85R7769 SMT-D
By: Isaac H.B. No. 1510
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the transfer of certain functions related to emergency
services districts from the Department of Agriculture to the
Department of State Health Services and the Texas Commission on
Fire Protection.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 419.904, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 419.904. [TECHNICAL] ASSISTANCE TO EMERGENCY SERVICES
DISTRICTS. The commission may [on request] provide:
(1) to emergency services districts technical
assistance on request [to emergency services districts], including
advice on the efficient and effective provision of fire protection
within a district;
(2) to fire departments in rural areas information
relating to assistance programs offered to rural volunteer
firefighters, including the federal Staffing for Adequate Fire and
Emergency Response grant program to help fire departments increase
staffing and deployment capabilities; and
(3) to rural homeowners information relating to the
benefits of volunteer fire departments, including a reduction in
homeowners insurance risk ratings, lower homeowners insurance
rates, and better fire protection.
SECTION 2. Subchapter B, Chapter 12, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Section 12.021 to read as follows:
Sec. 12.021. EMERGENCY SERVICES DISTRICT PROGRAM. The
department shall serve as a resource to provide interested rural
communities with:
(1) general information about emergency services
districts; and
(2) information and training related to the
establishment of an emergency services district.
SECTION 3. Sections 775.083(a), (b), and (c), Health and
Safety Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) On or before January 1 of each year, a district shall
file with the [Texas] Department of State Health Services [Rural
Affairs] an annual report that includes the following:
(1) the district's name;
(2) the name of each county in which the district is
located;
(3) the district's business address;
(4) the name, mailing address, and term of office of
each commissioner;
(5) the name, mailing address, and term of office of
the district's general manager, executive director, and fire chief;
(6) the name of each legal counsel or other consultant
for the district; and
(7) the district's annual budget and tax rate for the
preceding fiscal year.
(b) The [Texas] Department of State Health Services [Rural
Affairs] may not charge a fee for filing the report.
(c) The [Texas] Department of State Health Services [Rural
Affairs] shall develop and maintain an Internet-based system that
enables:
(1) a district to securely file the report and update
the district's information; and
(2) the public to view, in a searchable format, the
reports filed by districts under this section.
SECTION 4. Section 487.061, Government Code, is repealed.
SECTION 5. The change in law made by this Act to Section
775.083, Health and Safety Code, applies only to an annual report
due on or after January 1, 2019. An annual report due before
January 1, 2019, is governed by the law as it existed immediately
before the effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in
effect for that purpose.
SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.