Issue 9: April 9, 2007

That Was Then …

 

Wishin’ and Hopin’

The Senate Finance Committee (SFC) appeared poised last week to report a budget bill, but it was not to be. The only action was the adoption on Monday of its version of Article 11, aka as the “wish list.” For budget requests, it is the fiscal equivalent of purgatory – not yet condemned to death but not bestowed the gift of life either. Items of interest among the $1.8 billion that made the cut include:

Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
• Financial aid − $30 million
• Advanced Research Program − $35 million
• Joint Admissions Medical Program − $1 million
• New community colleges − $6.3 million
• College readiness − $2.2 million (unexpended balance)
• Incentive funding − $75 million
• Financial aid to chiropractic colleges − $500,000
• Graduate medical education incentive funding − $3 million
• Lonestar Educational And Research Network consortium − $7.95 million
• Texas National Guard Scholarship program − $10 million

General Academic Institutions
• UT Arlington institutional enhancement – $5 million
• Texas State University – San Marcos School Safety Center – $3 million
• Texas State University System Round Rock nursing program start-up – $4.1 million
• Texas State Technical Colleges airstrip – $4 million
• San Antonio Life Sciences Institute, UTSA/UTHSCSA – $6 million

Health-related Institutions
• Disproportionate Share Hospital funding, UTMB and UTHC Tyler – $13.68 million
• Texas A&M HSC (medical school enrollment increase) – $10 million
• UTHC Tyler School of Health-Related Sciences – $1.5 million
• UTHSC Houston, Harris County Psychiatric Center – $7.7 million

Additional Higher Education Funding
• Research Development Fund – $20 million
• Increased research funding (at institutions of higher education) – $25 million (not equivalent to the House’s Competitive Knowledge Fund)

State Employee Compensation and Benefits
• Pay raise – $251.6 million for a 2 percent increase ($50/month minimum) effective September 1, 2007, and an additional 2 percent increase ($50/month minimum) effective September 1, 2008 (excludes higher ed employees)
• Employees Retirement System − $14.9 million (ups state contribution rate to 6.7 percent)
• Teacher Retirement System − $101.8 million (ups state contribution rate to 6.6 percent)
• Optional Retirement System − $9 million (ups state contribution rate to 6.6 percent)

Technology (Governor’s Trusteed Programs)
• Texas Emerging Technology Fund (TEFT) − $50 million
• TETF grant for FutureGen Project − $20 million

The SFC adopted a contingency funding rider indicating legislative intent that, before finalizing the conference committee report on the House budget bill (CSHB 1), the conference committee will consider funding bills that have fiscal notes (i.e., additional costs) which have passed at least one house of the Legislature. The Legislative Budget Board (LBB) staff is to maintain a list of this legislation.

Both CSHB 1 and the supplemental appropriations bill, CSHB 15, have been referred to the SFC, which is scheduled to vote out its version of the budget bill on Tuesday. The LBB staff was planning to have the Senate committee substitute (SCSHB 1) ready this past week, and Chair Steve Ogden (Bryan) announced a meeting for Thursday. It never was scheduled, however, and informed speculation as to why ranges from bill production logistics to political considerations. No word yet on when the SFC will consider SCSHB 15.

 

Fiscal Nuts and Budget Bolts

The budget-writing committees’ regular meeting times and places, clerks and phone numbers are:

House Appropriations – 8 a.m. daily (almost, and upon House adjournment as needed) E1.030 (HAC Hearing Room, Capitol Extension 1st floor) Cristina Self, 463-1091

Senate Finance – 9 a.m. daily (almost, and upon Senate adjournment as needed) E1.036 (SFC Hearing Room, Capitol Extension 1st floor) Amy Jeter, 463-0370

From session to session, the two houses alternate writing the initial version of the appropriations bill. The starting point this session has been HB 1, but both Finance and Appropriations, or their workgroups and subcommittees, respectively, have met almost daily. When both the Senate and the House have approved spending plans, the legislative leadership will appoint a 10-member conference committee to reconcile the differences in the two proposed budgets and present a compromise bill to each house for approval.

 

Higher Ed Highlights

Think Globally Like There’s No Tomorrow

The House Higher Education Committee discussed several bills on Monday and voted some of them out later in the week (see below).

