Bill Text: TX SB995 | 2021-2022 | 87th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to the establishment of the disaster reinvestment and infrastructure planning board and the creation of the disaster reinvestment and infrastructure planning revolving fund; making an appropriation.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-03-18 - Referred to Finance [SB995 Detail]
Download: Texas-2021-SB995-Introduced.html
87R563 CJC-D | ||
By: Powell, et al. | S.B. No. 995 |
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relating to the establishment of the disaster reinvestment and | ||
infrastructure planning board and the creation of the disaster | ||
reinvestment and infrastructure planning revolving fund; making an | ||
appropriation. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Chapter 17, Water Code, is amended by adding | ||
Subchapter H to read as follows: | ||
SUBCHAPTER H. DISASTER REINVESTMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE PLANNING | ||
BOARD; REVOLVING FUND | ||
Sec. 17.801. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter: | ||
(1) "Board" means, notwithstanding Section 17.001, | ||
the disaster reinvestment and infrastructure planning board. | ||
(2) "Disaster" has the meaning assigned by Section | ||
418.004, Government Code, and also includes a pandemic. | ||
(3) "Fund" means the disaster reinvestment and | ||
infrastructure planning revolving fund. | ||
(4) "Trust company" means the Texas Treasury | ||
Safekeeping Trust Company. | ||
Sec. 17.802. ESTABLISHMENT; PURPOSE. The disaster | ||
reinvestment and infrastructure planning board is established to: | ||
(1) administer the disaster reinvestment and | ||
infrastructure planning revolving fund; and | ||
(2) determine the eligibility of applicants for | ||
financial assistance from the fund and award grants and loans from | ||
the fund. | ||
Sec. 17.803. COMPOSITION. (a) The board is composed of: | ||
(1) the following ex officio members: | ||
(A) a member of the Texas Water Development Board | ||
designated by the presiding officer of that board; | ||
(B) a member of the governing board of the Texas | ||
Department of Housing and Community Affairs designated by the | ||
presiding officer of that board; | ||
(C) the commissioner of insurance or the | ||
commissioner's designee; | ||
(D) a member of the Texas Transportation | ||
Commission designated by the presiding officer of the commission; | ||
(E) a member of the Public Safety Commission | ||
designated by the presiding officer of the commission; | ||
(F) the executive commissioner of the Health and | ||
Human Services Commission or the executive commissioner's | ||
designee; | ||
(G) the commissioner of agriculture or the | ||
commissioner's designee; | ||
(H) the land commissioner or the land | ||
commissioner's designee; | ||
(I) a member of the Texas Commission on | ||
Environmental Quality designated by the presiding officer of the | ||
commission; and | ||
(J) the comptroller or the comptroller's | ||
designee; and | ||
(2) three public members, one appointed by the | ||
governor, one appointed by the lieutenant governor, and one | ||
appointed by the governor from a list provided by the speaker of the | ||
house of representatives. | ||
(b) Appointed board members serve staggered six-year terms | ||
with one member's term expiring February 1 of each odd-numbered | ||
year. | ||
(c) The governor shall designate one member of the board to | ||
serve as presiding officer of the board. | ||
Sec. 17.804. ADMINISTRATIVE ATTACHMENT. (a) The board is | ||
administratively attached to the Texas Water Development Board. | ||
(b) The Texas Water Development Board shall provide office | ||
space and administrative support services, including human | ||
resources, budgetary, accounting, purchasing, payroll, information | ||
technology, and legal support services, to the board as necessary | ||
to carry out the purposes of this subchapter. | ||
Sec. 17.805. FUND. (a) The disaster reinvestment and | ||
infrastructure planning revolving fund is a special fund outside | ||
the state treasury to be used by the board, without further | ||
legislative appropriation, for the purpose of providing financial | ||
assistance in response to a disaster as provided by this | ||
subchapter. The board may establish separate accounts in the fund. | ||
The fund and the fund's accounts are kept and held by the trust | ||
company in escrow and in trust for and in the name of the board. The | ||
board has legal title to money and investments in the fund until | ||
money is disbursed from the fund as provided by this subchapter and | ||
board rules. | ||
(b) Money deposited to the credit of the fund may be used | ||
only as provided by this subchapter. | ||
(c) The fund consists of: | ||
(1) money transferred or deposited to the credit of | ||
the fund by law, including money from any source transferred or | ||
deposited to the credit of the fund at the board's discretion as | ||
authorized by law; | ||
(2) the proceeds of any fee or tax imposed by this | ||
state that by statute is dedicated for deposit to the credit of the | ||
fund; | ||
(3) any other revenue that the legislature by statute | ||
dedicates for deposit to the credit of the fund; | ||
(4) the proceeds of the sale of any bonds required to | ||
