
composed of nine representatives from the Electronic Grants 
Technical Assistance Workgroup to:
		(1)  gather input from public and other users of the 
database; and   
		(2)  advise the commission regarding the development of 
the database and regarding the commission's exercise of its powers 
under Subsection (d).
	(f)  The advisory committee appointed under Subsection (e) 
shall meet in Austin.  A state agency that is represented on the 
committee by a person who is not based in the Austin area is 
responsible for any travel expenses incurred by its representative.
	(g)  The commission shall appoint an advisory committee 
composed of five public members to annually evaluate the operation 
of the electronically searchable central database.
	(h)  Chapter 2110 does not apply to an advisory committee 
formed under this section.
	SECTION 2.  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.



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