| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | proposing a constitutional amendment authorizing a municipal |
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| 6 | 6 | | charter amendment election to be held on certain election dates. |
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| 7 | 7 | | BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 8 | 8 | | SECTION 1. Section 5(a), Article XI, Texas Constitution, is |
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| 9 | 9 | | amended to read as follows: |
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| 10 | 10 | | (a) Cities having more than five thousand (5000) |
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| 11 | 11 | | inhabitants may, by a majority vote of the qualified voters of said |
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| 12 | 12 | | city, at an election held for that purpose, adopt or amend their |
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| 13 | 13 | | charters. An election to amend a charter may be held on an election |
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| 14 | 14 | | date prescribed by the Legislature. If the number of inhabitants of |
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| 15 | 15 | | cities that have adopted or amended their charters under this |
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| 16 | 16 | | section is reduced to five thousand (5000) or fewer, the cities |
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| 17 | 17 | | still may amend their charters by a majority vote of the qualified |
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| 18 | 18 | | voters of said city at an election held for that purpose. The |
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| 19 | 19 | | adoption or amendment of charters is subject to such limitations as |
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| 20 | 20 | | may be prescribed by the Legislature, and no charter or any |
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| 21 | 21 | | ordinance passed under said charter shall contain any provision |
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| 22 | 22 | | inconsistent with the Constitution of the State, or of the general |
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| 23 | 23 | | laws enacted by the Legislature of this State. Said cities may |
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| 24 | 24 | | levy, assess and collect such taxes as may be authorized by law or |
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| 25 | 25 | | by their charters; but no tax for any purpose shall ever be lawful |
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| 26 | 26 | | for any one year, which shall exceed two and one-half per cent. of |
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| 27 | 27 | | the taxable property of such city, and no debt shall ever be created |
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| 28 | 28 | | by any city, unless at the same time provision be made to assess and |
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| 29 | 29 | | collect annually a sufficient sum to pay the interest thereon and |
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| 30 | 30 | | creating a sinking fund of at least two per cent. thereon, except as |
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| 31 | 31 | | provided by Subsection (b). Furthermore, no city charter shall be |
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| 32 | 32 | | altered, amended or repealed oftener than every two years, except |
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| 33 | 33 | | that a subsequent charter election may be held on a date prescribed |
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| 34 | 34 | | by the Legislature even if that date falls a number of days short of |
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| 35 | 35 | | two years. |
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| 36 | 36 | | SECTION 2. This proposed constitutional amendment shall be |
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| 37 | 37 | | submitted to the voters at an election to be held November 7, 2017. |
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| 38 | 38 | | The ballot shall be printed to provide for voting for or against the |
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| 39 | 39 | | proposition: "The constitutional amendment authorizing a |
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| 40 | 40 | | municipal charter amendment election to be held on an election date |
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| 41 | 41 | | prescribed by the legislature." |
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