Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3462 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R20395 KKR-F
2	2	By: Deshotel H.B. No. 3462
3	3	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 3462:
4	4	By: Phillips C.S.H.B. No. 3462
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the creation of regional emergency communication
10	10	districts; authorizing a fee.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Chapter 772, Health and Safety Code, is amended
13	13	by adding Subchapter H to read as follows:
14	14	SUBCHAPTER H. REGIONAL EMERGENCY COMMUNICATION DISTRICTS: STATE
15	15	PLANNING REGIONS WITH 9-1-1 POPULATION SERVED LESS THAN 1.5 MILLION
16	16	Sec. 772.601. SHORT TITLE. This subchapter may be cited as
17	17	the Regional Emergency Communication Districts Act.
18	18	Sec. 772.602. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
19	19	(1) "9-1-1 region" means the portion of a state
20	20	planning region established under Chapter 391, Local Government
21	21	Code, composed of counties and municipalities that on September 1,
22	22	2015, exclusively received 9-1-1 system services provided by a
23	23	9-1-1 system operated through a regional planning commission.
24	24	(2) "Board" means the board of managers of a district.
25	25	(3) "District" means a regional emergency
26	26	communication district created under this subchapter.
27	27	(4) "Regional planning commission" means a commission
28	28	or council of governments created under Chapter 391, Local
29	29	Government Code, for a designated region.
30	30	Sec. 772.603. APPLICATION OF SUBCHAPTER. (a) This
31	31	subchapter applies to a 9-1-1 region:
32	32	(1) in which the total population served by the 9-1-1
33	33	system operated through a regional planning commission was less
34	34	than 1.5 million on September 1, 2015; and
35	35	(2) in which the governing bodies of each
36	36	participating county and municipality in the 9-1-1 region adopt a
37	37	resolution under Section 772.604 to participate in the district.
38	38	(b) This subchapter does not affect:
39	39	(1) a public agency or group of public agencies acting
40	40	jointly that provided 9-1-1 service before September 1, 1987, or
41	41	that had voted or contracted before that date to provide that
42	42	service;
43	43	(2) a district created under Subchapter B, C, D, F, or
44	44	G; or
45	45	(3) the distribution of funds under Section 771.072.
46	46	Sec. 772.604. CREATION OF DISTRICT. (a) A district is
47	47	created when the governing bodies of each participating county and
48	48	municipality in a 9-1-1 region adopt a resolution approving the
49	49	district's creation. The district's creation is effective on the
50	50	date the last resolution is adopted by a participating county or
51	51	municipality.
52	52	(b) The district shall file with the county clerk of each
53	53	county in which the district is located a certificate declaring the
54	54	creation of the district.
55	55	Sec. 772.605. POLITICAL SUBDIVISION; DISTRICT POWERS. (a)
56	56	A district is a political subdivision of this state created to carry
57	57	out essential governmental functions.
58	58	(b) A district may exercise all powers necessary to carry
59	59	out the purposes and provisions of this subchapter.
60	60	(c) A district created under this subchapter may enter into
61	61	an interlocal agreement with an emergency communication district
62	62	established under Subchapter B, C, D, F, or G to promote enhanced
63	63	public safety and increased fiscal and service efficiencies.
64	64	Sec. 772.606. TERRITORY OF DISTRICT. The territory of a
65	65	district:
66	66	(1) consists of the territory of each participating
67	67	county or municipality located in a 9-1-1 region; and
68	68	(2) does not include any land that is located in the
69	69	territory of an emergency communication district authorized under
70	70	Subchapter B, C, D, F, or G.
71	71	Sec. 772.607. BOARD OF MANAGERS. (a) A district is
72	72	governed by a board of managers.
73	73	(b) A district's initial board is composed of members who
74	74	are appointed by the governing bodies of each participating county
75	75	and municipality. At least two-thirds of the initial board members
76	76	must be elected officials of the participating counties and
77	77	municipalities.
78	78	(c) The initial board appointed under Subsection (b) shall
79	79	establish the size of the board and the qualifications of board
80	80	members.
81	81	Sec. 772.608. POWERS AND DUTIES OF BOARD. (a) The board
82	82	shall name, control, and manage the district.
