BILL ANALYSIS
Senate Research Center S.B. 2396
By: Nelson
AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT
Currently, no process exists to evaluate the ongoing usefulness and effectiveness of reports required by health and human services agencies. As a result, reports that are redundant, outdated, or no longer useful to policymakers remain in statute.
As proposed, S.B. 2396 creates a mechanism for the removal of duplicative or obsolete reports to the legislature by health and human services agencies.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency.
SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS
SECTION 1. ABOLITION OF REDUNDANT OR OBSOLETE REPORTS. (a) Provides that, notwithstanding any other provision of state law, each report required of a health and human services agency under state law before the effective date of this act is abolished on the date prescribed in this act if the governor, lieutenant governor, speaker of the house of representatives, and the presiding officers of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, House Human Services Committee, and House Public Health Committee or their successors determine that the report meets certain criteria.
(b) Provides that a report required of a health and human services agency under a state law before the effective date of this act is not abolished if the report meets certain criteria.
(c) Requires the executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission to, not later than December 1, 2009:
(1) identify which reports should be considered for abolition under Subsection (a) of this act and report such recommendations to the governor, lieutenant governor, speaker of the house of representatives, and the presiding officers of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, House Human Services Committee, and the House Public Health Committee for their consideration. Requires that the recommendations include a summary of the report and the justification for the recommendations;
(2) provide a copy of the recommendations to the State Auditor's Office, the Legislative Budget Board, and the Library and Archives Commission; and
(3) publish the list of reports recommended for abolition in the Texas Register and on the agency website.
(d) Prohibits the report from being abolished and requires the report to continue in effect without change if, not later than February 1, 2010, any of the officials identified in Subsection (a) object to the recommendation of a specific report for abolition.
(1) Provides that any report for which there is no such objection is abolished effective February 1, 2010.
(2) Requires the executive commissioner to publish the list of reports that are abolished under Subsection (a) of this act in the Texas Register.
(e) Creates an exception under Subsection (a).
SECTION 2. Effective date: September 1, 2009
SECTION 3. Effective date: upon passage or September 1, 2009.