Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1257 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Shaheen H.B. No. 1257
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to the use by a political subdivision of public money for
7	7	lobbying activities or lobbyists.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Section 89.002, Local Government Code, is
10	10	transferred to Chapter 556, Government Code, redesignated as
11	11	Section 556.0056, Government Code, and amended to read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 556.0056 [89.002]. LOBBYING ACTIVITIES; ASSOCIATIONS
13	13	AND ORGANIZATIONS [STATE ASSOCIATION OF COUNTIES]. (a) This
14	14	section applies to:
15	15	(1) a political subdivision that imposes a tax; or
16	16	(2) a regional mobility authority, toll road
17	17	authority, or transit authority.
18	18	(b) The governing body of a political subdivision may not
19	19	spend public money to directly or indirectly influence or attempt
20	20	to influence the outcome of any legislation pending before the
21	21	legislature. This subsection does not prevent:
22	22	(1) an officer or employee of a political subdivision
23	23	from providing information for a member of the legislature or
24	24	appearing before a legislative committee at the request of the
25	25	committee or the member of the legislature; or
26	26	(2) an elected officer of a political subdivision from
27	27	advocating for or against or otherwise influencing or attempting to
28	28	influence the outcome of legislation pending before the legislature
29	29	while acting as an officer of the political subdivision.
30	30	(c) The governing body of a political subdivision
31	31	[commissioners court] may spend, in the name of the political
32	32	subdivision [county], public money [from the county's general fund]
33	33	for membership fees and dues of a nonprofit state association or
34	34	organization of similarly situated political subdivisions only
35	35	[counties] if:
36	36	(1) a majority of the governing body [court] votes to
37	37	approve membership in the association or organization;
38	38	(2) the association or organization exists for the
39	39	betterment of local [county] government and the benefit of all
40	40	local [county] officials;
41	41	(3) the association or organization is not affiliated
42	42	with a labor organization;
43	43	(4) neither the association or organization nor an
44	44	employee of the association or organization directly or indirectly
45	45	influences or attempts to influence the outcome of any legislation
46	46	pending before the legislature[, except that this subdivision does
47	47	not prevent a person from providing information for a member of the
48	48	legislature or appearing before a legislative committee at the
49	49	request of the committee or the member of the legislature]; and
50	50	(5) neither the association or organization [nor an
51	51	employee of the association or organization]
52	52	directly or indirectly
53	53	contributes any money, services, or other valuable thing to a
54	54	political campaign or endorses a candidate or group of candidates
55	55	for public office.
56	56	(d) Subsection (c)(4) does not prevent a person from
57	57	providing information for a member of the legislature or appearing
58	58	before a legislative committee at the request of the committee or
59	59	the member of the legislature.
60	60	(e) A political subdivision may not employ in any capacity a
61	61	person required to register as a lobbyist under Chapter 305.
62	62	(f) If a political subdivision engages in an activity
63	63	prohibited by Subsection (b) or (e) or if [(b) If] any association
64	64	or organization supported wholly or partly by payments of tax
65	65	receipts from political subdivisions engages in an activity
66	66	described by Subsection (c)(4) [(a)(4)] or (5), a taxpayer of a
67	67	political subdivision that pays fees or dues to the association or
68	68	organization is entitled to appropriate injunctive relief to
69	69	prevent any further activity prohibited by Subsection (b) or (e) or
70	70	described by Subsection (c)(4) [(a)(4)] or (5) or any further
71	71	payments of fees or dues.
72	72	(g) A taxpayer who prevails in an action under Subsection
73	73	(f) is entitled to recover from the political subdivision the
74	74	taxpayer's reasonable attorney's fees and costs incurred in
75	75	bringing the action.
76	76	SECTION 2. Section 556.0056, Government Code, as
77	77	redesignated and amended by this Act, applies only to an
78	78	expenditure or payment of public funds by a political subdivision
79	79	that is made on or after September 1, 2015. An expenditure or
80	80	payment of public funds by a political subdivision that is made
81	81	before September 1, 2015, is governed by the law in effect on the
82	82	date the expenditure or payment is made, and the former law is
83	83	continued in effect for that purpose.
84	84	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.