83	83	(b) The board shall approve, adopt, and amend an annual
84	84	budget.
85	85	(c) The board may adopt orders, rules, bylaws, policies, and
86	86	procedures governing the operations of the board and the district.
87	87	Sec. 772.609. DIRECTOR OF DISTRICT; STAFF; FISCAL AND
88	88	ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT. (a) The regional planning commission for the
89	89	9-1-1 region in which the district is established shall serve as the
90	90	fiscal and administrative agent for the district.
91	91	(b) The executive director of the regional planning
92	92	commission for the 9-1-1 region may serve as director of the
93	93	district.
94	94	(c) The director is responsible for:
95	95	(1) performing all duties required by the board;
96	96	(2) ensuring that board policies and procedures are
97	97	implemented for the purposes of this subchapter;
98	98	(3) preparing an annual budget; and
99	99	(4) employing and assigning employees of the regional
100	100	planning commission to perform duties under this subchapter in
101	101	accordance with the district's approved annual budget.
102	102	(d) The director may use district money to compensate an
103	103	employee assigned duties under this subchapter.
104	104	(e) The director and an employee assigned duties under this
105	105	subchapter are employees of the regional planning commission for
106	106	all purposes.
107	107	Sec. 772.610. AUDIT AND REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. The
108	108	district shall prepare an annual report that includes:
109	109	(1) the amount and source of funds received by the
110	110	district;
111	111	(2) the amount and source of funds spent by the
112	112	district; and
113	113	(3) the results of an audit of the district's affairs
114	114	prepared by an independent certified public accountant in
115	115	compliance with the district's policies and procedures.
116	116	Sec. 772.611. PROVISION OF 9-1-1 SERVICE. (a) A district
117	117	shall provide 9-1-1 service to each participating county or
118	118	municipality through one or a combination of the following methods
119	119	and features or equivalent state-of-the-art technology:
120	120	(1) the transfer method;
121	121	(2) the relay method;
122	122	(3) the dispatch method;
123	123	(4) automatic number identification;
124	124	(5) automatic location identification; or
125	125	(6) selective routing.
126	126	(b) The district shall design, implement, and operate a
127	127	9-1-1 system for each participating county and municipality in the
128	128	district.
129	129	(c) For each individual telephone subscriber in the
130	130	district, 9-1-1 service is mandatory and is not an optional service
131	131	under any definition of terms relating to telephone service.
132	132	Sec. 772.612. LIABILITY. The liability protection provided
133	133	by Section 771.053 applies to services provided under this
134	134	subchapter.
135	135	Sec. 772.613. PRIMARY EMERGENCY TELEPHONE NUMBER. The
136	136	digits 9-1-1 are the primary emergency telephone number in a
137	137	district. A public safety agency whose services are available
138	138	through a 9-1-1 system:
139	139	(1) may maintain a separate number for an emergency
140	140	telephone call; and
141	141	(2) shall maintain a separate number for a
142	142	nonemergency telephone call.
143	143	Sec. 772.614. TRANSMITTING REQUESTS FOR EMERGENCY AID. (a)
144	144	A 9-1-1 system established under this subchapter must be capable of
145	145	transmitting requests for firefighting, law enforcement,
146	146	ambulance, and medical services to a public safety agency that
147	147	provides the requested service at the location from which the call
148	148	originates. A 9-1-1 system may provide for transmitting requests
149	149	for other emergency services, including poison control, suicide
150	150	prevention, and civil defense.
151	151	(b) A public safety answering point may transmit emergency
152	152	response requests to private safety entities with the board's
153	153	approval.
154	154	(c) With the consent of a participating county or
155	155	municipality, a privately owned automatic intrusion alarm or other
156	156	privately owned automatic alerting device may be installed to cause
157	157	the number 9-1-1 to be dialed to gain access to emergency services.
158	158	Sec. 772.615. 9-1-1 EMERGENCY SERVICE FEE. (a) The board
159	159	may impose a 9-1-1 emergency service fee on service users in the
160	160	district.
