Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HJR35 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R246 NC-D
2	2	By: Larson H.J.R. No. 35
3	3
4	4
5	5	A JOINT RESOLUTION
6	6	proposing a constitutional amendment to allow the voters of Bexar
7	7	County to adopt a charter that restructures and empowers the county
8	8	government and that may allow the integration of the county
9	9	government with certain other political subdivisions located
10	10	wholly or partly in the county.
11	11	BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Article III, Texas Constitution, is amended by
13	13	adding Section 64A to read as follows:
14	14	Sec. 64A. (a) Bexar County may adopt a county charter. The
15	15	county charter may integrate the county government with other local
16	16	political subdivisions allowed under this section.
17	17	(b) The charter may:
18	18	(1) provide for the title, qualifications, term of
19	19	office, powers, or duties of an office of chief elected official
20	20	that replaces the office of county judge;
21	21	(2) provide for the structure, number of members,
22	22	qualifications, terms of office, powers, duties, or other features
23	23	of a governing body that replaces the commissioners court;
24	24	(3) modify the powers, duties, or functions of a
25	25	county official that is established by another section of this
26	26	constitution, if the charter otherwise continues all of the
27	27	established functions of county government;
28	28	(4) merge the office of an elected county official
29	29	that is established by another section of this constitution with
30	30	the office of another county official, if the charter otherwise
31	31	continues all of the established functions of both offices; and
32	32	(5) provide for the abolition of the office of an
33	33	elected county official that is established by another section of
34	34	this constitution, on the approval of a majority of the voters
35	35	voting on the question in a separate election held at least one year
36	36	after the initial election on the adoption of the charter.
37	37	(c) The abolition of an office under Subsection (b)(5) is
38	38	effective at the earlier of:
39	39	(1) the conclusion of the regular term of the office
40	40	holder at the time of the election to abolish the office; or
41	41	(2) the date the office becomes vacant.
42	42	(d) The charter may also integrate the county government and
43	43	the government of any other municipality, special district or
44	44	authority, or any other political subdivision, other than a school
45	45	district, if:
46	46	(1) more than one-half of the area of the political
47	47	subdivision to be integrated is located in the county; and
48	48	(2) the integration of political subdivisions
49	49	includes the most populous municipality in the county.
50	50	(e) If Bexar County adopts a charter under this section, the
51	51	powers and duties of the county are:
52	52	(1) the powers and duties established by the charter
53	53	that are not inconsistent with a constitutional or statutory
54	54	provision expressly applying to a charter county; and
55	55	(2) any additional powers and duties granted by this
56	56	constitution or general law.
57	57	(f) If the charter integrates the county with other local
58	58	political subdivisions under Subsection (d), the powers and duties
59	59	of the integrated county government are also the cumulative powers
60	60	and duties of the political subdivisions that are integrated. The
61	61	charter may not diminish the powers, duties, and functions of a
62	62	municipality that is not integrated with the county.
63	63	(g) If the charter integrates the county with other
64	64	political subdivisions, the charter shall transfer to the county
65	65	all the powers, duties, responsibilities, rights, privileges,
66	66	assets, obligations, and liabilities of the integrated
67	67	municipality, special district or authority, or other political
68	68	subdivision.
69	69	(h) If a municipality that is integrated into a county
70	70	government has extraterritorial jurisdiction outside the county,
71	71	or if any portion of an integrated municipality, special district
72	72	or authority, or other political subdivision is located outside the
73	73	county, the integrated county government's powers and duties
74	74	outside the county are limited to those powers and duties that the
75	75	integrated political subdivision would have had in the absence of
76	76	the governmental integration.
77	77	(i) A charter that integrates the county with other
78	78	political subdivisions must establish distinct service districts
79	79	in the area of the integrated county government that provide for
80	80	district taxes that are graduated by area and based on the level of
81	81	services provided to the service district by the integrated county
82	82	government.
83	83	(j) Except for a constitutional or statutory provision
84	84	expressly applying to Bexar County, a charter adopted under this
85	85	section controls on an issue relating to the structure, powers,
86	86	duties, functions, or governance of the county.
87	87	(k) The legislature, by local law or general law, shall
88	88	establish the procedures for the appointment or election of a
89	89	charter commission and for the adoption of a charter under this
90	90	section. The procedures for appointment or election of a charter
91	91	commission must include alternative procedures to initiate the
92	92	creation of a charter commission by action of the commissioners
93	93	court, by action of the governing body of the most populous
94	94	municipality in the county, or by petition of residents. The
95	95	legislative action may include any additional guarantees or other
96	96	provisions that the legislature considers appropriate to require in
97	97	a charter to protect minority voting rights. In the case of a
98	98	charter that integrates the county with other political
99	99	subdivisions, the legislative action may also include provisions
100	100	to:
101	101	(1) protect the employees of political subdivisions
102	102	that may become integrated under the county charter;
103	103	(2) coordinate the charter with the law governing
104	104	annexation; and
105	105	(3) structure the governing body and the service
106	106	districts and to allocate the debt service obligations of an
107	107	integrated county government to ensure equity among the voters and
108	108	taxpayers of the integrated county government.
109	109	SECTION 2. This proposed constitutional amendment shall be
110	110	submitted to the voters at an election to be held November 3, 2015.
111	111	The ballot shall be printed to permit voting for or against the
112	112	proposition: "The constitutional amendment to allow the voters of
113	113	Bexar County to adopt a charter that restructures and empowers the
114	114	county government and that may allow the integration of the county
115	115	government with certain other political subdivisions wholly or
116	116	partly in the county."