Bill Text: TX HJR136 | 2015-2016 | 84th Legislature | Introduced

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Bill Title: Proposing a constitutional amendment to establish a permanent endowment to support the construction, acquisition, improvement, and equipping of buildings, facilities, and other improvements at public junior and community colleges.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2015-03-23 - Referred to Higher Education [HJR136 Detail]

Download: Texas-2015-HJR136-Introduced.html

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84R15366 KEL-D
By: Muñoz, Jr. H.J.R. No. 136

A JOINT RESOLUTION
proposing a constitutional amendment to establish a permanent
endowment to support the construction, acquisition, improvement,
and equipping of buildings, facilities, and other improvements at
public junior and community colleges.
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Article VII, Texas Constitution, is amended by
adding Section 21 to read as follows:
Sec. 21. (a) There is established the permanent public
community college fund for the purpose of providing a dedicated,
independent, and equitable source of funding to support the
construction, acquisition, improvement, and equipping of
buildings, facilities, and other improvements at public junior and
community colleges.
(b) The fund consists of money transferred or deposited to
the credit of the fund and any interest or other return on the
investment assets of the fund. The legislature may dedicate state
revenue to the credit of the fund.
(c) The legislature shall provide for administration of the
fund, which shall be invested in the manner and according to the
standards provided for investment of the permanent university fund.
The expenses of managing the investments of the fund shall be paid
from the fund.
(d) In each state fiscal biennium, the legislature may
appropriate as provided by Subsection (f) of this section all or a
portion of the total return on all investment assets of the fund to
carry out the purposes for which the fund is established.
(e) The legislature shall allocate the amounts appropriated
under this section, or shall provide for an allocation of those
amounts, to eligible junior college districts to carry out the
purposes of the fund. The money shall be allocated based on an
equitable formula established by the legislature or by an agency
designated by the legislature.
(f) The portion of the total return on investment assets of
the fund that is available for appropriation in a state fiscal
biennium under this section is the portion determined by the
legislature, or an agency designated by the legislature, as
necessary to provide as nearly as practicable a stable and
predictable stream of annual distributions to eligible junior
college districts and to maintain over time the purchasing power of
fund investment assets. The amount appropriated from the fund in
any fiscal year may not exceed an amount equal to seven percent of
the average net fair market value of the investment assets of the
fund, as determined by law.
(g) The legislature shall establish criteria by which a
junior college district may become eligible to receive a portion of
the distributions from the fund. A junior college district that
becomes eligible to receive a portion of the distributions from the
fund in a state fiscal biennium remains eligible to receive
additional distributions from the fund in any subsequent state
fiscal biennium.
(h) A junior college district may use distributions from the
fund only for the construction, acquisition, improvement, and
equipping of buildings, facilities, and other improvements at
public junior college and community college campuses operated by
the districts, including to pay the principal and interest on bonds
or other obligations issued for that purpose.
SECTION 2. Section 49-g, Article III, Texas Constitution,
is amended by adding Subsection (p) to read as follows:
(p) Notwithstanding the other provisions of this section,
on the first day of each state fiscal year, the comptroller shall
transfer from the economic stabilization fund to the permanent
public community college fund established under Section 21, Article
VII, of this constitution an amount equal to 10 percent of the total
amount of funds deposited into the economic stabilization fund in
the preceding state fiscal year.
SECTION 3. Section 18, Article VII, Texas Constitution, is
amended by adding Subsection (k) to read as follows:
(k) Notwithstanding the other provisions of this section,
in each state fiscal year, before any other amounts are distributed
under those provisions from the available university fund, the
Board of Regents of The University of Texas System shall transfer
from the available university fund to the permanent public
community college fund established under Section 21 of this article
an amount equal to one percent of the amount distributed from the
permanent university fund to the available university fund in that
fiscal year. This subsection expires when the comptroller of
public accounts certifies to the governor and the Board of Regents
of The University of Texas System that the balance of the permanent
public community college fund is sufficient to provide annual
distributions to adequately fund the construction, acquisition,
improvement, and equipping of buildings, facilities, and other
improvements at public junior and community colleges.
SECTION 4. This proposed constitutional amendment shall be
submitted to the voters at an election to be held November 3, 2015.
The ballot shall be printed to permit voting for or against the
proposition: "The constitutional amendment to establish a
permanent endowment to support the construction, acquisition,
improvement, and equipping of buildings, facilities, and other
improvements at public junior and community colleges."