HCR 159 by Morrison (Victoria) would direct the governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker to appoint a 15-member Select Commission on Higher Education and Global Competitiveness. The commission, to be drawn primarily from the business and academic communities, would draft a compact reflecting a long-term vision and step-by-step plan to attain the following goals by 2020: educating the Texas population to levels comparable to the highest performing competitor states and nations; achieving global recognition for Texas public colleges and universities for excellence in their core missions and for innovations that strengthen the state's economy and improve quality of life; and serving different regions of Texas in ways that respond to each region's unique higher education needs. The commission also would examine several related issues including educational attainment levels, accountability measures, and university-based research.

Former UT Regent Woody Hunt, chairman of the Governor's Business Council Higher Education Task Force, testified that the state has fallen behind in educational attainment. He said the trend is downward, unlike other parts of the world, and must be reversed. Texas is not better educated compared to other states and nations, he said, and therefore less competitive than in the past.

Hunt said the focus needs to be on outputs because Texas is losing the human capital race. He called for better allocation of higher education resources for productivity and more spending on student financial aid, but not on other programs initially.

Rep. Fred Brown (Bryan) said that the state should consider allowing more junior colleges to award baccalaureate degrees because the state gets more "bang for our buck" there than from four-year universities.

Higher Education Commissioner Raymund Paredes said that the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board already has done considerable work on the same issues, assuring members that the bill’s Nov. 1, 2008 deadline for the compact is realistic. In addition to improving timely graduation, regional resources and financial aid, Paredes said more top research universities are needed.

The committee initially left the bill pending, then reported it favorably Wednesday (see below).

In presenting HB 2173, the sunset bill continuing the Prepaid Higher Education Tuition Board, Rep. Byron Cook (Corsicana) said that the Texas Tomorrow Fund should not be re-opened. He claimed that it was not being used by the lower-income population that needs it most, arguing that it should do more than offer a good investment to well-off families. Nonetheless, Cook said the fund needs to be continued in order to honor pre-existing commitments.

The fund, which allows parents to lock in tuition rates well in advance of college, was temporarily suspended in 2003 after tuition deregulation. The bill, which would remove the weighted average requirement for new contracts, was left pending.

The Austin American Statesman reported Thursday that Waco economist Ray Perryman, unlike advisers to the comptroller, believes the fund is sound enough to reopen. Read the story.

The committee also heard HB 2074 by Krusee (Round Rock), which creates the East Williamson County Education Center. Jim Aanstoos of the Hutto Economic Development Corporation said it would have a positive economic impact on Williamson County and Central Texas by attracting new light manufacturing jobs.

The superintendent of the Taylor Independent School District, Bruce Scott, noted that the college-going population in Taylor has declined along with the changing demographic makeup of the district. Scott said that the bill would provide more opportunity to attend college for the minority population, helping foster a college-going culture. David Borrer, the superintendent of the Hutto Independent School District, testified that the center would help serve the fast-growing population living in his district.

The bill was left pending.
View the agenda

The committee voted out several bills at two formal meetings on the House floor Wednesday and Thursday. Among them were the student recreational facility fee bill for UTEP (HB 868 - Haggerty); authorization for baccalaureate degree programs in applied science and technology at up to four public junior colleges (HB 2198 - Flores); and requesting a select commission on higher education and global competitiveness (HCR 159 - Morrison).

View Wednesday’s minutes ll View Thursday’s minutes

Double Your Pleasure
With a long weekend approaching and a short week following, the Senate Higher Education Subcommittee held two hearings last week. On Monday, the panel considered whether to keep top higher ed executive evaluations public. SB 1045
by Wentworth (San Antonio) would make confidential the performance evaluations of system chancellors, university presidents and the commissioner of higher education.

Sen. Wentworth said his bill conforms higher ed positions to those similarly situated in public education and "encourages a more candid and meaningful evaluation process." Sen. Dan Patrick (Houston) said that, while he understands the concerns, he is not sure the information should be kept from the public.

Robert Shepard, chairman of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB), said the board views SB 1045 as a "me, too” bill. Neal Adams, THECB vice chairman, said his experience is that, as Wentworth suggested, existing procedures "stifle candid input."

