| |
| |
|
|
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION
|
|
|
proposing constitutional amendments providing for the transfer of |
|
|
existing money from the economic stabilization fund to assist in |
|
|
the financing of priority water infrastructure projects in the |
|
|
state water plan and to assist in the funding of transportation |
|
|
construction, maintenance, and rehabilitation projects and |
|
|
providing for the transfer of $800 million from the economic |
|
|
stabilization fund for the purposes of public education. |
|
|
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Article III, Texas Constitution, is amended by |
|
|
adding Sections 49-d-12 and 49-d-13 to read as follows: |
|
|
Sec. 49-d-12. (a) The state water implementation fund for |
|
|
Texas is created as a special fund in the state treasury outside the |
|
|
general revenue fund to provide a means to finance water |
|
|
infrastructure, conservation, and reuse projects in this state. |
|
|
(b) Money or other assets in the state water implementation |
|
|
fund for Texas may be used only to fund water infrastructure, |
|
|
conservation, and reuse projects included in a statewide water plan |
|
|
that is adopted as required by general law by the Texas Water |
|
|
Development Board or that board's successor in function. |
|
|
(c) The state water implementation fund for Texas consists |
|
|
of: |
|
|
(1) money or other assets deposited, appropriated, or |
|
|
otherwise transferred to the credit of the fund as provided by law; |
|
|
and |
|
|
(2) interest or other investment earnings that accrue |
|
|
on the balance of the fund. |
|
|
(d) The legislature by general law may provide for the |
|
|
assets of the state water implementation fund for Texas to be |
|
|
invested separately from the investment of other treasury assets |
|
|
and funds to the extent that the general law ensures that, in |
|
|
managing the assets of the fund, on behalf of the fund the fund's |
|
|
investment manager may acquire, exchange, sell, supervise, manage, |
|
|
or retain any kind of investment that a prudent investor, |
|
|
exercising reasonable care, skill, and caution, would acquire or |
|
|
retain in light of the purposes, terms, distribution requirements, |
|
|
and other circumstances of the fund then prevailing, taking into |
|
|
consideration the investment of all the assets of the fund rather |
|
|
than a single investment and taking into consideration the goal of |
|
|
preserving the aggregate purchasing power of the fund assets. |
|
|
(e) The legislature by general law shall prescribe the |
|
|
manner in which the assets of the state water implementation fund |
|
|
for Texas may be used, subject to the limitations provided by |
|
|
Subsections (a) and (b) of this section. |
|
|
(f) The legislature may authorize the Texas Water |
|
|
Development Board or its successor in function to issue bonds and |
|
|
enter into bond enhancement agreements that are payable or secured |
|
|
by amounts on deposit in the state water implementation fund for |
|
|
Texas. |
|
|
(g) In each fiscal year there is appropriated from amounts |
|
|
on deposit in the state water implementation fund for Texas an |
|
|
amount that is sufficient to: |
|
|
(1) pay the principal of and interest on the bonds that |
|
|
mature or become due during the fiscal year, after considering all |
|
|
other sources pledged for those purposes; |
|
|
(2) fund or restore reserves necessary to secure the |
|
|
bonds; and |
|
|
(3) pay any cost related to the bonds, including |
|
|
payments under bond enhancement agreements that become due during |
|
|
that fiscal year. |
|
|
(h) Any dedication or appropriation of amounts on deposit in |
|
|
the state water implementation fund for Texas may not be modified so |
|
|
as to impair any outstanding bonds secured by a pledge of those |
|
|
amounts unless provisions have been made for a full discharge of |
|
|
those bonds. |
|
|
(i) An appropriation from the state water implementation |
|
|
fund for Texas is an appropriation of state tax revenues dedicated |
|
|
by this constitution for the purposes of Section 22, Article VIII of |
|
|
this constitution. |
|
|
(j) On November 30, 2013, the amount of $2 billion is |
|
|
transferred from the economic stabilization fund to the credit of |
|
|
