HBA-JLV C.S.H.B. 1011 77(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 1011 By: Swinford Higher Education 4/4/2001 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The 74th Legislature transferred the operation of the Texas State Technical College Amarillo Campus (campus) to Amarillo College (college). This transfer was an effort to reduce the cost to the State of Texas incurred in providing the training offered by the campus to the citizens of the Panhandle of Texas. Originally, the intent of the legislature was to transfer the ownership of the campus to the college. Because of uncertainty regarding the necessity and liability of environmental cleanup on the system campus, the decision was made to lease the system facility to the college. Ownership of the system campus could allow the college to pursue additional innovative long-term partnerships on the campus with local entities and businesses that may not be possible under the current lease. C.S.H.B. 1011 requires the board of regents of the Texas State Technical College System to enter into an agreement with the board of regents of Amarillo College for the transfer of the system's Amarillo campus to the college. 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. ANALYSIS C.S.H.B. 1011 requires the board of regents of the Texas State Technical College System (system) to enter into an agreement with the board of regents of Amarillo College (college) for the transfer of the system's Amarillo campus to the college not later than September 1, 2002. The bill requires the system to transfer all control of the campus, including all right, title, and interest in materials and property comprising or located on that campus. The bill requires the college to use the property in a manner that primarily promotes a public purpose of the state and requires that the ownership of the property be reverted to the system if the college at any time fails to do so. The instrument of the transfer must ratify and confirm as permanent the Lease and Transfer Agreement dated June 29, 1995, between the system and the college that transferred various assets and other resources from the system to the college, and must terminate all provisions in the Lease and Transfer Agreement relating to real property on the date the instrument of transfer takes effect. The bill sets forth the powers and duties of the board of regents of the college for the governance, operation, management, and control of the campus. The bill provides that real property leases entered into by the board of the system for and on behalf of the campus are ratified, confirmed, and validated. The bill provides that in those real property leases, the board of the college is substituted for and stands and acts in the place of the board of the system. The bill sets forth a description of the approximately 1,500 acres of real property that comprise the Texas State Technical College System's Amarillo campus. EFFECTIVE DATE On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act takes effect September 1, 2001. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE C.S.H.B. 1011 modifies the original to provide that the instrument of transfer required by the bill must ratify and confirm the Lease and Transfer Agreement between the Texas State Technical College System (system) and Amarillo College (college) and must terminate all provisions in the Lease and Transfer Agreement relating to real property. The substitute modifies the original to set forth provisions relating to real property leases entered into by the system for its Amarillo campus. The substitute removes provisions setting forth the technical property boundaries of the land comprising the Texas State Technical College System's Amarillo campus and setting forth the approximate land area. The substitute removes provisions authorizing the college to allow the system to retain any personal property located on the campus. The substitute removes provisions requiring the college to undertake operation of all programs operated by or in connection with the campus and provisions requiring the agreement to provide for the transfer of system employees to the college. The substitute removes provisions requiring the transfer to the college for the benefit of the campus any federal educational funds designated for the academic year in which the transfer of the system's Amarillo campus occurs. The substitute removes provisions providing that contracts and written obligations entered into and bonds issued by the board of regents of the system for the campus and liabilities incurred by the system pertaining to the campus prior to the transfer date remain the obligation of the system. The substitute also removes provisions providing that any contract or agreement with a provider of employee benefits remains in full force until the benefits program expires and provisions requiring the college to include the covered employees in similar agreements that relate to other employees of the college. The substitute removes provisions providing that the transfer, governance, operation, management, and control of the campus to the board of regents of the college does not affect credit hours earned by students or the employment status of campus staff.