Dr. Charles Zucker, executive director of the Texas Faculty Association, said he spoke against the bill "with great reluctance." However, he said "good government dictates that the public be able to see the evaluations of chancellors and presidents of universities." The bill was left pending.

The subcommittee reported favorably SB 1052, which authorizes tuition credits for students who complete the core curriculum at two-year public institutions of higher education. Subcommittee Chair Judith Zaffirini (Laredo) said her bill "makes college education more affordable and puts bachelor's degrees at the reach of more Texas students." The bill would limit eligibility to Texas residents who finish the core curriculum within two years.

Jane Caldwell, THECB grants and special programs director, said the bill’s fiscal note is relatively low because, as of now, few students graduating "move through the system this efficiently." The bill was voted favorably and is set for hearing Tuesday before the Senate Education Committee.

View the agenda ll Watch the video

 

On Wednesday, the subcommittee took the long view in discussing SB 1772 by Watson calling for a long-range higher education plan. Chair Zaffirini asked Higher Education Commissioner Raymund Paredes about reviewing and integrating similar legislative proposals. Dr. Geri Malandra, System interim academic affairs executive vice chancellor, said individual system and institution planning is not enough due to the difficulty of assuming a statewide perspective.

“With a limited state budget, the state needs to be strategic in terms of where it spends its higher education dollars,” she said. “A state as large as Texas may well need more top-tier universities,” noting that creating such institutions is an expensive and time-consuming process. Dr. Malandra welcomed the study in light of the System’s recent strategic plan, which she developed.

SB 1377 by Shapleigh would direct the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) to determine how to finance the goals of Closing the Gaps, the state’s higher education plan to increase enrollment, among other things, by 2015. Other than programs such as student financial aid, Paredes said the THECB does not examine costs in the detail called for by the bill, but he welcomed the idea as doable.

The subcommittee reported favorably a proposal to put a student representative on the THECB. SB 1007 by West would create a selection process for and grant powers and duties to the student representative similar to those in the student regent law. The student representative would have the right to attend and participate in board meetings but could not vote, make motions, or be counted toward a quorum.

Also reported favorably was SB 1496 by Zaffirini, which forgives half the amount of a B-On-Time Loan if the student attends an eligible four-year institution, or eligible institution that offers only junior-level or senior-level undergraduate courses, and earns an undergraduate degree with a cumulative 2.5 grade point average (GPA) within five calendar years after initial enrollment. Current law requires a 3.0 GPA and graduation within four or five years, depending on the degree program.

Other bills voted out Wednesday included SB 105 (West), authorizing a law school at UNT-Dallas; SB 201 (Nelson), granting tuition breaks for nurse preceptors; SB 211 (Fraser) modifying the enrollment threshold for Texas A&M University – Central Texas (Killeen); SB 289 (Nelson), allowing nursing shortage grants for part-time clinical nursing faculty; and CSSB 1488 (Patrick), creating a scholarship program for undergraduates agreeing to teach in Texas public schools having teacher shortages.

View the agenda ll Watch the video

 

The Senate Education Committee voted out eight higher ed bills Wednesday, including SB 963 by Shapleigh authorizing a student recreational facility fee at UT El Paso. Chair Florence Shapiro (Plano) cited “strong support for a bill that we think has the right attitude.” The panel also reported favorably SB 1325 by West prohibiting institutional scholarships to close relatives of regents; SB 51 by Zaffirini creating employee “assault leave;” SB 469 by Brimer providing for donor recognition; SB 1050 by Zaffirini requiring the THECB to develop a work-study mentorship program; SB 1053 by Zaffirini requiring the THECB to develop an academic advising assessment mechanism; SB 1231 by Zaffirini requiring timely tuition and fee refunds for dropped courses; and SB 1233 by Zaffirini broadening application of the $100 general property deposit and requiring timely return. All these bills have been placed on the Local/Uncontested Calendar.

 

Miscellany

Ready – Set – Go to College
Gallery Watch reported Tuesday that Gov. Rick Perry has appointed a 21-member Commission for a College Ready Texas. The panel is to provide leadership and guidance to the State Board of Education (SBOE) to improve college readiness programs by aligning high school curricula with college standards.

