H.B. No. 1518
AN ACT
relating to the addition of territory to and the amount of
production fees imposed by the Trinity Glen Rose Groundwater
Conservation District.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 13, Chapter 1312, Acts of the 77th
Legislature, Regular Session, 2001, is amended by amending
Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as follows:
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (i) of this section,
the board of directors may impose [reasonable] fees on each
nonexempt well in the district. The fees may be assessed annually,
based on:
(1) the size of column pipe used in the well;
(2) the production capacity of the well; or
(3) actual, authorized, or anticipated pumpage.
(b-1) The district may not impose a fee under Subsection (b)
of this section in an amount greater than:
(1) $1 per acre-foot for water used for agricultural
purposes; or
(2) $40 per acre-foot for water used for any other
purpose.
SECTION 2. Chapter 1312, Acts of the 77th Legislature,
Regular Session, 2001, is amended by adding Section 19A to read as
follows:
Sec. 19A. EFFECT OF ANNEXATION OF LAND BY CERTAIN
MUNICIPALITIES. (a) In this section:
(1) "Inhabited land" means land on which at least one
fixed, permanent, and occupied dwelling is situated, as of the date
on which the land is annexed by a municipality.
(2) "Vacant land" means land on which no fixed,
permanent, and occupied dwelling is situated, as of the date on
which the land is annexed by a municipality.
(b) If a municipality that has held an election under
Section 19 of this Act subsequently annexes vacant land that is not
located in the groundwater conservation district chosen by the
municipality in the election, the annexed vacant land by that
action:
(1) becomes part of the territory of the groundwater
conservation district chosen by the municipality in the election;
and
(2) is disannexed from any other groundwater
conservation district in which the land is located.
(c) If a municipality that has held an election under
Section 19 of this Act subsequently annexes inhabited land that is
not located in the groundwater conservation district chosen by the
municipality in the election, the landowners of the annexed
inhabited land may file a petition with the groundwater
conservation district requesting inclusion in that district as
provided by Subchapter J, Chapter 36, Water Code. Notwithstanding
Section 36.325(b), Water Code, the petition must be signed by all of
the landowners of the land to be annexed by the groundwater
conservation district. If the affected landowners do not file a
petition as provided by this subsection, the municipality shall
hold an election under Section 19 of this Act in which the voters in
the annexed inhabited land may choose the one groundwater
conservation district of which the annexed land will be a part.
(d) Any land annexed by the municipality after an election
under Section 19 of this Act and before the effective date of this
section is:
(1) territory of the district chosen by the
municipality in the election; and
(2) disannexed from any other groundwater
conservation district in which the land is located.
(e) A disannexation of a groundwater conservation
district's territory under this section does not diminish or impair
the rights of the holders of any outstanding and unpaid bonds,
warrants, or other obligations of that groundwater conservation
district. Property disannexed under this section is not released
from its pro rata share of any indebtedness of that groundwater
conservation district at the time of the disannexation, and that
groundwater conservation district may continue to tax the property
until that debt is paid.
SECTION 3. (a) All governmental acts and proceedings of the
Trinity Glen Rose Groundwater Conservation District relating to the
annexation of territory to the municipality or to the district that
were taken before the effective date of this Act are validated,
ratified, and confirmed in all respects as if they had been taken as
authorized by law.
(b) This section does not apply to any matter that on the
effective date of this Act:
(1) is involved in litigation if the litigation
ultimately results in the matter being held invalid by a final court
judgment; or
(2) has been held invalid by a final court judgment.
SECTION 4. (a) The legal notice of the intention to
introduce this Act, setting forth the general substance of this
Act, has been published as provided by law, and the notice and a
copy of this Act have been furnished to all persons, agencies,
officials, or entities to which they are required to be furnished
under Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution, and Chapter 313,
Government Code.
(b) The governor, one of the required recipients, has
submitted the notice and Act to the Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality.
(c) The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has filed
its recommendations relating to this Act with the governor, the
lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of
representatives within the required time.
(d) All requirements of the constitution and laws of this
state and the rules and procedures of the legislature with respect
to the notice, introduction, and passage of this Act are fulfilled
and accomplished.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 1518 was passed by the House on May 5,
2009, by the following vote: Yeas 144, Nays 0, 1 present, not
voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 1518 was passed by the Senate on May
26, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: _____________________
Date
_____________________
Governor