the state water implementation fund for Texas. This subsection |
|
|
expires January 1, 2014. |
|
|
Sec. 49-d-13. (a) The state water implementation revenue |
|
|
fund for Texas is created as a special fund in the state treasury |
|
|
outside the general revenue fund to provide a means to finance water |
|
|
infrastructure, conservation, and reuse projects in this state. |
|
|
(b) Money or other assets in the state water implementation |
|
|
revenue fund for Texas may be used only to fund water |
|
|
infrastructure, conservation, and reuse projects included in the |
|
|
statewide water plan that is adopted as required by general law by |
|
|
the Texas Water Development Board or that board's successor in |
|
|
function. |
|
|
(c) The state water implementation revenue fund for Texas |
|
|
consists of: |
|
|
(1) money or other assets deposited, appropriated, or |
|
|
otherwise transferred to the credit of the fund as provided by law; |
|
|
(2) interest or other investment earnings that accrue |
|
|
on the balance of the fund; |
|
|
(3) the proceeds from the sale of bonds, including |
|
|
revenue bonds issued by the board as authorized by law, that are |
|
|
designated by the board for the purpose of providing money for the |
|
|
fund; |
|
|
(4) money disbursed to the fund from the state water |
|
|
implementation fund for Texas as authorized by law; |
|
|
(5) repayments of loans made from the fund; and |
|
|
(6) proceeds from the sale of political subdivision |
|
|
bonds or obligations held in the fund and not otherwise pledged to |
|
|
the discharge, repayment, or redemption of revenue bonds or other |
|
|
bonds, the proceeds of which were placed in the fund. |
|
|
(d) The legislature by general law may provide for the |
|
|
assets of the state water implementation revenue fund for Texas to |
|
|
be invested separately from the investment of other treasury assets |
|
|
and funds to the extent that the general law ensures that, in |
|
|
managing the assets of the fund, on behalf of the fund the fund's |
|
|
investment manager may acquire, exchange, sell, supervise, manage, |
|
|
or retain any kind of investment that a prudent investor, |
|
|
exercising reasonable care, skill, and caution, would acquire or |
|
|
retain in light of the purposes, terms, distribution requirements, |
|
|
and other circumstances of the fund then prevailing, taking into |
|
|
consideration the investment of all the assets of the fund rather |
|
|
than a single investment and taking into consideration the goal of |
|
|
preserving the aggregate purchasing power of the fund assets. |
|
|
(e) The legislature by general law shall prescribe the |
|
|
manner in which the assets of the state water implementation |
|
|
revenue fund for Texas may be used, subject to the limitations |
|
|
provided by Subsections (a) and (b) of this section. |
|
|
(f) The legislature may authorize the Texas Water |
|
|
Development Board or its successor in function to issue bonds and |
|
|
enter into bond enhancement agreements that are payable from |
|
|
revenue deposited to the credit of the state water implementation |
|
|
revenue fund for Texas. |
|
|
(g) In each fiscal year in which amounts become due under |
|
|
the bonds, or agreements authorized by this section, there is |
|
|
appropriated from revenue deposited to the credit of the state |
|
|
water implementation revenue fund for Texas in that fiscal year an |
|
|
amount that is sufficient to pay: |
|
|
(1) the principal of and interest on the bonds that |
|
|
mature or become due during the fiscal year; and |
|
|
(2) any cost related to the bonds, including payments |
|
|
under bond enhancement agreements that become due during that |
|
|
fiscal year. |
|
|
(h) Any dedication or appropriation of revenue to the credit |
|
|
of the state water implementation revenue fund for Texas may not be |
|
|
modified so as to impair any outstanding bonds secured by a pledge |
|
|
of that revenue unless provisions have been made for a full |
|
|
discharge of those bonds. |
|
|
SECTION 2. Section 49-p, Article III, Texas Constitution, |
|
|
is amended by adding Subsection (e) to read as follows: |
|
|
(e) Money deposited to the credit of the state highway fund |
|
|
may be appropriated to repay the principal and interest on bonds |
|
|
issued under this section. |