The commission will hold public meetings from April through fall 2007. The commission will consider public testimony from these meetings and make recommendations to the SBOE, which has the authority to adopt, align and define college readiness standards for Texas.

Four members are currently or formerly associated with the UT System: Dr. Ricardo Romo, president of UT San Antonio; Larry Faulkner, president of The Houston Endowment and former UT Austin president; Woody L. Hunt, former chairman, UT System Board of Regents; and commission co-chair Dr. Linda Ferreira-Buckley, chair, Department of Rhetoric and Composition English, UT Austin.

Chairing the commission is Sandy Kress, a partner in the Austin law firm of Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld. Kress focuses on state and national public law and policy. He is a former senior education advisor to President George W. Bush and former president of the Dallas school board. Kress currently serves on the Education Commission of the States and previously served as counsel to the Governor's Business Council and Texans for Education, and as a member of the Texas Business and Education Coalition.

The other members are:
• Albert Black, president, On-Target Supplies and Logistics, Dallas
• Barbara Cargill, member, State Board of Education
• Jose Cuevas Jr., founder and CEO, JumBurrito
• Dr. Robert Duron, superintendent, San Antonio Independent School District
• Linda Evans, President of Grants and Planning, The Meadows Foundation, Dallas
• Bruce Esterline, Vice President of Grants and Planning, The Meadows Foundation, Dallas
• David Garcia, CEO, CEDRA Corporation, Austin
• Bill Hammond, president/CEO, Texas Association of Business
• Dr. Eric Hanushek, Paul and Jan Hanna Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University
• Jodie Jiles, managing director, RBC Capital Markets, Houston
• Charles E. McMahen, chairman, Governor's Business Council
• George McShan, former president and president-elect, Texas Association of School Boards
• Sonya Medina, executive director, AT&T Foundation
• Elaine Mendoza, member, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
• David Merrill, Vice President - Investments, AG Edwards & Sons, Inc.
• Dean Nafziger, Ph.D., CEO, Edvance Research, Inc.
• Dr. Richard M. Rhodes, president, El Paso Community College
• Zeynep Young, Michael and Susan Dell Foundation

Also included as members are seven other co-chairs who will oversee the four subject-specific teams:
• Selina Jackson, English teacher, Wall Independent School District
• Linda Gann, mathematics instructional specialist, Northside Independent School District
• Dr. Selina Vasquez-Mireles, associate professor of mathematics, Texas State University
• Mercedes Guzman, science teacher, El Paso Independent School District
• Dr. C. O. Patterson, biology professor, Texas A&M University - College Station
• Larry Garibaldi, instructional team leader, Houston Independent School District
• Dr. Jonathan Lee, associate professor of history, San Antonio College

Ex officio members are:
• Commissioner Shirley Neeley, Texas Education Agency
• Commissioner Raymund Parades, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
• Susan Combs, Texas State Comptroller
• John Fitzpatrick, executive director, Texas High School Project - Communities Foundation of Texas

Customer Satisfaction
The Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) has published a policy brief taking the state’s two top-tier research universities to task for short-changing students, especially undergraduates, on teaching. Serving the Customer in Texas’ Elite Universities discusses issues related to the purpose of The University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M University at College Station.

The paper addresses the balance between teaching and research and how it claims research universities have moved away from this balance over the past several years. The paper cites examples of this trend from both UT Austin and Texas A&M. The paper discusses the role of teaching in universities and how to enhance rewards for quality teaching. The role of graduate teaching assistants also is discussed and recommendations are offered.

TPPF is a conservative “think tank” based in Austin that focuses primarily on Texas government issues and state policy.

…This Is Now

 

If It’s Tuesday, It’s Still Higher Ed

All eyes (albeit bleary) will be on the Extension Auditorium bright and early Tuesday for the Senate Higher Education Subcommittee’s hearing on two perennially controversial issues – the “top 10 percent” law and tuition deregulation. Eleven bills are on the agenda – four dealing with top 10 percent, five with tuition, and two on other topics (see below). Chair Judith Zaffirini (Laredo) has announced that all of them will be left pending.

