Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1521 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	86R9869 SLB-D
2	2	By: Hinojosa S.B. No. 1521
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the funding of flood planning, mitigation, and
8	8	infrastructure projects; making an appropriation.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. The heading to Section 15.405, Water Code, is
11	11	amended to read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 15.405. FLOOD CONTROL PLANNING CONTRACTS.
13	13	SECTION 2. Section 15.405, Water Code, is amended by
14	14	amending Subsections (a), (f), and (g) and adding Subsection (a-1)
15	15	to read as follows:
16	16	(a) In this section, "flood control planning" means any work
17	17	related to:
18	18	(1) planning for flood protection;
19	19	(2) preparing applications for and obtaining
20	20	regulatory approvals at the local, state, or federal level;
21	21	(3) activities associated with administrative or
22	22	legal proceedings by regulatory agencies; and
23	23	(4) preparing engineering plans and specifications to
24	24	provide structural or nonstructural flood mitigation and drainage.
25	25	(a-1) The board may enter into contracts with political
26	26	subdivisions to pay from the research and planning fund all or part
27	27	of the cost of [developing] flood control planning [plans] for the
28	28	political subdivision.
29	29	(f) The board shall adopt rules establishing criteria of
30	30	eligibility for flood control planning money that considers:
31	31	(1) the relative need of the political subdivision for
32	32	the money, giving greater importance to a county that has a median
33	33	household income that is not greater than 85 percent of the median
34	34	state household income;
35	35	(2) the legal authority of the political subdivision
36	36	to plan for and control flooding; and
37	37	(3) the effect of flood control planning by the
38	38	political subdivision on overall flood control in the state and
39	39	within the area in which the political subdivision is located.
40	40	(g) The board shall require that flood control planning
41	41	documents [plans] developed under contracts entered into under this
42	42	section be made available to the commission.
43	43	SECTION 3. Chapter 15, Water Code, is amended by adding
44	44	Subchapter I to read as follows:
45	45	SUBCHAPTER I. FLOOD INFRASTRUCTURE FUND
46	46	Sec. 15.531. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
47	47	(1) "Economically distressed area" means an area that
48	48	has a median household income that is not greater than 85 percent of
49	49	the median state household income for the most recent year for which
50	50	the applicable statistics are available.
51	51	(2) "Eligible political subdivision" means a district
52	52	or authority created under Section 52, Article III, or Section 59,
53	53	Article XVI, Texas Constitution, a municipality, or a county.
54	54	(3) "Flood project" means a drainage, flood
55	55	mitigation, or flood control project, including:
56	56	(A) planning and design activities;
57	57	(B) work to obtain regulatory approval to provide
58	58	nonstructural and structural flood mitigation and drainage; and
59	59	(C) construction of structural flood mitigation
60	60	and drainage infrastructure.
61	61	(4) "Fund" means the flood infrastructure fund.
62	62	(5) "Metropolitan statistical area" means an area so
63	63	designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget.
64	64	(6) "Political subdivision bonds" means bonds or other
65	65	obligations issued by a political subdivision to fund a project and
66	66	purchased by the board from money in the fund.
67	67	Sec. 15.532. FINDINGS. The legislature finds that:
68	68	(1) the creation of the fund and the administration of
69	69	the fund by the board will encourage the development of
70	70	nonstructural and structural flood mitigation in the state;
71	71	(2) the use of the fund is in furtherance of the public
72	72	purpose of mitigating the effects of flooding in the state; and
73	73	(3) the use of the fund for the purposes provided by
74	74	this subchapter is for the benefit of both the state and the
75	75	political subdivisions to which the board makes financial
76	76	assistance available in accordance with this subchapter and
77	77	constitutes a program under Sections 49-d-3 and 52-a, Article III,
78	78	Texas Constitution.
79	79	Sec. 15.533. FLOOD INFRASTRUCTURE FUND. (a) The flood
80	80	infrastructure fund is a special fund in the state treasury outside
81	81	the general revenue fund.
82	82	(b) The fund may be used by the board, without further
83	83	legislative appropriation, only as provided by this subchapter.