|
|
SECTION 3. Section 49-g, Article III, Texas Constitution, |
|
|
is amended by adding Subsection (p) to read as follows: |
|
|
(p) On November 30, 2013, the amount of $2.9 billion is |
|
|
transferred from the economic stabilization fund to the credit of |
|
|
an account created by the Texas Department of Transportation in the |
|
|
state highway fund for the purposes described by this subsection. |
|
|
Funds transferred under this subsection may only be appropriated to |
|
|
the Texas Department of Transportation for the purposes of paying |
|
|
the principal and interest on bonds issued on or before January 1, |
|
|
2013, for projects described by Rider No. 42, pages VII-36 and |
|
|
VII-37, Article VII, Chapter 1355, Acts of the 82nd Legislature, |
|
|
Regular Session, 2011 (the General Appropriations Act), and funding |
|
|
projects previously selected to be funded with the proceeds of |
|
|
bonds issued under Section 49-p, Article III of this constitution. |
|
|
Interest earned on funds transferred under this subsection must be |
|
|
deposited to the credit of the state highway fund. The amounts |
|
|
appropriated under this subsection are not included in determining |
|
|
the total amount of appropriations from state tax revenues for |
|
|
purposes of Section 22, Article VIII of this constitution. This |
|
|
subsection expires August 31, 2015. |
|
|
SECTION 4. Section 49-g, Article III, Texas Constitution, |
|
|
is amended by adding Subsection (q) to read as follows: |
|
|
(q) The amount of $500 million is appropriated from the |
|
|
economic stabilization fund to the Texas Education Agency for the |
|
|
state fiscal biennium beginning September 1, 2013, for purposes of |
|
|
the Foundation School Program. The commissioner of education shall |
|
|
use the amount appropriated for the Foundation School Program under |
|
|
this subsection to increase the basic allotment under the |
|
|
Foundation School Program for the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 school |
|
|
years. The amount of $300 million is appropriated from the economic |
|
|
stabilization fund to the Texas Education Agency for the state |
|
|
fiscal biennium beginning September 1, 2013, for purposes of the |
|
|
educator excellence awards program as provided by Sections |
|
|
21.705(1)-(8), Education Code. Priority shall be given to campuses |
|
|
that fail to meet the standard defined under Section 39.054, |
|
|
Education Code. The amounts appropriated under this subsection are |
|
|
not included in determining the total amount of appropriations from |
|
|
state tax revenues for purposes of Section 22, Article VIII of this |
|
|
constitution. This subsection expires August 31, 2015. |
|
|
SECTION 5. (a) The proposed amendment to the Texas |
|
|
Constitution providing for adding Sections 49-d-12 and 49-d-13, |
|
|
Article III, to the constitution shall be submitted to the voters at |
|
|
an election to be held November 5, 2013. The ballot shall be |
|
|
printed to permit voting for or against the proposition: "The |
|
|
constitutional amendment providing for the transfer of existing |
|
|
money from the economic stabilization fund to a state water |
|
|
implementation fund for Texas to assist in the financing of |
|
|
priority water infrastructure projects in the state water plan." |
|
|
(b) The proposed amendment to the Texas Constitution |
|
|
relating to transportation and providing for amending Section 49-g, |
|
|
Article III, shall be submitted to the voters at an election to be |
|
|
held November 5, 2013. The ballot shall be printed to permit voting |
|
|
for or against the proposition: "The constitutional amendment |
|
|
providing for the transfer of existing money from the economic |
|
|
stabilization fund to assist in the funding of transportation |
|
|
construction, maintenance, and rehabilitation projects." |
|
|
(c) The proposed amendment to the Texas Constitution |
|
|
relating to education and providing for amending Section 49-g, |
|
|
Article III, shall be submitted to the voters at an election to be |
|
|
held November 5, 2013. The ballot shall be printed to permit voting |
|
|
for or against the proposition: "The constitutional amendment |
|
|
transferring $800 million from the economic stabilization fund for |
|
|
purposes of public education." |