Automatic admission has engulfed the admissions process at UT Austin, where 71 percent of its resident first-time entering freshmen last summer and fall were admitted based on their high school graduating class rank. Proponents argue that the law is a fair way, not based on race or ethnicity, of diversifying entering classes with high-achieving students from throughout the state. Opponents counter that a single-criterion method unfairly penalizes excellent students in the upper percentiles of their graduating classes at competitive high schools and precludes admission based on other important factors.
The Senate proposals being heard Tuesday are:

• SB 101 by Shapiro, allowing general academic teaching institutions to limit top 10 percent admissions to not more than 50 percent of first-time resident undergraduates in an academic year.

• SB 1569 by Patrick, allowing university systems having more than one general academic teaching institution to treat an application for automatic admission to one or more system institutions as an application for admission to any of the institutions, and requiring systems to offer qualified applicants admission to at least one of them.

• SB 1570 by Patrick, requiring applicants for automatic admission to UT Austin or Texas A&M – College Station to have scored at least 1,650 out of 2,400 on the Scholastic Assessment Test or the equivalent on the American College Test.

• SB 128 by West, requiring applicants for automatic admission to complete the statutory curriculum requirements for the recommended or advanced high school program, if the high school offers such curricula, or the equivalent curriculum if not, beginning with the 2010-11 academic year.

Sen. Royce West (Dallas), according to the Houston Chronicle, is attempting to persuade enough senators to keep any bills changing the 1997 law from being debated.

Regents have had the ability to set rates for the designated portion of tuition since 2003, and several UT System institutions have implemented innovative tuition policies. Nevertheless, despite up-front student input, significant financial aid set-asides, and rates still below the national average, some in the Legislature have criticized increases as exorbitant. The Senate proposals being heard Tuesday are:

• SB 85 by Hinojosa, creating a moratorium on increasing designated tuition by requiring that, for the 2007-08, 2008-09, and 2009-10 academic years, the amount of designated tuition charged a student may not exceed the total amount of designated tuition that the institution would have charged to a similarly situated student in the 2006-07 academic year. Beginning with 2010-11, the amount of designated tuition charged a student may not exceed by more than 5 percent the total amount of designated tuition that would have been charged to a similarly situated student in the preceding academic year.

• SB 96 by Ellis, directing the Legislative Oversight Committee to review and recommend to the Legislature as to the future of tuition deregulation by Jan. 1, 2009; and repealing regents’ tuition-setting authority on Sept. 1, 2010, absent legislative continuation.

• SB 100 by Shapiro, stabilizing the amount of tuition charged during students' degree programs, beginning with the 2007 fall semester for continuously enrolled resident students. During the standard duration of the students’ programs, institutions may not charge tuition for courses at rates exceeding the rates in effect for those courses during the students' freshman years.

• SB 578 by Ellis, capping at 5 percent the yearly increase in the total amount of tuition charged by a public institution of higher education, both designated and statutory. The total amount of tuition charged could not exceed the total amount that the institution would have charged to a similarly situated student in the preceding academic year by more than 5 percent. The total amount of tuition charged for the 2007-08 academic year may not be more than 5 percent higher than the total amount charged for the 2004-05 academic year to a similarly situated student.

• SB 579 by Ellis, limiting increases in the total amount of tuition and compulsory fees charged by public institutions of higher education through a formula for determining the amount that may be charged in an academic year. Any increase in the total amount of tuition and compulsory fees would be capped at $150, perhaps lower.

Two other bills also are on Tuesday’s agenda. SB 1146 by Shapiro would require institutions of higher education to post online performance report cards, one for the Legislature and one for prospective students. The legislative report card must include information in four categories: total enrollment; costs (average annual resident undergraduate tuition and fees); student retention and graduation rates; and funding, including total appropriations, total amounts from any source available to the institution, and the percentage of total money available coming from tuition and fees. SB 1446 by Duncan is a “clean-up” bill conforming a statute to the appropriations practice of excluding indirect cost recovery from the calculation of “other educational and general income.” This practice, begun two sessions ago, allows schools to "keep" 100% of earned overhead cost recovery; i.e., no offset to general revenue in the funding formulas. SB 1446 is necessary because SB 1227, which contained a similar provision, did not pass in 2005.

