BILL ANALYSIS
By: Corte
Defense Affairs & State-Federal Relations
Committee Report (Substituted)
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
The Texas Military Preparedness Commission was established in 2003 through SB652 in a comprehensive approach to transform the State's approach to the military presence in Texas. The TMPC was made up of nine Commissioners and was tasked with a number of duties, including increasing military value of defense bases and their communities. The TMPC was given responsibility over a revolving loan fund that was to be used to increase the military value in these circumstances. They are also required to produce an annual report to the Legislature and Governor to address the military issues in our state.
CSHB 3302 addresses several administrative items of the TMPC including increasing its membership in order to reflect more defense communities, changing its reporting requirements and also changing their requirements to meet with the heads of each state agency. The bill also includes a provision requiring a Defense Community Economic Redevelopment Value Statement for communities applying for funds from the Texas Military Value Revolving Loan Fund to promote economic value of an area affected by base closure.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.
ANALYSIS
SECTIONS 1 and 2 of the bill increase the TMPC membership from nine to 13 and requires certain terms to be staggered. The bill removes the requirement of the TMPC to develop methods to improve veterans' employment opportunities and to develop and maintain a database of defense contractors and subcontractors in the state. It also removes a duplicative biennial reporting requirement.
SECTION 4 requires the TMPC to prepare and submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature in each even-numbered year. It also allows the Commission to update the report in an odd-numbered year. This SECTION also strikes the requirement for annual meetings with the head of each state agency and requires the Commission to periodically meet with agencies that have defense-related programs or that is engaged in a project in a defense dependent community.
The bill provides administrative requirements of a defense dependent community affected by a base closure including the submission of a Defense Community Economic Redevelopment Value Statement to provide details of the potential use of the funds for which they have applied and how those funds will promote economic development in the community.
EFFECTIVE DATE
This Act takes effect September 1, 2005.
COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE
The Substitute version of the bill strikes SECTION 6 of the original bill, which called certain procedures for the Commission to use when considering a defense community's economic redevelopment value statement.