be deposited to the credit of the fund by the constitution of this | ||
state; and | ||
(5) investment earnings and interest earned on amounts | ||
credited to the fund. | ||
Sec. 17.806. MANAGEMENT AND INVESTMENT OF FUND. (a) The | ||
trust company shall hold and invest the fund, and any accounts | ||
established in the fund, for and in the name of the board, taking | ||
into account the purposes for which money in the fund may be used. | ||
The fund may be co-invested with the state treasury pool. | ||
(b) The overall objective for the investment of the fund is | ||
to maintain sufficient liquidity to meet the needs of the fund while | ||
striving to preserve the purchasing power of the fund. It is the | ||
intent of the legislature that the fund remain available in | ||
perpetuity for the purposes of this subchapter. | ||
(c) The trust company has any power necessary to accomplish | ||
the purposes of managing and investing the assets of the fund. In | ||
managing the assets of the fund, through procedures and subject to | ||
restrictions the trust company considers appropriate, the trust | ||
company 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. | ||
(d) The trust company may recover the costs incurred in | ||
managing and investing the fund only from the earnings of the fund. | ||
(e) The trust company annually shall report to the board | ||
with respect to the investment of the fund. The trust company shall | ||
contract with a certified public accountant to conduct an | ||
independent audit of the fund annually and shall present the | ||
results of each annual audit to the board. This subsection does not | ||
affect the state auditor's authority to conduct an audit of the fund | ||
under Chapter 321, Government Code. | ||
(f) The trust company shall adopt an investment policy that | ||
is appropriate for the fund. The trust company shall present the | ||
investment policy to the investment advisory board established | ||
under Section 404.028, Government Code. The investment advisory | ||
board shall submit to the trust company recommendations regarding | ||
the policy. | ||
(g) The board annually shall provide to the trust company a | ||
forecast of the cash flows into and out of the fund. The board shall | ||
provide updates to the forecasts as appropriate to ensure that the | ||
trust company is able to achieve the objective specified by | ||
Subsection (b). | ||
(h) The trust company shall disburse money from the fund as | ||
directed by the board. | ||
Sec. 17.807. USE OF MONEY IN FUND. The board by rule shall | ||
establish a revolving loan and grant program to use money from the | ||
fund to provide loans and grants under Sections 17.808, 17.809, and | ||
17.810. | ||
Sec. 17.808. PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE LOANS AND GRANTS. (a) | ||
In this section: | ||
(1) "Qualifying eligible political subdivision" means | ||
a political subdivision that is located wholly or partly in an area | ||
declared by the governor to be a disaster area and that the Federal | ||
Emergency Management Agency has determined is eligible to receive | ||
financial assistance from the agency in response to the disaster. | ||
(2) "Qualifying ineligible political subdivision" | ||
means a political subdivision that is located wholly or partly in an | ||
area declared by the governor to be a disaster area and that the | ||
Federal Emergency Management Agency has determined is not eligible | ||
to receive financial assistance from the agency in response to the | ||
disaster, including a political subdivision determined to be | ||
ineligible based solely on a failure to meet minimum population | ||
requirements. | ||
(3) "Qualifying public infrastructure project" means | ||
a project to: | ||
(A) rebuild infrastructure damaged or destroyed | ||
in a disaster in a manner that protects against future loss; or | ||
(B) construct new infrastructure to mitigate | ||
against damage from a future disaster. | ||
(b) The board may use money in the fund to: | ||
(1) make a loan to finance a qualifying public | ||
infrastructure project to a qualifying eligible political | ||
subdivision; or | ||
(2) make a loan or grant to finance a qualifying public | ||
infrastructure project to: | ||
(A) a qualifying ineligible political | ||
subdivision; or | ||
(B) a public or private hospital, other than an | ||
ambulatory surgical center: | ||
(i) located wholly or partly in an area | ||
declared by the governor to be a disaster area; | ||
(ii) determined by federal agencies not to | ||
be eligible for assistance; | ||
(iii) not eligible for private insurance | ||
assistance sufficient to restore the hospital to pre-disaster | ||
operating function; and | ||
(iv) the closure of which would cause an | ||
imminent threat to public health in the surrounding area, as | ||
determined by the Department of State Health Services. | ||
(c) The board may make a loan or grant under this section | ||
only during the period for which the governor's disaster | ||
declaration is in effect or for a longer period determined by the | ||
board if the application for financial assistance is for a | ||
qualifying public infrastructure project described by Subsection | ||
(a)(3)(A). | ||
(d) The board may not make a loan or grant under this section | ||
to rebuild or construct a privately owned structure, except as | ||
