HBA-KMH H.B. 3561 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 3561 By: Luna, Vilma Environmental Regulation 5/25/1999 Enrolled BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC) lacks specific authority to enable the commission to conduct certain grant programs with state or federal funds, including federally funded pass-through grant programs. These grant programs include the National Estuary Programs for Corpus Christi Bay and Galveston Bay, programs within the Office of Pollution Prevention and Recycling, non-point source grants, and joint grant-funding with other state agencies. TNRCC could benefit from the ability to make environmental grants to other parties to carry out the mission of the agency. H.B. 3561 establishes requirements for grant applications, selection of grantees, funding, and program activities eligible for grants from TNRCC, while exempting certain grants and grantees from state purchasing and bidding requirements when these requirements are not appropriate to the particular grant being offered. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking authority is expressly delegated to Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission in SECTION 1 (Section 5.124, Water Code) of this bill. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Subchapter D, Chapter 5, Water Code, by adding Section 5.124, as follows: Sec. 5.124. AUTHORITY TO AWARD GRANTS. (a) Authorizes the executive director of the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC), with the consent of TNRCC to award grants for any purpose regarding resource conservation or environmental protection in accordance with this section. (b) Requires TNRCC, by rule, to establish procedures for awarding a grant, for making any determination related to awarding a grant, and for making grant payments. (c) Provides that each activity funded by a grant must directly relate to a purpose specified in the grant. Authorizes a grant to be awarded only for a purpose consistent with TNRCC's jurisdiction and purposes under law. Sets forth the programs specifically authorized by this section. (d) Authorizes grants to be awarded to any person that meets the eligibility requirements of the grant. Requires the executive director to establish eligibility requirements for each grant appropriate to the purposes of and activities under the grant and the method of selecting the recipient. (e) Provides that the selection of grant recipients must be by solicitation of a proposal or application except as provided by Subsections (f) and (g). Authorizes the executive director to specify any selection criterion the executive director considers relevant to the grant. Sets forth requirements of the selection criteria. (f) Authorizes a grant to be made by direct award only if: (1) the executive director determines that selection of recipients by the solicitation of proposals or applications is not feasible and awarding the grant directly is in the best interest of the state; (2) eligibility for the grant is limited to an agency or political subdivision of this state or of another state, an institution or part of an institution of higher learning of this state or of another state, or an agency of the United States; or (3) the grant is awarded to a person established or authorized to develop or implement a comprehensive conservation and management plan under Section 320, 42 U.S.C. 1330 (Federal Water Pollution Control Act), for a national estuary in this state. (g) Provides that the executive director is not required to make an additional solicitation for entering into a pass-through grant with an identified partner, if a solicitation of a proposal is made for the purpose of identifying a partner for a joint application for a federal grant that is subsequently awarded to TNRCC. (h) Requires the executive director to publish information regarding a solicitation related to a grant to be awarded under this section on TNRCC's electronic business daily in the manner provided by Section 2155.074 (State Business Daily; Notice Regarding Procurements Exceeding $25,000), Government Code, as added by Section 1, Chapter 508, Acts of the 75th Legislature, Regular Session, 1997. (i) Authorizes TNRCC to use money appropriated for grant-making purposes for grants awarded under this section. SECTION 2. Makes application of this Act prospective. Authorizes the commission to make a grant which is pending on the effective date of this Act. SECTION 3. Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 4. Emergency clause.