By: Lucio III (Senate Sponsor - Lucio) H.B. No. 1505
         (In the Senate - Received from the House April 10, 2007;
  April 11, 2007, read first time and referred to Committee on
  Education; April 30, 2007, reported adversely, with favorable
  Committee Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 6, Nays 0;
  April 30, 2007, sent to printer.)
 
  COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 1505 By:  Patrick
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
 
  relating to a fee to support intercollegiate athletics at The
  University of Texas at Brownsville.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Subchapter E, Chapter 54, Education Code, is
  amended by adding Section 54.551 to read as follows:
         Sec. 54.551.  INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETICS FEE; THE UNIVERSITY
  OF TEXAS AT BROWNSVILLE.  (a)   The board of regents of The
  University of Texas System may impose on each student enrolled at
  The University of Texas at Brownsville an intercollegiate athletics
  fee in an amount not to exceed $7 per semester credit hour.
         (b)  The board shall deposit revenue from the fee to the
  credit of an account known as The University of Texas at Brownsville
  intercollegiate athletics fee account. Money in the account shall
  be used in accordance with the terms of the partnership agreements
  entered into between The University of Texas at Brownsville and
  Texas Southmost College under Section 78.02.
         (c)  The fee may not be imposed unless approved by a majority
  vote of the students of the university who participate in a general
  student election held for that purpose.
         (d)  The amount of the fee may not be increased to an amount
  that exceeds by 10 percent or more the total amount of the fee as
  last approved by a student vote under Subsection (c) or this
  subsection unless the increase has been approved by a majority vote
  of the students enrolled at the university who participate in a
  general student election held for that purpose.
         (e)  A fee imposed under this section is in addition to any
  other fee the board is authorized by law to impose.
         (f)  Subject to the limitations of this section on the amount
  of the fee and any increase in the amount of the fee, the fee imposed
  under this section must be in the same amount as the intercollegiate
  athletics fee charged a student at Texas Southmost College by the
  board of trustees of Southmost Union Junior College District.  A
  student attending either or both institutions may be charged an
  intercollegiate athletics fee by only one of the institutions.
         (g)  The board may not impose the fee authorized by this
  section on a student who is enrolled solely in online courses at the
  university.
         SECTION 2.  This Act applies beginning with the 2007 fall
  semester.
         SECTION 3.  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, 2007.
 
  * * * * *