HBA-DMD H.B. 1611 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1611
By: McCall
Human Services
7/30/1999
Enrolled



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

The Governor's Committee on People with Disabilities (committee) was
established in 1949 as the Governor's Committee on Employment of the
Handicapped to focus on promoting employment and public awareness of
persons with disabilities.  In 1991, the committee, which was given its
current title in 1983, was relocated from the Texas Rehabilitation
Commission to the Office of the Governor and its focus was expanded.  Prior
to the 76th Legislature, the committee promoted the development and
coordination of statewide public and private policies concerning persons
with disabilities, oversaw and updated the long-range plan for Texans with
disabilities, promoted a demographic survey of persons with disabilities,
and promoted the compilation of laws related to persons with disabilities.

H.B. 1611 continues the committee until September 1, 2011 and establishes
the committee's mission.  This bill provides training for committee members
and specifies situations in which a person is prohibited from being
appointed a member of the committee or acting as the general counsel.  This
bill also establishes grounds for removal from the committee, provides for
public hearings to be held by the committee, sets standards of conduct for
members of the committee, and requires the committee to maintain records of
the complaints it receives. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS


SECTION 1.  Amends Section 115.001, Human Resources Code, as follows:

Sec. 115.001.  New Title:  COMMITTEE; MISSION.  Establishes that the
mission of the Governor's Committee on People with Disabilities (committee)
is to further opportunities for persons with disabilities in order for
persons with disabilities to enjoy full and equal access to lives of
independence, productivity, and self-determination.  

SECTION 2.  Amends Section 115.002, Human Resources Code, by adding
Subsection (d), as follows: 

(d) Requires that appointments to the committee be made without regard to
the race, color, disability, sex, religion, age, or national origin of the
appointees, except as provided by Subsection (b). Subsection (b) provides
that at least seven of the members must be persons with disabilities. 

SECTION 3.  Amends Sections 115.004(a) and (b), Human Resources Code, to
rename the chair of the committee as the presiding officer of the
committee.  Makes conforming and nonsubstantive changes. 

SECTION 4.  Amends Sections 115.005 and 115.009, Human Resources Code, as
follows: 

 Sec. 115.005.  SUNSET PROVISION.  Continues the committee until September
1, 2011, rather than September 1, 1999, under Chapter 325, Government Code
(Texas Sunset Act). 

Sec. 115.009.  FUNCTIONS.  (1) Requires the committee to serve as a central
source of information and education on the abilities, rights, problems, and
needs of persons with disabilities, and as necessary, issue reports.
Deletes the committee's requirement to coordinate and monitor the state's
compliance with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (Pub.
L. No. 101-336) and other federal and state statutes relating to the rights
and opportunities for persons with disabilities. 

(2) Requires the committee to provide information to and advise the
governor and the governor's staff on matters relating to the full
participation of persons with disabilities in all aspects of life.  Deletes
the committee's requirement to provide technical assistance to public and
private agencies and businesses in order to promote and facilitate
implementation of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and
other federal and state statutes relating to rights and opportunities of
persons with disabilities. 

(3)  Requires the committee to submit a report to the governor and to the
legislature before the end of each even-numbered year, rather than by
December 31 of each year to the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the
speaker of the house of representatives, that includes the status of the
state's compliance with federal and state laws pertaining to rights and
opportunities for persons with disabilities and recommendations to achieve
further compliance,  if necessary; the status of a long-range state plan
for persons with disabilities and recommendations to implement that plan,
and any recommended changes in state laws relating to persons with
disabilities, rather than where noncompliance exists.  Makes a
nonsubstantive change. 

(4) Requires the committee to serve as the state's liaison agency in
working with the President's Committee on Employment of Persons with
Disabilities and other entities involved in activities or concerns
affecting, rather than public or private associations or groups promoting
or providing services for, persons with disabilities. 

(5) Makes no change.

(6) Requires the committee to evaluate the state's compliance with the
federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and other federal and state
statutes relating to rights and opportunities for persons with
disabilities, rather than to promote the development of efficient and
effective coordination of services for persons with disabilities. 

(7) Requires the committee to provide information and technical assistance
to public and private agencies and businesses to promote and facilitate
implementation of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and
other federal and state statutes relating to rights and opportunities of
persons with disabilities.  Deletes the committee's requirement to make
recommendations to the governor on programs, policies, and funding that
promote independence for persons with disabilities. 

(8) Requires the committee to collect and evaluate, rather than monitor,
data on employment of persons with disabilities by state agencies. 

(9) Makes no change.