View the agenda ll Watch the hearing

 

Among the bills being heard Tuesday by the House Higher Education Committee are HB 3900 by Morrison creating the Texas Tomorrow Fund II prepaid tuition unit undergraduate education program, to be administered by the Prepaid Higher Education Tuition Board. It would sell contracts for purchases, on behalf of beneficiaries, of one or more tuition units applicable to payment of undergraduate tuition and fees at general academic teaching or two-year institutions. General academic tuition units would be equivalent to 1 percent of costs, and schools would have to accept purchase prices plus interest earned on behalf of enrollees. Beneficiaries would have to pay any difference between plan distributions and actual costs of attending the institutions they attend. HB 2639 by Smithee would require higher ed institutions to develop and deliver risk management training programs to address such issues as hazing, sexual harassment and substance abuse. Schools would have to ensure that all registered campus organizations complied with the program’s training requirements. HB 3321 by Truitt would require students to verify health care insurance coverage that meets minimum standards, to be established by the THECB, when enrolling in institutions of higher education beginning in the fall 2008. Institutions or systems may provide or sponsor health plans and charge a fee to cover plan costs. Students may participate in the schools’ plans or select other coverage. Institutions may provisionally enroll students in their plans for no more than one semester if they have no other coverage. HB 3826 by Morrison requires college applicants from public high schools to have successfully completed the recommended or advanced high school curriculum, or the equivalent if neither is available at their high schools. No UT academic institution specifically requires the recommended or advanced high school curriculum for admission. Top ten percent admittees currently are exempt from such requirements.

View the agenda ll Watch the hearing

 

Six bills reported from the Senate Higher Education Subcommittee are on the Senate Education Committee’s agenda, including SB 649 by Shapleigh. Unlike the filed bill, which authorized a joint partnership between UTEP and the Texas Tech Health Science Center, the committee substitute requires the THECB to study whether institutions of higher education may effectively enter into such agreements to develop joint degree and research programs. SB 1052 by Zaffirini grants 25 percent statutory tuition credits to students having completed core curricula at two-year public colleges who enroll at general academic teaching institutions. As filed, SB 1232 would have authorized tuition and fee payment plans, including electronic agreements; a 3 percent origination fee or 5 percent interest on emergency student loans; and clarified that such loans could not be for the full amount of tuition and fees. The committee substitute caps the origination fee at 1.25 percent of the loan amount.

View the agenda ll Watch the hearing

 

St. Elsewhere

Other committees hearing bills of interest this week include:

Tuesday

Senate Business and Commerce
• SB 223 (Ellis) -- clarifies that institutions of higher education must notify Texas residents of unauthorized disclosure of sensitive data and adds reporting requirements that will impact workloads.

House Corrections Special Populations Subcommittee
• HB 2100 (Haggerty) – allows UTMB's correctional managed health care program to move individuals into specialized nursing and/or care environments, which may result in cost savings.

• HB 763 (Dutton) – requires the Texas Department of Criminal Justice to set up a program to confine and treat inmates aged 60 or older in geriatric communities in prison.

House Environmental Regulation
• SB 12 (Averitt) – requiring institutions of higher education to implement energy efficiency standards and consumption reduction goals.

House Public Education
• HB 2237 (Eissler) – requires the State Board of Education to incorporate college readiness standards into the essential knowledge and skills of the foundation curriculum for certain 12th grade courses, and authorizes grants to high schools for completion and success initiatives.

Senate Natural Resources
• SB 1458 (Seliger) – authorizes the governor to negotiate on behalf of the state for the purposes of implementing the FutureGen clean coal project, in which the UT System may participate through University Lands.

• SB 1459 (Seliger) – broadens state indemnification for the FutureGen clean coal project.

• SB 1461 (Seliger) – authorizes the governor to contract with the FutureGen Alliance for a clean coal demonstration project.
Senate Emerging Technologies and Economic Development Subcommittee

• SB 1023 (West) – prohibits awarding a Texas Enterprise Fund Grant unless the recipient commits to providing a health benefit plan to its full-time employees.

Wednesday

House Civil Practices
• HB 811 (Dutton) – makes governmental agencies liable in cases where public employees' use or operation of motorized vehicles or equipment contributes to property damage, personal injury or death.

