| (a) The committee.
(1) The Public Health Funding and Policy Committee
(committee) shall be appointed under and governed by this section.
(2) The committee is established under the Health and
Safety Code, Chapter 117, which requires the Commissioner of the Department
of State Health Services (commissioner) to establish the Public Health
Funding and Policy Committee.
(b) Applicable law. The committee is subject to the
Health and Safety Code, Chapter 117, and Government Code, Chapter
2110, concerning state agency advisory councils.
(c) Purpose. The purpose of the committee is to provide
policy level advice and assistance to the Department of State Health
Services (department) in the organization and funding of local public
health in Texas and the relationship between local public health entities
and the department.
(d) Tasks. As required by the Health and Safety Code, §117.101,
the committee shall:
(1) define the core public health services a local
health entity should provide in a county or municipality;
(2) evaluate public health in this state and identify
initiatives for areas that need improvement;
(3) identify all funding sources available for use
by local health entities to perform core public health functions;
(4) establish public health policy priorities for this
state; and
(5) at least annually, make formal recommendations
to the department regarding:
(A) the use and allocation of funds available exclusively
to local health entities to perform core public health functions;
(B) ways to improve the overall public health of citizens
in this state;
(C) methods for transitioning from a contractual relationship
between the department and the local health entities to a cooperative-agreement
relationship between the department and the local health entities;
and
(D) methods for fostering a continuous collaborative
relationship between the department and the local health entities.
(6) The committee shall carry out any other tasks
assigned by the commissioner.
(e) Committee abolished. As required by the Health
and Safety Code, §117.002, the committee shall be subject to
the Texas Sunset Act, Government Code, Chapter 325. Unless continued
in existence as provided by the Government Code, Chapter 325, the
committee is abolished and this section expires September 1, 2023.
(f) Composition. As required by the Health and Safety
Code, §117.052, the committee shall be composed of nine members,
appointed by the commissioner to include:
(1) two regional health directors, each of whom is
serving as a health authority in a municipality or county;
(2) one local health entity representative of a municipality
or county with a population of 50,000 or less;
(3) one local health entity representative from a municipality
or county with a population greater than 50,000 but less than 250,000;
(4) one local health entity representative from a municipality
or county with a population of at least 250,000;
(5) two local health entity representatives, each of
whom serves in a municipality or county as the health authority; and
(6) two representatives of schools of public health
at institutions of higher education in this state.
(g) Terms of Office. As required by the Health and
Safety Code, §117.053, the term of office of each member shall
be six years.
(1) Committee members serve staggered six-year terms,
with the terms of three members expiring on February 1 of each odd-numbered
year.
(2) If a vacancy occurs on the committee, a person
shall be appointed to fill the vacancy for the unexpired term in the
same manner as the original appointment.
(h) Officers. As required by the Health and Safety
Code, §117.055, the committee shall select from its members the
presiding officer and an assistant presiding officer.
(1) The presiding officer shall serve until December
31 of each even-numbered year. The assistant presiding officer shall
serve until December 31 of each odd-numbered year. Both the presiding
officer and the assistant presiding officer may holdover until his
or her replacement is elected by the committee.
(2) The presiding officer shall preside at all committee
meetings which he or she attends, call meetings in accordance with
this section, appoint subcommittees of the committee as necessary,
and cause proper reports to be made to the council. The presiding
officer may serve as an ex-officio member of any subcommittee of the
committee.
(3) If the office of presiding officer or assistant
presiding officer becomes vacant, it may be filled by vote of the
committee.
(4) The committee may reference its officers by other
terms, such as chairperson and vice-chairperson.
(i) Meetings. As required by the Health and Safety
Code, §117.056, the committee shall meet as necessary to conduct
committee business.
(1) The committee shall meet at least quarterly, or
more frequently, at the call of the presiding officer.
(2) To ensure appropriate representation from all areas
of this state, the committee may meet by videoconference or telephone
conference call. A meeting held by videoconference or telephone conference
call under this subsection must comply with the requirements applicable
to a telephone conference call under Government Code, §551.125(c),
(d), (e), and (f). Government Code, §551.125(b) and §551.127
do not apply to the committee.
(3) Each member of the committee shall be informed
of a committee meeting at least five working days before the meeting.
(4) A simple majority of the members of the committee
shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of transacting official
business.
(5) The committee is authorized to transact official
business only when in a legally constituted meeting with a quorum
present.
(6) The agenda for each committee meeting shall include
an opportunity for any person to address the committee on matters
relating to committee business. The presiding officer may establish
procedures for such public comment, including a time limit on each
comment.
(j) Attendance. Members shall attend committee meetings
as scheduled. Members and subcommittee members shall attend meetings
of subcommittees to which the members and subcommittee members are
assigned.
(1) A member shall notify the presiding officer, or
appropriate department staff, if he or she is unable to attend a scheduled
meeting.
(2) It shall be grounds for removal from the committee
if a member or subcommittee member cannot discharge the member's duties
for a substantial part of the term for which the member is appointed
because of illness or disability, absence from more than half of the
committee and subcommittees meetings during a calendar year, or absence
from at least three consecutive committee meetings.
(3) 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 member exists.
(k) Staff. Staff support for the committee shall be
provided by the department. In accordance with the Health and Safety
Code, §117.104, using existing personnel and videoconferencing
equipment, local health entities, or their designees, may assist the
committee in the performance of its duties under this section.
(l) Procedures. Roberts Rules of Order shall be the
basis of parliamentary decisions except where otherwise provided by
law or rule.
(1) Any action taken by the committee must be approved
by a majority vote of the members present once a quorum is established.
(2) Each member shall have one vote.
(3) A member may not authorize another individual to
represent the member by proxy.
(4) The committee shall make decisions in the discharge
of its duties without discrimination based on any person's race, creed,
gender, religion, national origin, age, physical condition, or economic
status.
(5) Minutes of each committee meeting shall be taken
by department staff.
(A) A draft of the minutes approved by the presiding
officer shall be provided to the council and each member of the committee
within 30 days of each meeting.
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