161	161	(b) The fee may be imposed only on the base rate charge or
162	162	the charge's equivalent, excluding charges for coin-operated
163	163	telephone equipment. The fee may not be imposed on:
164	164	(1) more than 100 local exchange access lines or the
165	165	lines' equivalent for a single business entity at a single
166	166	location, unless the lines are used by residents of the location; or
167	167	(2) any line that the Commission on State Emergency
168	168	Communications has excluded from the definition of a local exchange
169	169	access line or equivalent local exchange access line under Section
170	170	771.063.
171	171	(c) If a business service user provides residential
172	172	facilities, each line that terminates at a residential unit and is a
173	173	communication link equivalent to a residential local exchange
174	174	access line shall be charged the 9-1-1 emergency service fee. The
175	175	fee must have uniform application throughout the district and be
176	176	imposed in each participating county or municipality in the
177	177	district.
178	178	(d) The amount of the fee may not exceed 50 cents per month
179	179	for each line.
180	180	(e) The board shall set the amount of the fee each year as
181	181	part of the annual budget. The board shall notify each service
182	182	supplier of a change in the amount of the fee not later than the 91st
183	183	day before the date the change takes effect.
184	184	(f) In imposing the fee, the board shall attempt to match
185	185	the district's revenues to the district's operating expenditures,
186	186	including the current and planned expenditures for the purchase,
187	187	installation, and maintenance of 9-1-1 emergency services in
188	188	accordance with the district's approved annual budget and operating
189	189	policies.
190	190	Sec. 772.616. COLLECTION OF FEE. (a) A service supplier or
191	191	a business service user that provides residential facilities and
192	192	owns or leases a publicly or privately owned telephone switch used
193	193	to provide telephone service to facility residents shall collect
194	194	the fees imposed on a customer under Section 772.615.
195	195	(b) Not later than the 30th day after the last day of the
196	196	month in which the fees are collected, the service supplier or
197	197	business service user shall deliver the fees to the district in the
198	198	manner determined by the district. The district may establish an
199	199	alternative date for payment of fees under this section, provided
200	200	that the required payment date is not earlier than the 30th day
201	201	after the last day of the report period in which the fees are
202	202	collected. The service supplier or business service user shall
203	203	file with each payment to the district a receipt in the form
204	204	prescribed by the district.
205	205	(c) Both a service supplier and a business service user
206	206	under Subsection (a) shall maintain records of the amount of fees
207	207	the service supplier or business service user collects until at
208	208	least the second anniversary of the date of collection. The board
209	209	may require, at the board's expense, an annual audit of the service
210	210	supplier's or business service user's books and records with
211	211	respect to the collection and remittance of the fees.
212	212	(d) A business service user that does not collect and remit
213	213	the 9-1-1 emergency service fee as required is subject to a civil
214	214	cause of action under Subsection (g). A sworn affidavit by the
215	215	district specifying the unremitted fees is prima facie evidence
216	216	that the fees were not remitted and of the amount of the unremitted
217	217	fees.
218	218	(e) A service supplier may retain an administrative fee of
219	219	two percent of the amount of fees the service supplier collects
220	220	under this section.
221	221	(f) A service supplier is not required to take any legal
222	222	action to enforce the collection of the 9-1-1 emergency service
223	223	fee. The service supplier shall provide the district with an annual
224	224	certificate of delinquency that includes the amount of all
225	225	delinquent fees and the name and address of each nonpaying service
226	226	user. The certificate of delinquency is prima facie evidence that a
227	227	fee included in the certificate is delinquent and of the amount of
228	228	the delinquent fee. A service user account is considered
229	229	delinquent if the fee is not paid to the service supplier before the
230	230	31st day after the payment due date stated on the user's bill from
231	231	the service supplier.
232	232	(g) The district may file legal proceedings against a
233	233	service user to collect fees not paid by the service user and may
234	234	establish internal collection procedures and recover the cost of
235	235	collection from the nonpaying service user. If the district
236	236	prevails in a legal proceeding filed under this subsection, the
237	237	court shall award costs, attorney's fees, and interest to be paid by
238	238	the nonpaying service user. A delinquent fee accrues interest at
239	239	the legal rate beginning on the date the payment becomes due.
240	240	Sec. 772.617. DISTRICT DEPOSITORY. The board shall select
241	241	a depository for the district in the manner provided by law.
