Judgment of Compliance

Narrative

Sam Houston State University is a member of The Texas State University System (TSUS) and has a governing board which is a legal body consisting of nine members.  In order to conduct business, five members of the board must be present to constitute the required quorum.  This board has specific authority over the institution, is an active policy–making body for the institution, and has been assigned the task of ensuring that the financial resources of the institution are adequate to provide a sound education program.  Rules and regulations are in place to assure that both the presiding officer of The Texas State University System Board of Regents and a majority of other voting members of the board are free of any contractual, employment, or personal or familial financial interest in the institution.  The Texas Statutes Education Code and The Texas State University System Rules and Regulations provide the official framework to ensure Sam Houston State University complies with these measures. 

The University's governance is stipulated in the Texas Statutes Education Code, Chapter 95.02 [1] which states “the board is composed of nine members appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate.” This statement is reinforced by The Texas State University System Rules and Regulations, Chapter I, Section 3 [2], “The Board of Regents of The Texas State University System is composed of nine members appointed by the Governor.”   The legal history of The Texas State University System Board of Regents is summarized in The Texas State University System Rules and Regulations, Chapter I, Section 1 [3] and a list of the current members of Sam Houston State University’s governing board can be viewed at The Texas State University System web site [4]. 

The Board of Regents has specific authority over the institution and is an active policy–making body for the institution as stated in the Texas Statutes Education Code, Chapter 95.21, (a) “The board is responsible for the general control and management of the Universities in the system . . .” and (b) “The board has authority to promulgate and enforce such rules, regulations, and orders for the operation, control, and management of the University system and its institutions as the board may deem either necessary or desirable. When a power is vested in the board, the board may adopt a rule, regulation, or order delegating such power to any officer, employee, or committee as the board may designate” [5]. The University Organizational Chart [6] indicates the board’s authority over the institution. The policies created by The Texas State University Board of Regents are listed in The Texas State University System Rules and Regulations [7]. These rules are applied and implemented at the quarterly board meetings for the System as indicated in the minutes [8].

The Texas State University System Board of Regents have been assigned the task of ensuring that the financial resources of the institution are adequate to provide a sound education program by the Texas Statutes Education Code, Chapter 95.28 “All appropriations made by the legislature for the support and maintenance of the system universities, for the purchase of land or buildings for the universities, for the erection or repair of buildings, for the purchase of apparatus, libraries, or equipment of any kind, or for any other improvement of any kind shall be disbursed under the direction and authority of the board. The board may formulate rules for the general control and management of the universities, for the auditing and approving of accounts, and for the issuance of vouchers and warrants which are necessary for the efficient administration of the universities” [9]. The Texas Statutes Education Code, Chapter 95.29 [10] further states, “The board shall file in each house of the legislature at each of its regular biennial sessions a statement of the receipts and expenditures of each of the system universities, showing the amount of salaries paid to the various teachers, contingent expenses, expenditures for improvements, and other items of expense. The board shall also file its recommendations for appropriations for the universities.”  Reinforcement of the Texas Education Code, Chapter 95.29 is stated in The Texas State University System Rules and Regulations, Chapter III, Section 6.7 [11].

The board is not controlled by a minority of board members or by organizations or interests separate from it. According to the Texas Statutes Education Code, Chapter 95.05, “Five members of the board shall be a quorum for the transaction of business at any business meeting and, unless a greater number is required by the board’s rules, the act of the majority of the members present at any meeting shall be the act of the board” [12]. The Texas State University System Rules and Regulations, Chapter I, Section 4, [13] support this policy by requiring, “A majority of the members of the Board shall constitute a quorum, and no formal action shall be taken by the Board in the absence of a quorum” .

Both the presiding officer of The Texas State University System Board of Regents and a majority of other voting members of the Board are free of any contractual, employment, or personal or familial financial interest in the institution. The Texas State University System Rules and Regulations, Chapter II, Section 4.11 [14] address the issue of nepotism by stating, “no individual may be employed in the System Administration who is related within the first degree of consanguinity to a member of the Board of Regents, or to an employee in the System Administration.”   Furthermore, The Texas State University System Rules and Regulations, Chapter VIII, Section 2.2 [15] specifically prohibits conflict of interest as it applies to contracts and other fiduciary interest by stating “neither the System nor a component thereof may enter into a contract in which a Regent or the Regent’s spouse has a direct or indirect pecuniary interest.”  Please see Comprehensive Standards 3.2.3, 3.2.4, and 3.2.5 for more details.

Supporting Documentation