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Subcommittee advances bill allowing temporary reallocation of TSU capital funds to operations with comptroller oversight
Summary
House Bill 13 44, debated at length, would allow the legislature to release certain capital funds to Tennessee State University (TSU) for operational support under parameters set with the comptroller's office; the subcommittee approved an untimely amendment and referred the bill 5‑0 to the full committee.
Representative Williams, sponsor of House Bill 13 44, brought an untimely amendment (6520) that would involve the comptroller and treasurer in establishing parameters for releasing previously designated capital funds to Tennessee State University for operational use. Williams said the proposal aims to help TSU meet short‑term fiscal challenges without abandoning capital commitments.
"This would give the legislature the ability to release some funds that were originally utilized supposed to be utilized for capital building projects to be able to fund the operations of them going forward once certain parameters are met, which will be determined by the treasurer comptroller's office and this body," Representative Williams said. He described the change as a tool to "right the ship and become solvent again."
Comptroller Mumpower testified in support and provided approximations of the available funds. "About three years ago, the legislature made $250,000,000 available, dedicated it to capital over at TSU. Today ... there's about a hundred and 54,000,000 left in that fund. All 154 is not gonna be available for operational use because there are commitments ... I think there's gonna be in the range of 90 to 94,000,000 available for operational use," Mumpower said, adding he was offering approximations, not exact figures.
Representative Glenn asked whether releasing capital‑designated funds now would obligate the legislature to address a longer shortfall; Mumpower said any further funding decisions would be a legislative choice. The committee placed amendment 6520 on the bill and voted 5‑0 to send House Bill 13 44, as amended, to the full House Education Administration Committee.
The committee record shows the bill was discussed at length and included participation from the comptroller; the transcript did not contain a detailed fiscal plan, binding release schedule, or precise list of capital commitments that must be preserved before operational transfers occur.
