By: Lucio  S.B. No. 612
         (In the Senate - Filed February 13, 2007; February 27, 2007,
  read first time and referred to Subcommittee on Higher Education;
  April 2, 2007, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
  Substitute from Committee on Education by the following vote:  Yeas
  8, Nays 0; April 2, 2007, sent to printer.)
 
  COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 612 By:  Averitt
 
 
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 board may not increase the amount of the fee from one
  academic year to the next unless the amount of the increase is
  approved by a majority vote of the students participating in a
  general student election held at the university for that purpose
  or, if the amount of the increase does not exceed 10 percent, by the
  legislative body of the student government of the university.
         (d)  A fee imposed under this section is in addition to any
  other fee the board is authorized by law to impose.
         (e)  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.
         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.
 
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