BILL ANALYSIS H.B. 2607 By: Wharton Intergovernmental Affairs Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The 62nd Texas Legislature authorized the creation of the Walker County Hospital District, and in 1975, a majority of the voters of Walker County approved the creation of the district in an election. Under current law, the district has full responsibility for providing hospital care for the district's inhabitants and may lease all or parts of the buildings and facilities comprising the hospital system to any person on terms considered to be in the district's best interest, for a term not to exceed forty years. The bill author has informed the committee that the district currently owns undeveloped property that it is not expressly authorized to lease, even though several other hospital districts in Texas are authorized to lease such undeveloped property, and that the district has requested the authority to enter into long-term lease agreements with respect to its undeveloped property in order to spur construction of facilities to be used for hospital purposes. Additionally, while the district's board of managers may already serve four-year terms under applicable Health and Safety Code provisions relating to hospital districts, the district seeks to expressly establish four-year terms for the managers in its enabling legislation, as several other hospital districts have done within their enabling legislation. H.B. 2607 seeks to address these issues by expanding the leasing authority of the Walker County Hospital District, extending the maximum term of a district lease, and establishing that the members of the district's board of hospital managers serve staggered four-year terms. CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS H.B. 2607 amends the Special District Local Laws Code to change the terms of the members of the board of hospital managers of the Walker County Hospital District. Current law establishes staggered two-year terms, unless four-year terms are established under applicable Health and Safety Code provisions, with the terms of two or three managers expiring each year as appropriate, but the bill establishes staggered four-year terms with the terms of two or three managers expiring each even-numbered year as appropriate. The bill also changes the maximum term of a district lease from 40 years to 80 years and, with respect to the district's authority to lease all or part of the buildings and facilities comprising the hospital system to any person on terms considered to be in the district's best interest, revises that authority to authorize the lease of all or part of the district's property, including such buildings and facilities, on those terms. EFFECTIVE DATE On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2025.
BILL ANALYSIS
# BILL ANALYSIS
H.B. 2607
By: Wharton
Intergovernmental Affairs
Committee Report (Unamended)
H.B. 2607
By: Wharton
Intergovernmental Affairs
Committee Report (Unamended)
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The 62nd Texas Legislature authorized the creation of the Walker County Hospital District, and in 1975, a majority of the voters of Walker County approved the creation of the district in an election. Under current law, the district has full responsibility for providing hospital care for the district's inhabitants and may lease all or parts of the buildings and facilities comprising the hospital system to any person on terms considered to be in the district's best interest, for a term not to exceed forty years. The bill author has informed the committee that the district currently owns undeveloped property that it is not expressly authorized to lease, even though several other hospital districts in Texas are authorized to lease such undeveloped property, and that the district has requested the authority to enter into long-term lease agreements with respect to its undeveloped property in order to spur construction of facilities to be used for hospital purposes. Additionally, while the district's board of managers may already serve four-year terms under applicable Health and Safety Code provisions relating to hospital districts, the district seeks to expressly establish four-year terms for the managers in its enabling legislation, as several other hospital districts have done within their enabling legislation. H.B. 2607 seeks to address these issues by expanding the leasing authority of the Walker County Hospital District, extending the maximum term of a district lease, and establishing that the members of the district's board of hospital managers serve staggered four-year terms.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.
ANALYSIS H.B. 2607 amends the Special District Local Laws Code to change the terms of the members of the board of hospital managers of the Walker County Hospital District. Current law establishes staggered two-year terms, unless four-year terms are established under applicable Health and Safety Code provisions, with the terms of two or three managers expiring each year as appropriate, but the bill establishes staggered four-year terms with the terms of two or three managers expiring each even-numbered year as appropriate. The bill also changes the maximum term of a district lease from 40 years to 80 years and, with respect to the district's authority to lease all or part of the buildings and facilities comprising the hospital system to any person on terms considered to be in the district's best interest, revises that authority to authorize the lease of all or part of the district's property, including such buildings and facilities, on those terms.
EFFECTIVE DATE On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2025.
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
The 62nd Texas Legislature authorized the creation of the Walker County Hospital District, and in 1975, a majority of the voters of Walker County approved the creation of the district in an election. Under current law, the district has full responsibility for providing hospital care for the district's inhabitants and may lease all or parts of the buildings and facilities comprising the hospital system to any person on terms considered to be in the district's best interest, for a term not to exceed forty years. The bill author has informed the committee that the district currently owns undeveloped property that it is not expressly authorized to lease, even though several other hospital districts in Texas are authorized to lease such undeveloped property, and that the district has requested the authority to enter into long-term lease agreements with respect to its undeveloped property in order to spur construction of facilities to be used for hospital purposes. Additionally, while the district's board of managers may already serve four-year terms under applicable Health and Safety Code provisions relating to hospital districts, the district seeks to expressly establish four-year terms for the managers in its enabling legislation, as several other hospital districts have done within their enabling legislation. H.B. 2607 seeks to address these issues by expanding the leasing authority of the Walker County Hospital District, extending the maximum term of a district lease, and establishing that the members of the district's board of hospital managers serve staggered four-year terms.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.
ANALYSIS
H.B. 2607 amends the Special District Local Laws Code to change the terms of the members of the board of hospital managers of the Walker County Hospital District. Current law establishes staggered two-year terms, unless four-year terms are established under applicable Health and Safety Code provisions, with the terms of two or three managers expiring each year as appropriate, but the bill establishes staggered four-year terms with the terms of two or three managers expiring each even-numbered year as appropriate. The bill also changes the maximum term of a district lease from 40 years to 80 years and, with respect to the district's authority to lease all or part of the buildings and facilities comprising the hospital system to any person on terms considered to be in the district's best interest, revises that authority to authorize the lease of all or part of the district's property, including such buildings and facilities, on those terms.
EFFECTIVE DATE
On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2025.