85R2184 TJB-D
By: Kolkhorst S.B. No. 553
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the notice of intention to issue certificates of
obligation.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 271.049, Local Government Code, is
amended by amending Subsections (a), (b), and (d) and adding
Subsections (e), (f), and (g) to read as follows:
(a) Regardless of the sources of payment of certificates,
certificates may not be issued unless the issuer publishes notice
of its intention to issue the certificates. The notice must be
published:
(1) once a week for two consecutive weeks in a
newspaper, as defined by Subchapter C, Chapter 2051, Government
Code, that is of general circulation in the area of the issuer, with
the date of the first publication to be before the 30th day before
the date tentatively set for the passage of the order or ordinance
authorizing the issuance of the certificates; and
(2) continuously on the issuer's Internet website, or
on a website as authorized by Subsection (f)(2), for at least 30
days before the date tentatively set for the passage of the order or
ordinance authorizing the issuance of the certificates and until
the first day after the date the issuer adopts the order or
ordinance.
(b) The notice must state:
(1) the time and place tentatively set for the passage
of the order or ordinance authorizing the issuance of the
certificates;
(2) the [maximum amount and] purpose of the
certificates to be authorized; [and]
(3) the manner in which the certificates will be paid
for, whether by taxes, revenues, or a combination of the two;
(4) as of the date the issuer adopts the order or
ordinance, the principal of all outstanding debt obligations of the
issuer;
(5) as of the date the issuer adopts the order or
ordinance, the estimated remaining interest of all outstanding debt
obligations of the issuer;
(6) as of the date the issuer adopts the order or
ordinance, the estimated combined principal and interest required
to pay all outstanding debt obligations of the issuer on time and in
full;
(7) the maximum principal of the certificates to be
authorized; and
(8) the process by which a petition may be submitted
requesting an election on the issuance of the certificates, in the
following form:
"Five percent of the qualified voters of (name of issuer) may
petition to require an election to be held authorizing the issuance
of certificates of obligation by delivering a signed petition to
the (insert "secretary or clerk" if the issuer is a municipality, or
"county clerk" if the issuer is a county) of (name of issuer)
before the date the governing body has set for the authorization of
the certificates of obligation. Information about the requirements
of the petition may be obtained from the (insert "secretary or
clerk" if the issuer is a municipality, or "county clerk" if the
issuer is a county) of (name of issuer)."[.]
(d) This section does not apply to certificates issued for
the purposes described by Sections 271.056(1)-(3)
[271.056(1)-(4)].
(e) Except as provided by Subsection (f), an issuer shall
maintain or cause to be maintained an Internet website to comply
with this section.
(f) This subsection does not apply to a county or
municipality with a population of more than 2,000. If an issuer did
not maintain an Internet website or cause a website to be maintained
on January 1, 2017, the issuer shall post the information required
by Subsection (b) on:
(1) the issuer's website, if the issuer chooses to
maintain the website or cause the website to be maintained; or
(2) a website in which the issuer controls the content
of the posting, including a social media site, provided that the
information is easily found by searching the name of the issuer on
the Internet.
(g) In this section, "debt obligation" means an issued
public security, as defined by Section 1201.002, Government Code,
secured by property taxes.
SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act to Section
271.049, Local Government Code, apply only to a certificate of
obligation for which the first notice of intention to issue the
certificate is made on or after the effective date of this Act. A
certificate of obligation for which the first notice of intention
to issue the certificate is made before the effective date of this
Act is governed by the law in effect when the notice of intention is
made, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.