By: Shapleigh S.B. No. 1744
(In the Senate - Filed March 11, 2005; March 30, 2005, read
first time and referred to Committee on International Relations and
Trade; May 9, 2005, reported favorably by the following vote:
Yeas 6, Nays 1; May 9, 2005, sent to printer.)
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the creation of the Texas-Mexico Strategic Investment
Commission.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subtitle F, Title 4, Government Code, is amended
by adding Chapter 490 to read as follows:
CHAPTER 490. TEXAS-MEXICO STRATEGIC INVESTMENT COMMISSION
Sec. 490.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Commission" means the Texas-Mexico Strategic
Investment Commission.
(2) "Texas-Mexico border region" has the meaning
assigned by Section 2056.002.
Sec. 490.002. PURPOSE. The ongoing economic stability and
growth of Texas and the improved quality of life for all Texans is
dependent in part on coordination with neighboring states. Texas
and the Mexican border states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon,
and Tamaulipas face common challenges in the areas of
infrastructure, health care, access to and availability of water,
economic development and trade, and environmental protection. The
commission will encourage a collaborative approach between Texas
and neighboring Mexican states in specific areas so as to better
address challenges and plan for the future.
Sec. 490.003. TEXAS-MEXICO STRATEGIC INVESTMENT
COMMISSION; MEMBERS. (a) The Texas-Mexico Strategic Investment
Commission is established.
(b) The commission is composed of:
(1) the border commerce coordinator or a designee;
(2) the executive director of the Texas Department of
Transportation or a designee;
(3) the executive administrator of the Texas Water
Development Board or a designee;
(4) the commissioner of state health services or a
designee;
(5) the chair of the Railroad Commission of Texas or a
designee; and
(6) the executive director of the Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality or a designee.
(c) The border commerce coordinator shall serve as the chair
of the commission.
Sec. 490.004. FUNCTIONS OF COMMISSION. (a) The commission
shall:
(1) represent government agencies within the
Texas-Mexico border region to help reduce regulations by improving
communication and cooperation between federal, state, and local
governments;
(2) examine trade issues between the United States and
Mexico;
(3) study the flow of commerce at ports of entry
between this state and Mexico, including the movement of commercial
vehicles across the border, and establish a plan to aid that
commerce and improve the movement of those vehicles;
(4) work with federal officials to resolve
transportation issues involving infrastructure, including roads
and bridges, to allow for the efficient movement of goods and people
across the border between Texas and Mexico;
(5) work with federal officials to create a unified
federal agency process to streamline border crossing needs;
(6) identify problems involved with border truck
inspections and related trade and transportation infrastructure;
(7) work to increase funding for the North American
Development Bank to assist in the financing of water and wastewater
facilities;
(8) explore the sale of excess electric power from
Texas to Mexico;
(9) identify areas of environmental protection that
need to be addressed cooperatively between Texas and the Mexican
states;
(10) identify common challenges to health care on
which all states can collaborate; and
(11) develop recommendations, when possible, for
addressing border challenges.
(b) The commission shall work with local governments,
metropolitan planning organizations, and other appropriate
community organizations in the Texas Department of
Transportation's Pharr, Laredo, and El Paso transportation
districts, and with comparable entities in Mexican states bordering
those districts, to address the unique planning and capacity needs
of those areas. The commission shall assist those governments,
organizations, and entities to identify and develop initiatives to
address those needs.
(c) The commission shall work with industries and
communities on both sides of the Texas-Mexico border to develop
international industry cluster initiatives to capitalize on
resources available in communities located adjacent to each other
across the border.
(d) The commission may meet at least once a year with
representatives from the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila,
Nuevo Leon, and Tamaulipas during the Border Governors Conference
to discuss issues and challenges of the Texas-Mexico border region
and develop strategic collaborative approaches for addressing the
challenges.
Sec. 490.005. FUNDING. (a) In addition to any amount
appropriated by the legislature, the commission may request state
agencies to apply for funds from the federal government or any other
public or private entity. The commission may also solicit grants,
gifts, and donations from private sources on the state's behalf.
The use of a gift, grant, or donation solicited under this section
must be consistent with the purposes of the commission.
(b) The commission shall review and may require reports of
state agencies that receive appropriations, gifts, grants,
donations, or endowments as a result of the commission's
recommendations.
(c) A state agency may accept a gift, grant, donation, or
endowment received as a result of the commission's recommendations.
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, 2005.
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