TX
Texas House Bill HB1495

Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1495 Compare Versions

OldNewDifferences
1-H.B. No. 1495
1+By: Toth, et al. (Senate Sponsor - Creighton) H.B. No. 1495
2+ (In the Senate - Received from the House May 8, 2019;
3+ May 10, 2019, read first time and referred to Committee on State
4+ Affairs; May 19, 2019, reported favorably by the following vote:
5+ Yeas 8, Nays 0; May 19, 2019, sent to printer.)
6+Click here to see the committee vote
27
38
9+ A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
410 AN ACT
5- relating to the ethics of certain public officials, including
6- certain disclosure requirements.
11+ relating to authorization for the creation of a county ethics
12+ commission in certain counties and to authorizing counties to adopt
13+ a code of ethics for their commissioners courts.
714 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
815 SECTION 1. This Act shall be cited as the J D Lambright
916 Local Government Ethics Reform Act.
10- SECTION 2. Section 2252.908(b), Government Code, is amended
11- to read as follows:
12- (b) This section applies only to a contract of a
13- governmental entity or state agency that:
14- (1) requires an action or vote by the governing body of
15- the entity or agency before the contract may be signed; [or]
16- (2) has a value of at least $1 million; or
17- (3) is for services that would require a person to
18- register as a lobbyist under Chapter 305.
19- SECTION 3. Section 140.0045, Local Government Code, is
20- amended to read as follows:
21- Sec. 140.0045. ITEMIZATION OF CERTAIN [PUBLIC NOTICE]
22- EXPENDITURES REQUIRED IN CERTAIN POLITICAL SUBDIVISION BUDGETS.
23- (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), the proposed budget of a
24- political subdivision must include, in a manner allowing for as
25- clear a comparison as practicable between those expenditures in the
26- proposed budget and actual expenditures for the same purpose in the
27- preceding year, a line item indicating expenditures for:
28- (1) notices required by law to be published in a
29- newspaper by the political subdivision or a representative of the
30- political subdivision; and
31- (2) directly or indirectly influencing or attempting
32- to influence the outcome of legislation or administrative action,
33- as those terms are defined in Section 305.002, Government Code
34- [that allows as clear a comparison as practicable between those
35- expenditures in the proposed budget and actual expenditures for the
36- same purpose in the preceding year].
37- (b) Subsection (a)(1) [This section] does not apply to a
38- junior college district.
39- SECTION 4. Section 161.001, Local Government Code, is
17+ SECTION 2. Section 161.001, Local Government Code, is
4018 amended to read as follows:
4119 Sec. 161.001. APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER. This chapter
4220 applies only to:
4321 (1) a county that:
4422 (A) [(1)] has a population of 800,000 or more;
4523 (B) [(2)] is located on the international
4624 border; and
4725 (C) [(3)] before September 1, 2009, had a county
4826 ethics board appointed by the commissioners court;
4927 (2) a county that:
5028 (A) has a population of 425,000 or more;
5129 (B) is adjacent to a county with a population of
5230 3.3 million or more; and
5331 (C) contains a portion of the San Jacinto River;
5432 and
5533 (3) a county that has a population of less than 40,000
5634 that is adjacent to a county with a population of more than 3.3
5735 million.
58- SECTION 5. Subchapter C, Chapter 161, Local Government
59- Code, is amended by adding Section 161.107 to read as follows:
60- Sec. 161.107. DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN CONTRACTS. (a) The
61- commission shall prominently display on the county's Internet
62- website the following regarding contracts for services executed by
63- the county that would require a person to register as a lobbyist
64- under Chapter 305, Government Code:
65- (1) the execution dates;
66- (2) the contract duration terms, including any
67- extension options;
68- (3) the effective dates;
69- (4) the final amount of money the county paid in the
70- previous fiscal year;
71- (5) the identity of all parties to the contract;
72- (6) the identity of all subcontractors in the
73- contract; and
74- (7) the legislative agenda of the county.
75- (b) In lieu of displaying the items described by Subsections
76- (a)(1)-(6) regarding a contract for services that would require a
77- person to register as a lobbyist under Chapter 305, Government
78- Code, the commission may post on the county's Internet website the
79- contract executed by the county for those services.
80- (c) Information required to be displayed on a county's
81- Internet website under this section is public information subject
82- to disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code.
83- SECTION 6. Chapter 170, Local Government Code, is amended
36+ SECTION 3. Section 161.002(8), Local Government Code, is
37+ amended to read as follows:
38+ (8) "County public servant" means a person elected,
39+ selected, appointed, employed, or otherwise designated as one of
40+ the following, even if the person has not yet qualified for or
41+ assumed the duties of office:
42+ (A) a county officer or county employee;
43+ (B) a person appointed by the commissioners court
44+ or a county officer to a position on one of the following, whether
45+ the position is compensated or not:
46+ (i) an authority, board, bureau,
47+ commission, committee, council, department, district, division, or
48+ office of the county; or
49+ (ii) a multi-jurisdictional board;
50+ (C) an attorney at law or notary public when
51+ participating in the performance of a governmental function; or
52+ (D) [a candidate for nomination or election to an
53+ elected county office; or
54+ [(E)] a person who is performing a governmental
55+ function under a claim of right although the person is not legally
56+ qualified or authorized to do so.
57+ SECTION 4. Chapter 170, Local Government Code, is amended
8458 by adding Section 170.002 to read as follows:
8559 Sec. 170.002. CODE OF ETHICS FOR CERTAIN COMMISSIONERS
8660 COURTS. (a) This section applies to a county that has a population
8761 of less than 40,000 that is adjacent to a county with a population
8862 of more than 3.3 million.
8963 (b) The commissioners court of a county subject to this
9064 section may adopt by order a code of ethics that provides standards
9165 of conduct for members of the commissioners court.
9266 (c) If a commissioners court of a county subject to this
9367 section adopts a code of ethics under this section, the code of
9468 ethics must require each member of the commissioners court to file a
9569 conflicts disclosure statement that is in addition to the statement
9670 required by Section 176.003.
97- SECTION 7. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
71+ SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
9872 a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
9973 provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
10074 Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
10175 Act takes effect September 1, 2019.
102- ______________________________ ______________________________
103- President of the Senate Speaker of the House
104- I certify that H.B. No. 1495 was passed by the House on May 8,
105- 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 109, Nays 28, 2 present, not
106- voting; that the House refused to concur in Senate amendments to
107- H.B. No. 1495 on May 24, 2019, and requested the appointment of a
108- conference committee to consider the differences between the two
109- houses; and that the House adopted the conference committee report
110- on H.B. No. 1495 on May 26, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 116,
111- Nays 11, 1 present, not voting.
112- ______________________________
113- Chief Clerk of the House
114- I certify that H.B. No. 1495 was passed by the Senate, with
115- amendments, on May 22, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 27, Nays
116- 4; at the request of the House, the Senate appointed a conference
117- committee to consider the differences between the two houses; and
118- that the Senate adopted the conference committee report on H.B. No.
119- 1495 on May 26, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 1.
120- ______________________________
121- Secretary of the Senate
122- APPROVED: __________________
123- Date
124- __________________
125- Governor
76+ * * * * *