S.B. No. 2185
AN ACT
relating to restrictions on certain special districts.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. In this Act, "district" means the Hidalgo County
Water Improvement District No. 3.
SECTION 2. GENERAL MANAGER. The general manager shall be an
employee of the district. The general manager serves at the
pleasure of and reports only to the board. The general manager may
not serve as a director on the board of directors of the district.
SECTION 3. EDUCATION PROGRAM. (a) The district's board of
directors shall establish a program of education for the district's
directors that includes information on:
(1) the history of the district;
(2) the district's statutory authority;
(3) laws applicable to the district, including the
requirements of Chapters 551 and 552, Government Code;
(4) relevant legal developments related to water
district governance;
(5) the duties and responsibilities of the district's
board of directors;
(6) conflict of interest laws and other laws related
to public officials;
(7) any applicable ethics policies adopted by the
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality or the Texas Ethics
Commission.
(b) The district shall pay any costs associated with the
development of the education program from district revenue.
(c) The education program may include training provided by
an organization offering courses that have been approved by the
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
(d) The district's board of directors may adopt bylaws
modifying the education program as necessary to meet district
needs.
SECTION 4. EDUCATION FOR DIRECTORS. (a) Each director of
the district shall complete the education program established under
Section 3 of this Act before the first anniversary of the date on
which the director was appointed or elected. A director serving on
the district's board of directors on the effective date of this Act
shall complete the education program not later than September 1,
2022.
(b) The district shall reimburse a director of the district
for the reasonable expenses incurred by the director in attending
the education program.
(c) A director of the district who is elected to serve a
subsequent term shall fulfill the education requirements specified
by district bylaws.
SECTION 5. PROHIBITED CONDUCT FOR DIRECTORS AND DISTRICT
EMPLOYEES. A director of the district or a district employee may
not:
(1) accept or solicit any gift, favor, or service
that:
(A) might reasonably influence the director or
employee in the discharge of an official duty; or
(B) the director or employee knows or should know
is offered with the intent to influence the director's or employee's
official conduct;
(2) accept other employment or engage in a business or
professional activity that the director or employee might
reasonably expect would require or induce the director or employee
to disclose confidential information acquired in the course of the
director's or employee's duties under this chapter;
(3) accept other employment or compensation that could
reasonably be expected to impair the director's or employee's
independent judgment in the performance of the director's or
employee's duties under this chapter;
(4) make personal investments that could reasonably be
expected to create a substantial conflict between the director's or
employee's private interest and the interest of the district;
(5) intentionally or knowingly solicit, accept, or
agree to accept a benefit for the director's or employee's exercise
of powers under this chapter or performance of duties under this
chapter in favor of a third party; or
(6) have a personal interest in an agreement executed
by the district.
SECTION 6. SEARCHABLE DISTRICT EXPENDITURE DATABASE. (a)
The district shall establish and post on the district's Internet
website a database of district check register reports, including
district expenditures and contracts. The database must include the
amount, date, description, payor, and payee of the expenditures
and, if applicable, parties to the contract.
(b) The district may not include in the database developed
under Subsection (a) a district employee's salary or personal
identifying information, as defined by Section 521.002, Business &
Commerce Code.
(c) The district shall prominently display a link to the
database established under this section on the district's Internet
website. The information provided in the district check register
reports must be updated monthly.
(d) The district shall keep in the database information
required by this section related to an adopted budget until the
third anniversary of the date the budget was adopted.
SECTION 7. CONDUCT OF ELECTIONS. The district shall
publish once before each election to elect members of the board of
directors of the district the procedure for conducting an election
to elect members of the board of directors of the district in a
newspaper of general circulation in each municipality or county in
which the district or a portion of the district is located.
SECTION 8. Subchapter H, Chapter 49, Water Code, is amended
by adding Section 49.2127 to read as follows:
Sec. 49.2127. PIPELINE FEES AND REQUIREMENTS IMPOSED BY
CERTAIN DISTRICTS. (a) In this section, "retail public utility"
has the meaning assigned by Section 13.002.
(b) This section applies only to a district whose territory
is located wholly or partly in a county:
(1) located on the Gulf of Mexico and an international
border; or
(2) adjacent to a county described by Subdivision (1).
(c) Notwithstanding Section 49.002, this section prevails
over a special law governing a district.
(d) A district may not impose on a retail public utility
that proposes to construct a water or sewer pipeline or associated
infrastructure in the district's service area:
(1) requirements for constructing the pipeline that
are unduly burdensome; or
(2) a fee that is greater than the actual, reasonable,
and documented costs incurred by the district for review, legal
services, engineering services, inspection, construction, and
repair associated with the retail public utility construction, and
any other related costs incurred by the district in association
with the retail public utility construction.
SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 2185 passed the Senate on
April 29, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0; and that
the Senate concurred in House amendments on May 29, 2021, by the
following vote: Yeas 29, Nays 1, one present not voting.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 2185 passed the House, with
amendments, on May 26, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 144,
Nays 1, two present not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
Approved:
______________________________
Date
______________________________
Governor