Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3402 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	By: VanDeaver (Senate Sponsor - Hughes) H.B. No. 3402
2		-	(In the Senate - Received from the House April 19, 2021;
3		-	April 21, 2021, read first time and referred to Committee on Local
4		-	Government; May 20, 2021, reported favorably by the following
5		-	vote: Yeas 6, Nays 0; May 20, 2021, sent to printer.)
6		-	Click here to see the committee vote
	1	+	87R15689 ANG-F
	2	+	By: VanDeaver H.B. No. 3402
7	3
8	4
9	5		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
10	6		AN ACT
11	7		relating to the powers and duties of the Franklin County Water
12	8		District.
13	9		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
14	10		SECTION 1. Section 4, Chapter 719, Acts of the 59th
15	11		Legislature, Regular Session, 1965, is amended to read as follows:
16	12		Sec. 4. DISTRICT POWERS. The District herein created shall
17	13		have and possess and is hereby vested with all the rights, powers
18	14		and privileges conferred by the General Laws of this State now in
19	15		force and effect or hereafter enacted applicable to water control
20	16		and improvement districts created under the authority of Article
21	17		XVI, Section 59, of the Texas Constitution, but to the extent that
22	18		said General Laws may be inconsistent or in conflict herewith, the
23	19		provisions of this Act shall prevail. It is further the intention of
24	20		the Legislature that the District herein created shall have all the
25	21		power and authority necessary to fully qualify and gain the
26	22		benefits of any and all laws which are in any wise helpful in
27	23		carrying out the purposes for which the District is created and the
28	24		provisions of all such laws of which the District may lawfully avail
29	25		itself are hereby adopted by this reference and made applicable to
30	26		the District.
31	27		Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the
32	28		District shall and is hereby empowered to exercise the following
33	29		powers, privileges and functions:
34	30		(1) To control, store, preserve and distribute its
35	31		waters and flood waters, the waters of its rivers and streams, for
36	32		all useful purposes and to accomplish these ends by all practicable
37	33		means including the construction, maintenance and operation of all
38	34		appropriate improvements, plants, works and facilities, the
39	35		acquisition of water rights and all other properties, lands,
40	36		tenements, easements and all other rights necessary to the purpose
41	37		of the organization of the District.
42	38		(2) To process and store such waters and distribute
43	39		same for municipal, domestic, irrigation and industrial purposes,
44	40		subject to the requirements of Chapter 1, Title 128, Revised Civil
45	41		Statutes of Texas, 1925, as amended.
46	42		(3) To dispose of property or rights therein when the
47	43		same are no longer needed for the purposes for which the District is
48	44		created or to lease same for purposes which will not interfere with
49	45		the use of the property of the District.
50	46		(4) To cooperate with and contract with the State of
51	47		Texas, the United States of America, or with any of their
52	48		departments or agencies now existing, or which may hereafter be
53	49		created, to carry out any of the powers or to further any of the
54	50		purposes of the District and, for such purposes, to receive grants,
55	51		loans or advancements therefrom.
56	52		(5) To make or cause to be made surveys and engineering
57	53		investigations for the information of the District to facilitate
58	54		the accomplishment of its purposes and to employ a general manager,
59	55		attorneys, accountants, engineers, financial experts, or other
60	56		technical or nontechnical employees or assistants; further to fix
61	57		the amount and manner of their compensation and to provide for the
62	58		payment of all expenditures deemed essential to the proper
63	59		operation and maintenance of the District and its affairs.
64	60		(6) To exercise all functions to permit the
65	61		accomplishment of its purposes including the acquisition within or
66	62		without said District of land, easements, and rights-of-way and any
67	63		other character of property incident to, or necessary in carrying
68	64		out the purposes and work of the District by way of gift, device,
69	65		purchase, leasehold or condemnation. The right of eminent domain is
70	66		hereby expressly conferred on said District and the procedure with
71	67		reference to condemnation, the assessment of and estimating of
72	68		damages, payment, appeal, the entering upon the property pending
73	69		appeal and other procedures prescribed in Title 52 of the Revised
74	70		Civil Statutes of Texas, 1925, as heretofore or hereafter amended,
75	71		shall apply to said District. In the event the District, in the
76	72		exercise of the power of eminent domain or power of relocation, or
77	73		any other power granted hereunder makes necessary the taking of any
78	74		property or the relocation, raising, re-routing or changing the
79	75		grade, or altering the construction of any highway, railroad,
80	76		electric transmission line, telephone or telegraph properties and
81	77		facilities, or pipeline, all such necessary taking, relocation,
82	78		raising, re-routing, changing of grade or alteration of
83	79		construction shall be accomplished at the expense of the District.
84	80		It is provided, however, that the expense of the District shall be
85	81		strictly confined to that amount which is equal to the actual cost
86	82		of the property taken or work required without enhancement thereof
87	83		and after deducting the net salvage value which may be derived from
88	84		any property taken.
89	85		(7) To design, acquire, construct, improve, operate,
90	86		maintain, and convey to this state, a county, or a municipality for
91	87		operation and maintenance macadamized, graveled, or paved roads, or
92	88		improvements, including storm drainage, in aid of those roads. The
93	89		district may finance the road project with notes secured by non-tax
94	90		revenue. A road project must meet all applicable construction
95	91		standards, zoning and subdivision requirements, and regulations of
96	92		each municipality in whose corporate limits or extraterritorial
97	93		jurisdiction the road project is located. If a road project is not
98	94		located in the corporate limits or extraterritorial jurisdiction of
99	95		a municipality, the road project must meet all applicable
100	96		construction standards, subdivision requirements, and regulations
101	97		of each county in which the road project is located. If the state
102	98		will maintain and operate the road, the Texas Transportation
103	99		Commission must approve the plans and specifications of the road
104	100		project.
105	101		(8) To do any and all other acts or things necessary or
106	102		proper to carry into effect the purpose for which the District is
107	103		created and organized.
108	104		SECTION 2. The Franklin County Water District retains all
109	105		rights, powers, privileges, authority, duties, and functions that
110	106		it had before the effective date of this Act.
111	107		SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
112	108		a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
113	109		provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
114	110		Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
115	111		Act takes effect September 1, 2021.
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