Print 🖨

The Senate Committee on Business and Commerce met on April 4, 2019, to take up a number of bills. This report covers SB 808 (Nichols), SB 1529 (Perry et al.), SB 1940 (Hancock), and SB 2409 (Menendez). This report also includes all votes taken on pending bills.

This report is intended to give you an overview and highlight of the discussions on the various topics the committee took up. It is not a verbatim transcript of the hearing but is based upon what was audible or understandable to the observer and the desire to get details out as quickly as possible with few errors or omissions.

 

Pending votes

  • SB 37 (Zaffirini)
    • Passed 8-1
  • CSSB 494 (Nichols)
    • Passed 8-0
    • Certified local and uncontested.
  • SB 799 (Alvarado)
    • Passed 8-0
    • Certified local and uncontested.
  • SB 986 (Kolkhorst)
    • Passed 8-0
    • Certified local and uncontested.
  • HB 41 (Metcalf et al.)
    • Voted on in lieu it’s companion of SB 1344 (Alvarado)
    • Passed 7-1
  • CSSB 1394 (Seliger)
    • Passed 8-0
    • Certified local and uncontested.
  • SB 2305 (Taylor)
    • Passed 8-0
    • Certified local and uncontested.
  • CSSB 2330 (Creighton)
    • CS includes some clean-up language.
    • Passed 8-0
    • Certified local and uncontested.
  • SB 2410 (Menendez)
    • Passed 8-0
    • Certified local and uncontested.
  • CSSB 442 (Hancock)
    • Passed 8-0
    • Certified local and uncontested.
  • CSSB 1414 (Hancock)
    • CS Clarifies property code regarding rental housing late fees. A late fee may not exceed 12%, but a rental owner may charge more if there are damages associated with collection of the fee.
    • Menendez – In the introduced bill you had 10% correct?
      • Hancock – The number we landed on that most people agreed with was 12%.
      • Menendez – Concerned with low-income tenants, some of those people are sometimes surprised by stuff.
      • Hancock – Understand that. Intent of this is to stop frivolous litigation regarding late fees.
    • Passed 7-1
  • SB 1034 (Hancock)
    • Passed 6-2
  • CSSB 1938 (Hancock)
    • Nichols – Will vote to move this forward, but there is a problem with certain language in this bill that will need to be fixed.
      • Hancock – Yes we are working on that.
    • Passed 8-0
    • Will not be local and uncontested, will go to the floor to continue to work on it.
  • CSSB 1941 (Hancock)
    • CS provides for a systemwide cap of battery storage devices for the ERCOT system as a whole. Clarifies that battery storage devices will remain in competitive wholesale markets.
    • Passed 8-0
    • Certified local and uncontested.
  • CSSB 2232 (Hancock)
    • Passed 6-2
  • CSSB 1349 (Watson)
    • Passed 8-0
    • Certified local and uncontested.

 

SB 2409 (Menendez) (Committee Sub) Relating to the Internet domain name used by a website that sells tickets to events.

  • Prohibits 3rd party websites from using misleading domain names to improve SEO and make it seem like they are affiliated with the venue, performing artist, or events organizer.
  • Legislation has been passed unanimously in other states with support from venue operators and sports teams.
  • CS defines URL and clarifies other issues.

 

Public testimony

 

Tess Todora, Austin Theater Alliance – For

  • Bill will keep bad actors from misleading customers into paying more than face value or buying fake tickets.
  • Patrons have paid four times the price of the original price on misleading sites.
  • Have been instances of multiple patrons buying the same seat.

 

SB 2409 left pending.

 

SB 1529 (Perry at al.) Relating to merger agreements among certain hospitals; imposing fees.

  • Rural communities face a challenge due to uninsured patients and the opiate crisis.
  • Rural hospitals are seeking to work together and combine resources.
  • Certificate of Public Advantage (COPA) agreements will be monitored to ensure they are benefiting the health of patients.
  • Proposed COPA law will take oversight away from DC and back to the state.
  • This bill does not create any new regulations
  • CS is a lege draft but is not ready yet.
  • Nichols – House sponsor is Darby?
    • Perry – Darby and probably Lambert.
    • Nichols – You had it bracketed to your area?
    • Perry – Yes.
    • Nichols – You bracketed my home county?
    • Perry – Yes, we needed a certain number of counties.
    • Nichols – That is good, I have lost a number of hospitals and this could help.

 

Public testimony

Shane Plymell, Shaman Medical Center – For

  • COPA will help rural markets with reducing duplicate services and improving access.
  • This will result in more robust resources for diabetes, low birth weight, substance abuse, etc.

 

Norm Archibald, Hendrick Medical Center – For

  • COPA will benefit community while adhering to extensive oversight.
  • Benefit to the community will outweigh the loss of competition from a merger. That will be overseen by HHSC and the AG’s office.

 

Kim Van Winkle, Antitrust Division of the Attorney General’s Office – On

  • Hancock – Explain how the you and the AG’s office look at this?
    • Van Winkle – Look at it from the perspective of antitrust law. This bill would provide immunity for a merger that would not survive normal antitrust scrutiny.
  • Schwertner – How many COPAs have been approved?
    • Van Winkle – None in Texas.
    • Schwertner – what would be the scheme from a regulatory standpoint?
    • Van Winkle – A merger between the only two facilities in a single market, we would look at how that would change the incentives of the consolidation, look at the costs from the market power of the combined hospital and the benefits from efficiencies gained.
    • Schwertner – What are the envisioned efficiencies of a merger?
    • Plymell – Some of these small towns have populations of 3,000-5,000, so we are trying to use tele-health to give people access to care in those places.
  • Perry – Cost of compliance with HHSC and AG oversight is borne by the hospitals, it will not be a cost to the state.
  • Perry – We know that our health care system is not based on free market competition anymore. Wish it was, because we could probably get better outcomes. But as it is consolidations will provide benefits to consumers and will prevent hospitals from closing. Better to have oversight from Texans than from DC bureaucrats.
  • Nichols – We like this bill, but we should check with Hughes and other rural representatives to include their districts in this bill as well.

 

SB 1529 left pending.

 

SB 808 (Nichols) (Committee sub) Relating to the construction manager-at-risk method of contracting for governmental construction projects.

  • This will provide clarification for CMAR selection of sub-contract bids.
  • Requires sub-contract bid wards be provided to the local government within 7 days. Current statute only requires them to be shown on request.
  • Committee sub lowers cost criteria in selection process from 50% to 40%.

 

Public testimony

Perry Fowler, Texas Water Construction Network – For

  • This will ensure procurements are done in a transparent and competitive manner.

 

SB 808 left pending.

 

SB 1940 (Hancock) (Committee Sub) Relating to the administration of a temporary health insurance risk pool.

  • Provides a safety net if the state decides to establish a risk or reinsurance pool.
  • Allows Commissioner of Insurance to access 1332 waiver funds. Is intended to only be accessed if it is actually necessary.
  • Contingency rider is included in the budget for the legislation.
  • Passed last session in anticipation that ACA may be overturned, this is in response to a lawsuit that is currently underway.

 

SB 1940 left pending.