242	242	Sec. 772.618. ALLOWABLE EXPENSES. A district's allowable
243	243	operating expenses include all costs attributable to designing a
244	244	9-1-1 system and all equipment and personnel necessary to establish
245	245	and maintain a public safety answering point and other related
246	246	operations that the board considers necessary.
247	247	Sec. 772.619. NUMBER AND LOCATION IDENTIFICATION. (a) As
248	248	part of 9-1-1 service, a service supplier shall furnish, for each
249	249	call, the telephone number of the subscriber and the address
250	250	associated with the number.
251	251	(b) A business service user that provides residential
252	252	facilities and owns or leases a publicly or privately owned
253	253	telephone switch used to provide telephone service to facility
254	254	residents shall provide to those residential end users the same
255	255	level of 9-1-1 service that a service supplier is required to
256	256	provide under Subsection (a) to other residential end users in the
257	257	district.
258	258	(c) Information furnished under this section is
259	259	confidential and is not available for public inspection.
260	260	(d) A service supplier or business service user under
261	261	Subsection (b) may not be held liable to a person who uses a 9-1-1
262	262	system created under this subchapter for the release to the
263	263	district of the information specified in Subsections (a) and (b).
264	264	Sec. 772.620. PUBLIC REVIEW. (a) Periodically, the board
265	265	shall solicit public comments and hold a public review hearing on
266	266	the continuation of the district and the 9-1-1 emergency service
267	267	fee. The first hearing shall be held on or before the third
268	268	anniversary of the date of the district's creation. Subsequent
269	269	hearings shall be held on or before the third anniversary of the
270	270	date each resolution required by Subsection (c) is adopted.
271	271	(b) The board shall publish notice of the time and place of a
272	272	hearing once a week for two consecutive weeks in a daily newspaper
273	273	of general circulation published in the district. The first notice
274	274	must be published not later than the 16th day before the date set
275	275	for the hearing.
276	276	(c) After the hearing, the board shall adopt a resolution on
277	277	the continuation or dissolution of the district and the 9-1-1
278	278	emergency service fee.
279	279	Sec. 772.621. DISSOLUTION PROCEDURES. (a) If a district is
280	280	dissolved, 9-1-1 service must be discontinued in compliance with
281	281	the district's policies and bylaws and must be administered in
282	282	accordance with Chapter 771.
283	283	(b) The regional planning commission for the district's
284	284	9-1-1 region shall assume the district's assets, provide 9-1-1
285	285	service, and pay the district's debts. If the district's assets are
286	286	insufficient to retire all existing debts of the district on the
287	287	date of dissolution, the regional planning commission shall
288	288	continue to impose the 9-1-1 emergency service fee in compliance
289	289	with Section 772.615, and each service supplier shall continue to
290	290	collect the fee for the regional planning commission. Proceeds
291	291	from the imposition of the fee by the regional planning commission
292	292	after dissolution of the district may be used only to retire the
293	293	outstanding debts of the district.
294	294	(c) The regional planning commission shall retire the
295	295	district's debts to the extent practicable according to the terms
296	296	of the instruments creating the debts and the terms of the
297	297	resolutions authorizing creation of the debts.
298	298	(d) The governing body of the regional planning commission
299	299	for the district's 9-1-1 region may adopt rules necessary to
300	300	administer this section.
301	301	Sec. 772.622. TRANSFER OF ASSETS. If a district is
302	302	established under this subchapter, the regional planning
303	303	commission for the 9-1-1 region in which the district is
304	304	established may transfer to the district any land, buildings,
305	305	improvements, equipment, and other assets acquired by the regional
306	306	planning commission in relation to the provision of 9-1-1 service
307	307	in accordance with Chapter 771.
308	308	SECTION 2. Section 771.001(3), Health and Safety Code, is
309	309	amended to read as follows:
310	310	(3) "Emergency communication district" means:
311	311	(A) a public agency or group of public agencies
312	312	acting jointly that provided 9-1-1 service before September 1,
313	313	1987, or that had voted or contracted before that date to provide
314	314	that service; or
315	315	(B) a district created under Subchapter B, C, D,
316	316	F, [or] G, or H, Chapter 772.
317	317	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.