Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB2053 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	By: Bettencourt S.B. No. 2053
2		-	(Riddle)
	1	+	S.B. No. 2053
3	2
4	3
5		-	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	4		AN ACT
7	5		relating to the powers and duties of the Pine Forest Municipal
8	6		Utility District; providing authority to issue bonds and impose a
9	7		tax.
10	8		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	9		SECTION 1. Chapter 427, Acts of the 62nd Legislature,
12	10		Regular Session, 1971, is amended by amending Sections 1 and 5 and
13	11		adding Sections 1-a, 5-a, 5-b, 5-c, 5-d, 10, and 11 to read as
14	12		follows:
15	13		Sec. 1. DEFINITIONS. In this Act:
16	14		(1) "Board" means the district's board of directors.
17	15		(2) "District" means the Pine Forest Municipal Utility
18	16		District.
19	17		Sec. 1-a. NATURE AND PURPOSES OF DISTRICT. (a) The
20	18		district is a municipal utility district in Harris County created
21	19		under Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution.
22	20		(b) The district is created to accomplish the purposes of:
23	21		(1) a municipal utility district as provided by
24	22		general law and Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution; and
25	23		(2) Section 52, Article III, Texas Constitution, that
26	24		relate to the construction, acquisition, improvement, operation,
27	25		or maintenance of macadamized, graveled, or paved roads, or
28	26		improvements, including storm drainage, in aid of those roads.
29	27		[Notwithstanding provisions of the general laws relating to consent
30	28		by political subdivisions for the creation of conservation and
31	29		reclamation districts, there is hereby created and established
32	30		under and pursuant to the provisions of Article XVI, Section 59 of
33	31		the Constitution of Texas, a conservation and reclamation district
34	32		in Harris County, Texas, to be known as "Pine Forest Municipal
35	33		Utility District," hereinafter called the "district," which shall
36	34		be a governmental agency and a body politic and corporate. The
37	35		creation and establishment of the district is hereby declared to be
38	36		essential to the accomplishment of the purposes of Article XVI,
39	37		Section 59 of the Constitution of Texas.]
40	38		Sec. 5. GENERAL POWERS AND DUTIES. The district has the
41	39		powers and duties necessary to accomplish the purposes for which
42	40		the district is created.
43	41		Sec. 5-a. MUNICIPAL UTILITY DISTRICT POWERS AND DUTIES.
44	42		The district has [is hereby vested with, and shall have and
45	43		exercise, all of] the [rights,] powers[, privileges, authority] and
46	44		duties provided [functions conferred] by the general law [laws] of
47	45		this state [applicable to municipal utility districts], including
48	46		Chapters 49 and [without limitation those conferred by Chapter] 54,
49	47		[Title 4,] Water Code, [but if any provision of such general laws
50	48		shall be in conflict or inconsistent with the provisions of this
51	49		Act, the provisions of this Act shall prevail. All such general
52	50		laws] applicable to municipal utility districts created under
53	51		Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution [not in conflict or
54	52		inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby adopted and
55	53		incorporated by reference with the same effect as if copied in full
56	54		in this Act].
57	55		Sec. 5-b. AUTHORITY FOR ROAD PROJECTS. Under Section 52,
58	56		Article III, Texas Constitution, the district may design, acquire,
59	57		construct, finance, issue bonds for, improve, operate, maintain,
60	58		and convey to this state, a county, or a municipality for operation
61	59		and maintenance macadamized, graveled, or paved roads, or
62	60		improvements, including storm drainage, in aid of those roads.
63	61		Sec. 5-c. ROAD STANDARDS AND REQUIREMENTS. (a) A road
64	62		project must meet all applicable construction standards, zoning and
65	63		subdivision requirements, and regulations of each municipality in
66	64		whose corporate limits or extraterritorial jurisdiction the road
67	65		project is located.
68	66		(b) If a road project is not located in the corporate limits
69	67		or extraterritorial jurisdiction of a municipality, the road
70	68		project must meet all applicable construction standards,
71	69		subdivision requirements, and regulations of each county in which
72	70		the road project is located.
