By: Metcalf (Senate Sponsor - Hancock) H.B. No. 5125
         (In the Senate - Received from the House May 3, 2023;
  May 21, 2023, read first time and referred to Committee on
  Administration; May 22, 2023, reported adversely, with favorable
  Committee Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 4, Nays 0;
  May 22, 2023, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
 
  COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 5125 By:  Springer
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
 
  relating to the organization and operation of the legislative
  branch of state government.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Subchapter B, Chapter 301, Government Code, is
  amended by adding Sections 301.0161, 301.0291, 301.0321, and
  301.036 to read as follows:
         Sec. 301.0161.  ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEES. (a) By rule or
  resolution, each house may establish an administration committee.
         (b)  The senate administration committee shall perform the
  duties and functions assigned to the committee by rule or
  resolution.
         (c)  The house administration committee shall:
               (1)  adopt policies and determine guidelines for the
  effective and efficient operation of the house, including the
  appointment and discharge of employees and the use of state
  property and facilities; and
               (2)  not later than the 60th day after the convening of
  a regular session, prepare and distribute to all members a manual of
  policy statements to include, but not be limited to, policies
  pertaining to members as a class.
         Sec. 301.0291.  ADMINISTRATIVE HEAD OF HOUSE OF
  REPRESENTATIVES. (a) For purposes of any law applicable to the
  legislature that requires an action by an administrative head of
  agency and unless otherwise directed by resolution, the speaker is
  the administrative head of agency for the house of representatives.
         (b)  As administrative head of the house of representatives,
  the speaker may make any expenditures or transfers, including
  expenditures and transfers necessary to discharge properly the
  duties and responsibilities of the office of speaker, and perform
  any function deemed necessary for the effective and efficient
  operation of the house of representatives.
         (c)  The speaker may delegate all or part of the authority
  granted under Subsections (a) and (b) to a house committee or
  legislative officer as provided by law, rule, resolution, or
  policy.
         Sec. 301.0321.  INTERNS. Notwithstanding Section 301.032 or
  any other law, a member, officer, committee, or division of a house
  of the legislature or the lieutenant governor may accept
  uncompensated service from an individual participating in a bona
  fide internship program approved by the committee on administration
  of the respective house or for which the student receives academic
  credit.
         Sec. 301.036.  COMMITTEES WITH LEGISLATIVE APPOINTEES. (a)
  This section applies to any committee, council, board, commission,
  or other body created or authorized by state law:
               (1)  that includes members appointed by the lieutenant
  governor or the speaker; or
               (2)  for which the lieutenant governor or the speaker
  designates the presiding officer.
         (b)  For an entity described by Subsection (a), the per diem
  and travel expenses paid to a member of the entity shall be paid by
  the state agency providing administrative support to the entity or
  as otherwise directed by rider in the general appropriations act.
         (c)  An entity described by Subsection (a) is abolished on
  the date of the sine die adjournment of the second regular session
  of the legislature that begins after the date the entity is created.  
  This subsection does not apply to an entity that is created before
  September 1, 2023.
         (d)  This section prevails to the extent of any conflict with
  any other law. The application of this section to an entity
  described by Subsection (a) may be altered only by an amendment to
  this section.
         (e)  Subsection (c) does not apply to an entity that is a
  state agency.
         (f)  In this section, "state agency" means a department,
  commission, board, office, or other body that is in the executive or
  judicial branch of state government and was created by the
  constitution or statute, but does not include an advisory committee
  administratively attached to a state agency.
         SECTION 2.  Section 301.035, Government Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         Sec. 301.035.  [JOINT] INTERIM COMMITTEE PER DIEM AND TRAVEL
  EXPENSES. Unless a statute expressly provides otherwise, per diem
  and travel expenses paid to a member of a joint committee
  established by statute or an interim committee of a house created by
  rule or resolution shall be paid by the house to which the member
  belongs. The per diem and travel expenses paid to a public member of
  the committee shall be paid by the office of the appointing entity.
         SECTION 3.  Section 301.072, Government Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
         (c)  A state agency with charge and control of a state
  building shall, as soon as practicable, notify each legislative
  office or agency occupying the building of any planned or
  anticipated activity described by Subsection (b)(4) that is
  conducted, directed, or authorized by the state agency, including
  an interruption in utilities, a maintenance or construction
  activity likely to cause prolonged noise or vibration perceptible
  in the space occupied by a legislative office or agency, a major
  excavation project within 1,000 feet of any outer wall of the
  building, or a change to or closure of a street or sidewalk adjacent
  to the building or affecting vehicle or pedestrian access to the
  building.
         SECTION 4.  Subchapter F, Chapter 301, Government Code, is
  amended by adding Section 301.074 to read as follows:
         Sec. 301.074.  LEGISLATIVE AGENCY ADMINISTRATIVE FUNCTIONS.
  (a) In this section:
               (1)  "Financial system" includes an accounting system,
  payroll system, purchasing system, human resources information
  system, or enterprise resource planning system.
               (2)  "Legislative agency" has the meaning assigned by
  Sections 326.001(1)(A)-(B) and (D)-(H).
         (b)  The administrative head of a legislative agency shall
  oversee the agency's central business and administrative functions
  and other matters vested in or delegated to the administrative
  head.
         (c)  For purposes of this section, the administrative head of
  the senate is the highest ranking officer or employee of the senate
  with responsibility for the senate's financial functions.
         (d)  The director or other highest ranking employee, or that
  person's designee, is the administrative head of a legislative
  agency other than the senate or house of representatives.
         (e)  A legislative agency may use an internal financial
  system selected by the administrative head of the agency.
         (f)  The comptroller shall provide an application
  programming interface or other means mutually acceptable to the
  administrative head of a legislative agency and the comptroller for
  the legislative agency's internal financial system to exchange the
  requisite financial and other data with the financial system of
  record for this state necessary for the comptroller to pay each
  agency's expenses from that agency's funds as held by the
  comptroller.
         (g)  A legislative agency may use all or any part of a
  financial system provided by the comptroller under Chapter 2101 or
  other law as mutually agreed to by the administrative head of the
  agency and the comptroller.
         (h)  This section prevails to the extent of a conflict
  between this section and Chapter 2101.
         SECTION 5.  Section 323.006(b), Government Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         (b)  By agreement with either house of the legislature or a
  legislative agency, the council may perform administrative,
  accounting, purchasing, facilities management, or other services
  or functions for or on behalf of the house or agency.
         SECTION 6.  Section 323.009(a), Government Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         (a)  The council may reimburse members-elect of the
  legislature for travel expenses incurred in attending an
  orientation program [conducted by the council] between the date of
  the general election and the convening of the regular legislative
  session.
         SECTION 7.  Section 325.003(a-1), Government Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         (a-1)  A public member acts on behalf of the legislature when
  participating on the commission in furtherance of the legislature's
  duty to provide oversight of state [executive branch] agencies'
  implementation of legislative priorities.
         SECTION 8.  Section 325.004(a), Government Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         (a)  The commission shall employ an individual selected by
  the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house of
  representatives as executive director of the commission. The
  executive director acts [to act] as the executive head of the
  commission.
         SECTION 9.  Section 325.012(c), Government Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         (c)  The commission shall have drafts of legislation
  prepared to carry out the commission's recommendations under this
  section. The commission may include in legislation prepared for the
  commission that continues a state agency or advisory committee only
  those recommendations that relate to the efficient functioning of
  or procedural changes in the day-to-day administration,
  management, or operation of the state agency or advisory committee.
  The commission may include any recommendation authorized by this
  chapter in legislation prepared for the commission that does not
  continue a state agency or advisory committee.
         SECTION 10.  Section 468.003(b), Government Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         (b)  The Texas Legislative Council may [shall] provide
  office space and other support in Austin necessary for the state
  demographer to perform the demographer's duties for the
  legislature.
         SECTION 11.  Section 2052.205(a), Government Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         (a)  A state agency shall send to the Legislative Reference
  Library three physical [five] copies and one electronic copy of
  each publication that it distributes.
         SECTION 12.  Section 6, Article 38.01, Code of Criminal
  Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
         Sec. 6.  ASSISTANCE. The [Texas Legislative Council, the
  Legislative Budget Board, and The] University of Texas at Austin
  shall assist the commission in performing the commission's duties.
         SECTION 13.  Section 31, Chapter 1250 (H.B. 4181), Acts of
  the 86th Legislature, Regular Session, 2019, is amended to read as
  follows:
         Sec. 31.  Records described by Section 301.041(b) or
  301.043, Government Code, as added by this Act, or Section
  301.020(e) or 323.018, Government Code, as amended by this Act, are
  not subject to request, inspection, or duplication under Chapter
  552, Government Code. A governmental body may withhold the records
  without the necessity of requesting a decision from the attorney
  general under Subchapter G, Chapter 552, Government Code.
         SECTION 14.  The following provisions of the Government Code
  are repealed:
               (1)  Sections 325.019(b) and (c);
               (2)  Section 325.022;
               (3)  Section 2053.004;
               (4)  Chapter 2060; and
               (5)  Section 2206.101(e).
         SECTION 15.  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, 2023.
 
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