provided by Subsection (b)(2)(B). | ||
(e) A loan made under this section must be subject to the | ||
following conditions: | ||
(1) the loan must be made at or below market interest | ||
rates for a term not to exceed 20 years; | ||
(2) principal and interest payments on the loan must | ||
begin not later than 18 months after the loan is originated; and | ||
(3) the loan proceeds must be expended solely on a | ||
qualifying public infrastructure project. | ||
(f) The board shall credit to the fund all principal and | ||
interest payments made on a loan made under this section. | ||
(g) The board by rule shall provide for interest rates on | ||
loans offered to political subdivisions under this section to vary | ||
according to a risk analysis so that a political subdivision must | ||
pay a significantly higher interest rate than other political | ||
subdivisions if the political subdivision is, as determined by the | ||
board, likely to suffer significant additional damage in subsequent | ||
disasters. | ||
(h) The board may not make a grant to a political | ||
subdivision under this section that, based on information available | ||
to the board, has experienced repeated damage from disasters. | ||
Sec. 17.809. EPIDEMIC RESPONSE MANUFACTURING GRANTS. (a) | ||
In this section: | ||
(1) "Eligible business" means a legal entity, | ||
including a corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship, | ||
that: | ||
(A) employs 500 or fewer employees; and | ||
(B) owns or operates a facility in this state | ||
that: | ||
(i) currently manufactures qualifying | ||
epidemic response equipment; or | ||
(ii) based on criteria established by the | ||
board, has sufficient capacity to manufacture qualifying epidemic | ||
response equipment. | ||
(2) "Qualifying epidemic response equipment" means | ||
any of the following items if, based on criteria developed by the | ||
board, the items are necessary to protect the residents of this | ||
state from an epidemic or pandemic: | ||
(A) personal protective equipment, including | ||
respirators, surgical masks, cloth masks, and isolation gowns; | ||
(B) respiratory care equipment, including | ||
ventilators; or | ||
(C) other medical equipment, devices, or | ||
supplies. | ||
(b) The board may use money in the fund to: | ||
(1) make a grant to an eligible business that | ||
currently manufactures qualifying epidemic response equipment to | ||
allow the business to increase its production of that equipment; or | ||
(2) make a grant to an eligible business that does not | ||
currently manufacture qualifying epidemic response equipment to | ||
allow the business to begin production of that equipment at its | ||
facility. | ||
(c) An individual grant awarded under this section may not | ||
exceed $20,000. | ||
(d) The maximum amount of grants awarded under this section | ||
for a fiscal year may not exceed $500,000. | ||
Sec. 17.810. INFECTIOUS DISEASE TREATMENT DEVELOPMENT | ||
GRANTS. (a) In this section, "eligible research entity" means an | ||
institution of learning or an advanced medical research facility or | ||
collaboration that: | ||
(1) is located in this state; and | ||
(2) performs research into the causes of and cures for | ||
infectious disease in humans. | ||
(b) The board may use money in the fund to make a grant to an | ||
eligible research entity for: | ||
(1) research into the causes of and cures for all types | ||
of infectious disease in humans; | ||
(2) research, including translational research, to | ||
develop therapies, protocols, medical pharmaceuticals, vaccines, | ||
or procedures for the cure or substantial mitigation of all types of | ||
infectious disease in humans; and | ||
(3) infectious disease prevention and control | ||
programs in this state to mitigate the incidence of all types of | ||
infectious disease in humans. | ||
Sec. 17.811. ALLOCATION OF MONEY IN FUND; LIMITATION ON | ||
AWARD OF GRANTS. (a) The board by rule shall allocate money in the | ||
fund so that: | ||
(1) 50 percent of the money in the fund is available to | ||
provide loans under Section 17.808(b)(1); and | ||
(2) the remainder of the money in the fund is available | ||
to provide: | ||
(A) loans or grants under Section 17.808(b)(2); | ||
and | ||
(B) grants under Sections 17.809 and 17.810. | ||
(b) The board may not use more than 25 percent of the money | ||
in the fund allocated for the purposes of Subsection (a)(2)(A) to | ||
award grants to: | ||
(1) assist in the payment of a political subdivision's | ||
costs associated with a qualifying public infrastructure project | ||
under Section 17.808; or | ||
(2) pay or defer the payment of the principal of and | ||
interest on a loan received from the fund by a political subdivision | ||
under Section 17.808(b)(2) or extend the amount of time a political | ||
subdivision has to repay a loan under that section. | ||
(c) The board shall suspend the award of grants from the | ||
fund for the duration of a period during which the balance of the | ||
fund is less than a minimum fund balance established by board rule. | ||
Sec. 17.812. APPLICATION FOR LOAN OR GRANT. The board by | ||
rule shall develop and implement an application process for a loan | ||
or grant under this subchapter. | ||
Sec. 17.813. PROVISIONS APPLICABLE TO APPLICATIONS FOR | ||
PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE LOANS AND GRANTS. (a) An application for a | ||
loan or grant under Section 17.808 must, at a minimum, include: | ||
(1) a description of the public infrastructure project | ||
for which the applicant is requesting the loan or grant, including | ||
information on the design life of the project; | ||
(2) an estimate of the total cost of the project; | ||
(3) an estimate of the amount of federal money the | ||
applicant expects to receive for the project, if any; | ||
(4) an estimate of the amount of money the applicant | ||
has available to finance the project, if any; | ||
(5) evidence that the applicant has staff, policies, | ||
and procedures in place adequate to complete the project; | ||
(6) information on the percentage of properties | ||
located within the political subdivision's jurisdiction that are | ||
covered by flood insurance, if the application is from a political | ||
subdivision; and | ||
(7) information regarding the protections from future | ||
disasters that have been incorporated into the siting or design of | ||
the project. | ||
(b) The board by rule shall adopt a point system to allow the | ||
board to prioritize certain applicants for loans or grants under | ||
Section 17.808 based on: | ||
(1) the type of public infrastructure project for | ||
which the applicant is requesting the loan or grant and the stage of | ||
development of the project; | ||
(2) information provided by the applicants, or other | ||
information that is available to the board, including information | ||
regarding the applicants' ability to repay a loan from the fund; | ||
(3) the availability of other money, including state | ||
or federal matching funds, for the public infrastructure project | ||
for which the applicant is requesting the loan or grant; | ||
(4) the existence of an emergency or an imminent | ||
threat to public health; | ||
(5) criteria that indicates the public infrastructure | ||
project incorporates natural features, nature-based engineering | ||
approaches, or characteristics that: | ||
(A) make positive impacts on the environment; | ||
(B) preserve or make efficient use of energy and | ||
associated resources; or | ||
(C) reduce negative impacts on the natural | ||
environment; | ||
(6) the percentage of properties located within the | ||
political subdivision's jurisdiction that are covered by flood | ||
insurance, if the applicant is a political subdivision; | ||
(7) the applicant's past history of and future risk for | ||
repeated damage from disasters, if the applicant is a political | ||
subdivision; and | ||
(8) other criteria developed by the board. | ||
(c) The board by rule shall provide an expedited procedure | ||
for acting on an application for financial assistance from the fund | ||
for a public infrastructure project under Section 17.808. The | ||
expedited procedure must not affect an applicant's receipt of | ||
federal money to which the applicant may be eligible as a result of | ||
the disaster. | ||
Sec. 17.814. REPORT. Not later than December 1 of each | ||
even-numbered year, the board shall prepare and submit to the | ||
governor, the lieutenant governor, and each member of the | ||
legislature a report that includes: | ||
(1) the balance of the fund as of that date; | ||
(2) the total dollar amount of disbursements from the | ||
fund during the two-year period preceding that date; and | ||
(3) the following information, as applicable: | ||
(A) a general description of each public | ||
infrastructure project for which an applicant was awarded a loan or | ||
grant under Section 17.808 during the two-year period preceding | ||
that date and the approximate cost of each of those projects; | ||
(B) a list of the applicants awarded a grant | ||
under Section 17.809 during the two-year period preceding that date | ||
and a summary of the type and amount of epidemic response equipment | ||
manufactured by each of those applicants; and | ||
(C) a list of the applicants awarded a grant | ||
under Section 17.810 during the two-year period preceding that date | ||
and a summary of the research conducted and prevention and control | ||
programs developed by each of those applicants. | ||
SECTION 2. As soon as practicable after the effective date | ||
of this Act, the governor and lieutenant governor shall appoint | ||
members to the disaster reinvestment and infrastructure planning | ||
board, as required by Section 17.803, Water Code, as added by this | ||
Act. The governor shall appoint one member to a term expiring | ||
February 1, 2027, and one member to a term expiring February 1, | ||
2023. The lieutenant governor shall appoint one member to a term | ||
expiring February 1, 2025. | ||
SECTION 3. (a) The amount of $1 billion is appropriated | ||
from the economic stabilization fund to the comptroller for the | ||
purpose of transferring that amount immediately to the credit of | ||
the disaster reinvestment and infrastructure planning revolving | ||
fund as created by this Act. | ||
(b) This section takes effect only if this Act is approved | ||
by a vote of two-thirds of the members present in each house of the | ||
legislature, as provided by Section 49-g(m), Article III, Texas | ||
Constitution. | ||
SECTION 4. Except as otherwise provided by this Act, this | ||
Act takes effect September 1, 2021. |