HBA-SEP, LJP H.B. 897 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 897 By: McCall Higher Education 2/12/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Explosive job growth has left Texas unable to keep up with the rising demand for skilled technology workers. According to a 1998 report of the Governors Science and Technology Council, Texas currently has between 26,000 and 34,000 technology-related job vacancies. House Bill 897 replaces the engineering excellence fund, used to meet critical needs for engineering and related equipment at eligible institutions, with the Texas Engineering and Technical Consortium to increase the number of electrical engineering and computer science graduates from Texas public institutions of higher education and to increase collaborative efforts between universities, electrical engineering and computer science departments, and private technology companies. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking authority is expressly delegated to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board in SECTION 1 (Section 51.505, Education Code) of this bill. ANALYSIS House Bill 897 amends the Education Code to replace the provisions for the engineering excellence fund with provisions for technology workforce development. The purpose of the bill is to establish programs under the Texas Engineering and Technical Consortium (consortium) to increase the number of electrical engineering and computer science graduates from Texas public institutions of higher education and to increase the collaborative efforts between private technology companies in Texas and appropriate entities of higher education (Sec. 51.501). The bill authorizes eligible institutions of engineering or computer science and certain private technology companies to establish and administer the consortium as a resource-sharing program operated within an eligible institution to fulfill specified goals and duties. The bill also provides that at the end of a prescribed period, the consortium may transfer its administrative functions to another eligible institution participating in the consortium (Sec. 51.503). The bill requires the consortium to transfer all stipulated money, except money retained to administer the consortium, that the consortium is authorized to solicit and accept to the comptroller of public accounts to deposit in the technology workforce development account. Money in the account may only be appropriated for the purpose of awarding a consortium-related grant. The bill requires the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) to administer the account and adopt any rules necessary for its administration (Sec. 51.505). The bill authorizes the legislature to appropriate money from the undedicated portion of the general revenue fund for the purpose of awarding consortium-related grants, and sets forth provisions for the amount of the appropriation (Sec. 51.506). The bill requires THECB to use the appropriated money to award grants on a competitive, peer-review basis to eligible engineering and computer science institutions to fund certain programs and goals (Sec. 51.507). The bill requires the consortium to appoint an advisory committee that is subject to provisions for state agency advisory committees and is made up of a representative from each consortium participant (Sec. 51.504). The bill also requires THECB to appoint an advisory committee to advise THECB on consortium-related grants and to appoint an advisory committee to evaluate the effectiveness of the grant program. The bill sets forth provisions for the composition and regulation of the committees. The bill also requires the grant program evaluation committee to report the results of its evaluation to THECB not later than September 1 of each even-numbered year. The bill further requires THECB to report the evaluation results to the governor, consortium participants, and the legislature no later than October 31 of each even-numbered year (Secs. 51.508 and 51.510). The bill requires an eligible institution of higher education that is awarded a consortium-related grant to submit a report regarding the use of the grant, not later than September 1 of each year, to THECB. The bill requires THECB to provide the governor, the legislature and the consortium participants with a report consolidated from all of the institution reports not later than October 31 of each year (Sec. 51.509). EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.