73	71		(c) If the state will maintain and operate the road, the
74	72		Texas Transportation Commission must approve the plans and
75	73		specifications of the road project.
76	74		Sec. 5-d. APPROVAL OF ROAD PROJECT. (a) The district may
77	75		not undertake a road project authorized by Section 5-b of this Act
78	76		unless:
79	77		(1) each municipality or county that will operate and
80	78		maintain the road has approved the plans and specifications of the
81	79		road project, if a municipality or county will operate and maintain
82	80		the road; or
83	81		(2) the Texas Transportation Commission has approved
84	82		the plans and specifications of the road project, if the state will
85	83		operate and maintain the road.
86	84		(b) Except as provided by Subsection (a) of this section,
87	85		the district is not required to obtain approval from the Texas
88	86		Transportation Commission to design, acquire, construct, finance,
89	87		issue bonds for, improve, or convey a road project.
90	88		Sec. 10. AUTHORITY TO ISSUE BONDS AND OTHER OBLIGATIONS FOR
91	89		ROAD PROJECTS. (a) The district may issue bonds or other
92	90		obligations payable wholly or partly from ad valorem taxes,
93	91		revenue, contract payments, grants, or other district money, or any
94	92		combination of those sources, to pay for a road project authorized
95	93		by Section 5-b.
96	94		(b) The district may not issue bonds payable from ad valorem
97	95		taxes to finance a road project unless the issuance is approved by a
98	96		vote of a two-thirds majority of the district voters voting at an
99	97		election held for that purpose.
100	98		(c) At the time of issuance, the total principal amount of
101	99		bonds or other obligations issued or incurred to finance road
102	100		projects and payable from ad valorem taxes may not exceed
103	101		one-fourth of the assessed value of the real property in the
104	102		district.
105	103		Sec. 11. TAXES FOR BONDS. At the time the district issues
106	104		bonds payable wholly or partly from ad valorem taxes, the board
107	105		shall provide for the annual imposition of a continuing direct ad
108	106		valorem tax, without limit as to rate or amount, while all or part
109	107		of the bonds are outstanding.
110	108		SECTION 2. Sections 6, 7, 8, and 9, Chapter 427, Acts of the
111	109		62nd Legislature, Regular Session, 1971, are repealed.
112	110		SECTION 3. The Pine Forest Municipal Utility District
113	111		retains all the rights, powers, privileges, authority, duties, and
114	112		functions that it had before the effective date of this Act.
115	113		SECTION 4. (a) The legal notice of the intention to
116	114		introduce this Act, setting forth the general substance of this
117	115		Act, has been published as provided by law, and the notice and a
118	116		copy of this Act have been furnished to all persons, agencies,
119	117		officials, or entities to which they are required to be furnished
120	118		under Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution, and Chapter 313,
121	119		Government Code.
122	120		(b) The governor, one of the required recipients, has
123	121		submitted the notice and Act to the Texas Commission on
124	122		Environmental Quality.
125	123		(c) The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has filed
126	124		its recommendations relating to this Act with the governor, the
127	125		lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of
128	126		representatives within the required time.
129	127		(d) All requirements of the constitution and laws of this
130	128		state and the rules and procedures of the legislature with respect
131	129		to the notice, introduction, and passage of this Act are fulfilled
132	130		and accomplished.
133	131		SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
134	132		a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
135	133		provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
136	134		Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
137	135		Act takes effect September 1, 2015.
	136	+	______________________________ ______________________________
	137	+	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
	138	+	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 2053 passed the Senate on
	139	+	May 8, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 1.
	140	+	______________________________
	141	+	Secretary of the Senate
	142	+	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 2053 passed the House on
	143	+	May 22, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 139, Nays 1,
	144	+	two present not voting.
	145	+	______________________________
	146	+	Chief Clerk of the House
	147	+	Approved:
	148	+	______________________________
	149	+	Date
	150	+	______________________________
	151	+	Governor