Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB4197 Compare Versions

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Version 2 (New)

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1	1	84R14025 SGA-F
2	2	By: Riddle H.B. No. 4197
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the powers and duties of the Pine Forest Municipal
8	8	Utility District; providing authority to issue bonds and impose a
9	9	tax.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Chapter 427, Acts of the 62nd Legislature,
12	12	Regular Session, 1971, is amended by amending Sections 1 and 5 and
13	13	adding Sections 1-a, 5-a, 5-b, 5-c, 5-d, 10, and 11 to read as
14	14	follows:
15	15	Sec. 1. DEFINITIONS. In this Act:
16	16	(1) "Board" means the district's board of directors.
17	17	(2) "District" means the Pine Forest Municipal Utility
18	18	District.
19	19	Sec. 1-a. NATURE AND PURPOSES OF DISTRICT. (a) The
20	20	district is a municipal utility district in Harris County created
21	21	under Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution.
22	22	(b) The district is created to accomplish the purposes of:
23	23	(1) a municipal utility district as provided by
24	24	general law and Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution; and
25	25	(2) Section 52, Article III, Texas Constitution, that
26	26	relate to the construction, acquisition, improvement, operation,
27	27	or maintenance of macadamized, graveled, or paved roads, or
28	28	improvements, including storm drainage, in aid of those roads.
29	29	[Notwithstanding provisions of the general laws relating to consent
30	30	by political subdivisions for the creation of conservation and
31	31	reclamation districts, there is hereby created and established
32	32	under and pursuant to the provisions of Article XVI, Section 59 of
33	33	the Constitution of Texas, a conservation and reclamation district
34	34	in Harris County, Texas, to be known as "Pine Forest Municipal
35	35	Utility District," hereinafter called the "district," which shall
36	36	be a governmental agency and a body politic and corporate. The
37	37	creation and establishment of the district is hereby declared to be
38	38	essential to the accomplishment of the purposes of Article XVI,
39	39	Section 59 of the Constitution of Texas.]
40	40	Sec. 5. GENERAL POWERS AND DUTIES. The district has the
41	41	powers and duties necessary to accomplish the purposes for which
42	42	the district is created.
43	43	Sec. 5-a. MUNICIPAL UTILITY DISTRICT POWERS AND DUTIES.
44	44	The district has [is hereby vested with, and shall have and
45	45	exercise, all of] the [rights,] powers[, privileges, authority] and
46	46	duties provided [functions conferred] by the general law [laws] of
47	47	this state [applicable to municipal utility districts], including
48	48	Chapters 49 and [without limitation those conferred by Chapter] 54,
49	49	[Title 4,] Water Code, [but if any provision of such general laws
50	50	shall be in conflict or inconsistent with the provisions of this
51	51	Act, the provisions of this Act shall prevail. All such general
52	52	laws] applicable to municipal utility districts created under
53	53	Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution [not in conflict or
54	54	inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby adopted and
55	55	incorporated by reference with the same effect as if copied in full
56	56	in this Act].
57	57	Sec. 5-b. AUTHORITY FOR ROAD PROJECTS. Under Section 52,
58	58	Article III, Texas Constitution, the district may design, acquire,
59	59	construct, finance, issue bonds for, improve, operate, maintain,
60	60	and convey to this state, a county, or a municipality for operation
61	61	and maintenance macadamized, graveled, or paved roads, or
62	62	improvements, including storm drainage, in aid of those roads.
63	63	Sec. 5-c. ROAD STANDARDS AND REQUIREMENTS. (a) A road
64	64	project must meet all applicable construction standards, zoning and
65	65	subdivision requirements, and regulations of each municipality in
66	66	whose corporate limits or extraterritorial jurisdiction the road
67	67	project is located.
68	68	(b) If a road project is not located in the corporate limits
69	69	or extraterritorial jurisdiction of a municipality, the road
70	70	project must meet all applicable construction standards,
71	71	subdivision requirements, and regulations of each county in which
72	72	the road project is located.
73	73	(c) If the state will maintain and operate the road, the
74	74	Texas Transportation Commission must approve the plans and
75	75	specifications of the road project.
76	76	Sec. 5-d. APPROVAL OF ROAD PROJECT. (a) The district may
77	77	not undertake a road project authorized by Section 5-b of this Act
78	78	unless:
79	79	(1) each municipality or county that will operate and
80	80	maintain the road has approved the plans and specifications of the
81	81	road project, if a municipality or county will operate and maintain
82	82	the road; or
83	83	(2) the Texas Transportation Commission has approved
84	84	the plans and specifications of the road project, if the state will
85	85	operate and maintain the road.
86	86	(b) Except as provided by Subsection (a) of this section,
87	87	the district is not required to obtain approval from the Texas
88	88	Transportation Commission to design, acquire, construct, finance,
89	89	issue bonds for, improve, or convey a road project.
90	90	Sec. 10. AUTHORITY TO ISSUE BONDS AND OTHER OBLIGATIONS FOR
91	91	ROAD PROJECTS. (a) The district may issue bonds or other
92	92	obligations payable wholly or partly from ad valorem taxes,
93	93	revenue, contract payments, grants, or other district money, or any
94	94	combination of those sources, to pay for a road project authorized
95	95	by Section 5-b.
96	96	(b) The district may not issue bonds payable from ad valorem
97	97	taxes to finance a road project unless the issuance is approved by a
98	98	vote of a two-thirds majority of the district voters voting at an
99	99	election held for that purpose.
100	100	(c) At the time of issuance, the total principal amount of
101	101	bonds or other obligations issued or incurred to finance road
102	102	projects and payable from ad valorem taxes may not exceed
103	103	one-fourth of the assessed value of the real property in the
104	104	district.
105	105	Sec. 11. TAXES FOR BONDS. At the time the district issues
106	106	bonds payable wholly or partly from ad valorem taxes, the board
107	107	shall provide for the annual imposition of a continuing direct ad
108	108	valorem tax, without limit as to rate or amount, while all or part
109	109	of the bonds are outstanding.
110	110	SECTION 2. Sections 6, 7, 8, and 9, Chapter 427, Acts of the
111	111	62nd Legislature, Regular Session, 1971, are repealed.
112	112	SECTION 3. The Pine Forest Municipal Utility District
113	113	retains all the rights, powers, privileges, authority, duties, and
114	114	functions that it had before the effective date of this Act.
115	115	SECTION 4. (a) The legal notice of the intention to
116	116	introduce this Act, setting forth the general substance of this
117	117	Act, has been published as provided by law, and the notice and a
118	118	copy of this Act have been furnished to all persons, agencies,
119	119	officials, or entities to which they are required to be furnished
120	120	under Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution, and Chapter 313,
121	121	Government Code.
122	122	(b) The governor, one of the required recipients, has
123	123	submitted the notice and Act to the Texas Commission on
124	124	Environmental Quality.
125	125	(c) The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has filed
126	126	its recommendations relating to this Act with the governor, the
127	127	lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of
128	128	representatives within the required time.
129	129	(d) All requirements of the constitution and laws of this
130	130	state and the rules and procedures of the legislature with respect
131	131	to the notice, introduction, and passage of this Act are fulfilled
132	132	and accomplished.
133	133	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
134	134	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
135	135	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
136	136	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
137	137	Act takes effect September 1, 2015.