Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB4046 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R13071 SMT-D
2	2	By: Bohac H.B. No. 4046
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the election of members of the boards of directors of
8	8	certain tax increment reinvestment zones.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Chapter 311, Tax Code, is amended by adding
11	11	Section 311.0092 to read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 311.0092. COMPOSITION OF BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF
13	13	REINVESTMENT ZONES IN CERTAIN POPULOUS MUNICIPALITIES. (a) This
14	14	section applies to a reinvestment zone located wholly or partly in a
15	15	municipality with a population of at least two million.
16	16	(b) For purposes of this section, an area adjacent to a
17	17	reinvestment zone means any area in an election precinct any part of
18	18	which is within two miles of the zone's boundaries in any direction.
19	19	(c) The board of directors of a reinvestment zone consists
20	20	of at least 11 and not more than 15 members, unless more than 15
21	21	members are required to satisfy the requirements of this
22	22	subsection. A majority of members of the board must be elected in a
23	23	nonpartisan election. Each taxing unit that approves the payment
24	24	of all or part of its tax increment into the tax increment fund is
25	25	entitled to appoint a member, including the county or municipality
26	26	that designated the zone. A taxing unit may waive its right to
27	27	appoint a director. The member of the state senate in whose
28	28	district the zone is located is a member of the board, and the
29	29	member of the state house of representatives in whose district the
30	30	zone is located is a member of the board, except that either may
31	31	designate another individual to serve in the member's place at the
32	32	pleasure of the member. If the zone is located in more than one
33	33	senate or house district, this subsection applies only to the
34	34	senator or representative in whose district a larger portion of the
35	35	zone is located than any other senate or house district, as
36	36	applicable. The municipality shall hold an election to elect the
37	37	number of members to the board that results in at least 51 percent
38	38	of the members of the board being elected.
39	39	(d) An election required by this section must be held in an
40	40	even-numbered year on the uniform election date in November
41	41	authorized by Section 41.001, Election Code. A municipality may
42	42	contract with the county to hold the election.
43	43	(e) Members of the board are appointed or elected for terms
44	44	of two years unless longer terms are provided under Section 11,
45	45	Article XI, Texas Constitution. Terms of members may be staggered.
46	46	(f) Individuals residing in the zone or in an area adjacent
47	47	to the zone are eligible to vote in the election of members of the
48	48	board.
49	49	(g) A vacancy on the board is filled for the unexpired term
50	50	by appointment of the governing body of the taxing unit that
51	51	appointed the director who served in the vacant position or, if the
52	52	vacant position was an elected position, by election on the next
53	53	election date under Subsection (d) that provides sufficient time to
54	54	comply with other requirements of law.
55	55	(h) To be eligible for appointment or to be a candidate for
56	56	or be elected to the board, an individual must:
57	57	(1) be a qualified voter of the municipality and
58	58	reside in the zone or in an area adjacent to the zone; or
59	59	(2) be at least 18 years of age and own real property
60	60	in the zone or in an area adjacent to the zone or be an employee or
61	61	agent of a person that owns real property in the zone or in an area
62	62	adjacent to the zone.
63	63	(i) Each year the board of directors of a reinvestment zone
64	64	shall elect one of its members to serve as presiding officer for a
65	65	term of one year. The board of directors may elect an assistant
66	66	presiding officer to preside in the absence of the presiding
67	67	officer or when there is a vacancy in the office of presiding
68	68	officer. The board may elect other officers as it considers
69	69	appropriate.
70	70	(j) A member of the board of directors of a reinvestment
71	71	zone:
72	72	(1) is not a public official by virtue of that
73	73	position; and
74	74	(2) unless otherwise ineligible, may be appointed to
75	75	serve concurrently on the board of directors of a local government
76	76	corporation created under Subchapter D, Chapter 431,
77	77	Transportation Code.
78	78	(k) This section does not apply to a tax increment
79	79	reinvestment zone designated in accordance with a law other than
80	80	this chapter that provides that an entity identified in the other
81	81	law serves as the board of directors of the tax increment
82	82	reinvestment zone.
83	83	SECTION 2. Section 311.004(a), Tax Code, is amended to read
84	84	as follows:
85	85	(a) The ordinance or order designating an area as a
86	86	reinvestment zone must:
87	87	(1) describe the boundaries of the zone with
88	88	sufficient definiteness to identify with ordinary and reasonable
89	89	certainty the territory included in the zone;
90	90	(2) create a board of directors for the zone and
91	91	specify the number of directors of the board as provided by Section
92	92	311.009, [or] 311.0091, or 311.0092, as applicable;
93	93	(3) provide that the zone take effect immediately upon
94	94	passage of the ordinance or order;
95	95	(4) provide a date for termination of the zone;
96	96	(5) assign a name to the zone for identification, with
97	97	the first zone created by a municipality or county designated as
98	98	"Reinvestment Zone Number One, City (or Town, as applicable) of
99	99	(name of municipality)," or "Reinvestment Zone Number One, (name of
100	100	county) County," as applicable, and subsequently created zones
101	101	assigned names in the same form numbered consecutively in the order
102	102	of their creation;
103	103	(6) establish a tax increment fund for the zone; and
104	104	(7) contain findings that:
105	105	(A) improvements in the zone will significantly
106	106	enhance the value of all the taxable real property in the zone and
107	107	will be of general benefit to the municipality or county; and
108	108	(B) the area meets the requirements of Section
109	109	311.005.
110	110	SECTION 3. (a) This section of this Act applies to a tax
111	111	increment reinvestment zone to which Section 311.0092, Tax Code, as
112	112	added by this Act, applies.
113	113	(b) Not later than January 1, 2019, the composition and
114	114	number of members serving on the board of a tax increment
115	115	reinvestment zone must comply with the requirements of Section
116	116	311.0092, Tax Code, as added by this Act.
117	117	(c) Members required to be elected to the board of a tax
118	118	increment reinvestment zone shall be elected beginning with the
119	119	general election conducted in 2018. Members then elected take
120	120	office January 1, 2019.
121	121	(d) The change in the manner of selection of the board of
122	122	directors of a tax increment reinvestment zone does not affect the
123	123	selection of directors who serve on the board before January 1,
124	124	2019.
125	125	(e) The term of a member of the board of directors serving on
126	126	December 31, 2018, expires on January 1, 2019.
127	127	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
128	128	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
129	129	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
130	130	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
131	131	Act takes effect September 1, 2017.