84	84	(c) The fund consists of:
85	85	(1) appropriations from the legislature for a purpose
86	86	of the fund;
87	87	(2) proceeds of general obligation bonds issued for a
88	88	purpose of the fund;
89	89	(3) any fees or other sources of revenue that the
90	90	legislature dedicates for deposit to the fund;
91	91	(4) repayments of loans made from the fund;
92	92	(5) interest earned on money credited to the fund;
93	93	(6) depository interest allocable to the fund;
94	94	(7) money from gifts, grants, or donations to the
95	95	fund;
96	96	(8) money from revenue bonds or other sources
97	97	designated by the board for deposit to the fund; and
98	98	(9) proceeds from the sale of political subdivision
99	99	bonds or obligations held in the fund and not otherwise pledged to
100	100	the discharge, repayment, or redemption of revenue bonds or other
101	101	bonds, the proceeds of which were placed in the fund.
102	102	Sec. 15.534. USE OF FUND. (a) The board may use the fund
103	103	only:
104	104	(1) to make a loan to an eligible political
105	105	subdivision at or below market interest rates for a flood project;
106	106	(2) to make a grant, low interest loan, or zero
107	107	interest loan to an eligible political subdivision for:
108	108	(A) a flood project to serve an area outside of a
109	109	metropolitan statistical area in order to ensure that the flood
110	110	project is implemented; or
111	111	(B) a flood project to serve an economically
112	112	distressed area;
113	113	(3) to make a loan at or below market interest rates
114	114	for planning and design costs, permitting costs, and other costs
115	115	associated with state or federal regulatory activities with respect
116	116	to a flood project;
117	117	(4) to make a grant to an eligible political
118	118	subdivision to provide matching funds to enable the eligible
119	119	political subdivision to participate in a federal program for a
120	120	flood project;
121	121	(5) as a source of revenue or security for the payment
122	122	of principal and interest on bonds issued by the board if the
123	123	proceeds of the sale of the bonds will be deposited in the fund; and
124	124	(6) to pay the necessary and reasonable expenses of
125	125	the board in administering the fund.
126	126	(b) Principal and interest payments on loans made under
127	127	Subsection (a)(3) may be deferred for not more than 10 years or
128	128	until construction of the flood project is completed, whichever is
129	129	earlier.
130	130	Sec. 15.535. APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS. (a) Except as
131	131	provided by Subsection (c), an eligible political subdivision
132	132	applying for financial assistance under this subchapter for a
133	133	proposed flood project must demonstrate in the application that:
134	134	(1) the eligible political subdivision has acted
135	135	cooperatively with other political subdivisions to address flood
136	136	control needs in the area in which the eligible political
137	137	subdivisions are located;
138	138	(2) all eligible political subdivisions substantially
139	139	affected by the proposed flood project have participated in the
140	140	process of developing the proposed flood project;
141	141	(3) the eligible political subdivisions, separately
142	142	or in cooperation, have held public meetings to accept comment on
143	143	proposed flood projects from interested parties; and
144	144	(4) the technical requirements for the proposed flood
145	145	project have been completed and compared against any other
146	146	potential flood projects in the same area.
147	147	(b) The application must include an analysis of whether the
148	148	proposed flood project could use floodwater capture techniques for
149	149	water supply purposes, including floodwater harvesting, detention
150	150	or retention basins, or other methods of capturing storm flow or
151	151	unappropriated flood flow.
152	152	(c) An eligible political subdivision applying for
153	153	assistance under Section 15.534(a)(3) is not required to make the
154	154	demonstration described by Subsection (a)(4) of this section.
155	155	Sec. 15.536. APPROVAL OF APPLICATIONS. On review and
156	156	recommendation by the executive administrator, the board may
157	157	approve an application only if the board finds that:
158	158	(1) the application and the assistance applied for
159	159	meet the requirements of this subchapter and board rules;
160	160	(2) the application demonstrates a sufficient level of
161	161	cooperation among eligible political subdivisions and includes all
162	162	of the eligible political subdivisions substantially affected by
163	163	the flood project; and
164	164	(3) the taxes or other revenue, or both the taxes and
165	165	other revenue, pledged by the applicant will be sufficient to meet
166	166	all the obligations assumed by the eligible political subdivision.
167	167	Sec. 15.537. APPLICABLE LAW. Subchapter E, Chapter 17,
168	168	applies to financial assistance made available from the fund,
169	169	except that the board may execute contracts as necessary to
170	170	evidence grant agreements.
