Bill Text: TX HB5125 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Relating to the organization and operation of the legislative branch of state government.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2023-05-24 - Removed from local & uncontested calendar [HB5125 Detail]
Download: Texas-2023-HB5125-Comm_Sub.html
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.) | ||
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 5125 | By: Springer |
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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. [ |
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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 [ |
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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 [ |
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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 [ |
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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 [ |
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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 [ |
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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 [ |
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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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