• HCR 112 (Kuempel) – authorizes suit against UTMB and the State Anatomical Board by five individuals alleging claims arising from a family member's body being donated to the Willed Body Program, with aggregate recovery limited to $2 million contingent on appropriations.

House Urban Affairs
• SB 125 (Carona) – directs half of the revenue collected from tickets issued as a result of camera-detected traffic violations to be deposited in trauma service regional advisory council accounts.

House Public Health
• HB 3065 (Truitt) – requires the Texas Medical Board to study increasing the state’s medical residency programs and medical residents and the number of practicing medical specialists.

Senate State Affairs
• SJR 48 (Ogden) – modifies the constitutional "hold-over" provision by prohibiting appointed board members subject to Senate confirmation whose terms expire during a legislative session from continuing to serve after the regular session ends.

Thursday

House State Affairs
• HB 225 (Paxton) – prohibiting the use of state money for biomedical research if federal law prohibits the use of federal money for that research as of January 1, 2007.

• HB 537/HJR 43 (Thompson) – authorizing the Texas Institute for Regenerative Medicine to oversee research using human cells and tissues, creating its governing body (to which the UT Chancellor could appoint a member), and prohibiting the Legislature from prohibiting stem cell research.

• HB 1829 (Raymond) – prohibits an institution of higher education from engaging, or attempting to engage, in human cloning and imposes civil penalties up to $10 million.

• HB 2704 (Woolley ) – imposes criminal and civil penalties for human cloning and creates an advisory committee for non-prohibited research.

Your Hit Parade

Bills of interest scheduled for House consideration include:

Tuesday
HB 2004 (Giddings) – workers’ compensation case reviews
HB 709 (Puente et al.) – umbilical cord blood education
HB 346 (Flynn et al.) –random steroid testing of high school athletes
HB 387 (Callegari) – repeals UT’s authority to condemn land for the defunct Superconducting Super Collider Accelerator project
HB 518 (Naishtat) – extending arrestees’ detention time for mental evaluation
HB 258 (Corte et al.) – restricting firearms confiscation during natural disasters
HB 1416 (Corte) – allowing the Veterans Land Board to sell land mortgage loans and deposit net proceeds into the Land Fund
HB 1634 (Dukes et al.) – modifying the film industry incentive program

Wednesday
HB 495 (Bonnen) – making assault on emergency services personnel a third-degree felony
HB 1200 (Menendez) – prohibiting state agency spending on lobbyists
HB 158 (Naishtat) – requiring state officials to report fair market value of gifts
HB 2611 (Madden) – medical release of sex offender prison inmates in vegetative states
HB 66 (Leibowitz) – requires DIR to select a power management software program for state computer networks and personal computers

Access House calendars

 

Bills of interest eligible for Senate consideration include:

Notice of Intent
SJR 3 (Duncan) – constitutional amendment requiring two-thirds record votes of both house’s membership to enact eminent domain laws
SB 523 (Seliger) – UTPB student services building fees

Regular Order of Business
SB 276 (Wentworth) – modifying the student regent selection process
SB 285 (Shapiro) – UT Dallas student transportation fee
SB 612 (Lucio) – UT Brownsville student athletics fee
SB 1306 (Wentworth) – redefining quorums for state board members attending unofficial events
SB 1447 (Duncan) – expanding TRS’s securities investments

Access Senate agendas

Session Snapshot

 

Week	14
Days Remaining	50
Bills/Joint Resolutions Filed*	6,261
Bills/Joint Resolutions Passed**
>House	221
>Senate	210
Bills Enacted*	10
Legislation Tracked	1,865
High Priority Bills	369

*Incl. SCR 20 (const. spending limit)
**By each house

The bill filing deadline was March 9, the 60th day of the session. To file a bill now requires a four-fifths vote of the members present in either house, and several bills have been introduced this way. Legislative deadlines and other important dates may be found at Key Legislative Dates.

House Committees’ permanent meeting schedules

Senate Committees’ permanent meeting schedules

Duly Noted

Responding to a mild rebuke Monday from Rep. Helen Giddings (Dallas) during a House Higher Education Committee hearing on a student fee bill, Ray Keck, president of Texas A&M – International in Laredo, said, “Ma’am, I’m…I, I apologize if my, what I said misrepresented what I think I do understand.”