171	171	Sec. 15.538. RULES. The board shall adopt rules necessary
172	172	to carry out this subchapter, including rules:
173	173	(1) that establish procedures for an application for
174	174	and for the award of financial assistance;
175	175	(2) for the investment of money; and
176	176	(3) for the administration of the fund.
177	177	Sec. 15.539. SALE OF POLITICAL SUBDIVISION BONDS. (a) The
178	178	board may sell or dispose of political subdivision bonds at the
179	179	price and under the terms that the board determines to be
180	180	reasonable.
181	181	(b) The board may sell political subdivision bonds without
182	182	making a previous offer to the eligible political subdivision that
183	183	issued the bonds and without advertising, soliciting, or receiving
184	184	bids for sale.
185	185	(c) Notwithstanding other provisions of this chapter, the
186	186	board may sell to the Texas Water Resources Finance Authority any
187	187	political subdivision bonds purchased with money in the fund and
188	188	may apply the proceeds of a sale in the manner provided by this
189	189	section.
190	190	(d) Proceeds from the sale of political subdivision bonds
191	191	under this section shall be deposited in the fund for use as
192	192	provided by Section 15.534.
193	193	(e) As part of a sales agreement with the Texas Water
194	194	Resources Finance Authority, the board by contract may agree to
195	195	perform the functions required to ensure that the eligible
196	196	political subdivision pays the debt service on political
197	197	subdivision bonds sold and observes the conditions and requirements
198	198	stated in those bonds.
199	199	(f) The board may exercise any powers necessary to carry out
200	200	the authority granted by this section, including the authority to
201	201	contract with any person to accomplish the purposes of this
202	202	section.
203	203	Sec. 15.540. INFORMATION CLEARINGHOUSE. The board shall
204	204	act as a clearinghouse for information about state and federal
205	205	flood planning, mitigation, and control programs that may serve as
206	206	a source of funding for flood projects.
207	207	Sec. 15.541. LIABILITY. Participation in cooperative flood
208	208	planning to obtain money under this subchapter does not subject an
209	209	eligible political subdivision to civil liability in regards to a
210	210	flood project.
211	211	SECTION 4. Title 5, Water Code, is amended by designating
212	212	Chapter 152 as Subtitle A and adding a subtitle heading to read as
213	213	follows:
214	214	SUBTITLE A. RIVER AUTHORITIES
215	215	SECTION 5. Subtitle A, Title 5, Water Code, as added by this
216	216	Act, is amended by adding Chapter 150 to read as follows:
217	217	CHAPTER 150. PROVISIONS GENERALLY APPLICABLE TO RIVER AUTHORITIES
218	218	Sec. 150.0101. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
219	219	(1) "Director" means a member of the board of
220	220	directors of a river authority.
221	221	(2) "River authority" means a district created under
222	222	the authority of Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution, as a
223	223	regional water management entity to provide water development and
224	224	planning services and other services to a river basin or portion of
225	225	a river basin.
226	226	Sec. 150.0102. PARTICIPATION IN COOPERATIVE FLOOD
227	227	PLANNING. A river authority may participate in cooperative flood
228	228	planning to obtain money from the flood infrastructure fund under
229	229	Subchapter I, Chapter 15, Water Code, including:
230	230	(1) providing administrative or technical support;
231	231	and
232	232	(2) participation by a director, general manager, or
233	233	other river authority staff in the cooperative flood planning
234	234	process.
235	235	SECTION 6. (a) The amount of $3.26 billion is appropriated
236	236	out of the economic stabilization fund to the flood infrastructure
237	237	fund for purposes of implementing Subchapter I, Chapter 15, Water
238	238	Code, as added by this Act.
239	239	(b) This section takes effect only if this Act is approved
240	240	by a vote of two-thirds of the members present in each house of the
241	241	legislature, as provided by Section 49-g(m), Article III, Texas
242	242	Constitution.
243	243	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect January 1, 2020, but only
244	244	if the constitutional amendment proposed by the 86th Legislature,
245	245	Regular Session, 2019, authorizing the legislature to provide for
246	246	the creation of the flood infrastructure fund to assist in the
247	247	financing of drainage, flood mitigation, and flood control projects
248	248	is approved by the voters. If that amendment is not approved by the
249	249	voters, this Act has no effect.