(10) Deletes text requiring the committee to monitor and promote the
implementation of a long-range state plan, review and revise the plan
biennially, and make recommendations about appropriate changes in state
laws. Redesignates a portion of existing Subdivision (11) to Subdivision
(10).  Makes conforming changes. 

(11) Deletes text requiring the committee to promote a demographic survey
for  accurately identifying persons with disabilities and the effective use
of the survey results in establishing service priorities.  Redesignates
existing Subdivision (13) to Subdivision (11). 

SECTION 5.  Amends Chapter 115, Human Resources Code, by adding Sections
115.0021, 115.0022, 115.0023, 115.0041, 115.0042, 115.0061, and 115.011, as
follows: 

Sec. 115.0021.  CONFLICT OF INTEREST.  Prohibits a person from being a
member of the committee or acting as the general counsel to the committee
if the person is required to register as a lobbyist under Chapter 305
(Registration of Lobbyists), Government Code, because of the person's
activities for compensation on behalf of a profession related to the
operation of the committee.  

Sec. 115.0022.  TRAINING FOR COMMITTEE MEMBERS.  (a)  Prohibits a person
who is appointed to and qualifies for office as a member of the committee
from voting, deliberating, or being counted as a member in attendance at a
meeting of the committee until the person completes a training program that
complies with this section.  

(b)  Provides that the training program must provide the person with
information regarding: 

(1) the legislation that created the committee; 
(2) the programs operated by the committee; 
(3) the role and functions of the committee; 
(4) any relevant rules of the committee; 
(5) the current budget for the committee; 
(6) the results of the most recent formal audit of the committee; 
(7) the requirements of the open meetings law, the public information law,
the administrative procedure law, (Chapters 551, 552, and 2001,
respectively) Government Code, and other laws relating to public officials,
including conflict of interest laws; and 
(8) any applicable ethics policies adopted by the committee or the Texas
Ethics Commission.  

(c)  Entitles a person who is appointed to the committee to reimbursement,
as provided by the General Appropriations Act, for the travel expenses
incurred in attending the training program regardless of whether the
attendance at the program occurs before or after the person qualifies for
office.  

Sec. 115.0023.  GROUNDS FOR REMOVAL.  (a)  Establishes that it is a ground
for removal from the committee when a member is ineligible for membership
under Section 115.0021, cannot discharge the member's duties for a
substantial part of the member's term, or is absent from more than half of
the regularly scheduled committee meetings that the member is eligible to
attend during a calendar year without an excuse approved by  a majority
vote of the committee.  

(b)  Establishes that the validity of an action of the committee is not
affected by the fact that it is taken when a ground for removal of a
committee member exists.  

(c)  Requires the executive director of the committee (executive director),
if the executive director has knowledge that a potential ground for removal
exists, to notify the presiding officer of the committee, who is then
required to notify the governor and the attorney general that a potential
ground for removal exists.  Requires the executive director, if the
potential ground for removal involves the presiding officer, to notify the
next highest ranking officer of the committee, who is then required to
notify the governor and the attorney general that a potential ground for
removal exists.  

Sec. 115.0041.  DIVISION OF RESPONSIBILITY.  Requires the committee to
develop and implement policies that clearly separate the policymaking
responsibilities of the committee and the management responsibilities of
the executive director and staff of the committee.  
 
Sec. 115.0042.  PUBLIC HEARINGS.  Requires the committee to develop and
implement policies that provide the public with a reasonable opportunity to
appear before the committee and to speak on any issue under the
jurisdiction of the committee.  

Sec. 115.0061.  STANDARDS OF CONDUCT.  Requires the executive director or
the executive director's designee to provide to members of the committee
and to committee employees, as often as necessary, information regarding
the requirements for office or employment under this chapter, including
information regarding a person's responsibilities under applicable laws
relating to standards of conduct for state officers or employees.  

Sec. 115.011.  COMPLAINTS.  (a)  Requires the committee to maintain a file
on each written complaint filed with the committee that must include the
name of the person who filed the complaint, the date the complaint is
received by the committee, the subject matter of the complaint, the name of
each person contacted in relation to the complaint, a summary of the
results of the review of the complaint, and an explanation of the reason
the file was closed if the committee closed the file without taking action
other than to review the complaint.  

(b)  Requires the committee, until final disposition of the complaint, to
notify the person filing the complaint and each person who is a subject of
the complaint of the status of the review of the complaint.  

SECTION 6.Effective date: September 1, 1999.
Makes application of this Act prospective to a committee member appointed
on or after the effective date.  Does not prohibit reappointment if a
person who is a committee member on the effective date meets the membership
qualifications under Chapter 115 (Governor's Committee on People with
Disabilities), Government Code. 

SECTION 7.Emergency clause.