|
|
|
|
AN ACT
|
|
relating to the creation, administration, powers, and duties of a |
|
county assistance district. |
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
SECTION 1. Section 387.003, Local Government Code, is |
|
amended by amending Subsections (a), (b), (b-1), (c), (e), (f), and |
|
(h) and adding Subsections (a-1), (i), and (j) to read as follows: |
|
(a) The commissioners court of the county may call an |
|
election on the question of creating a county assistance district |
|
under this chapter. More than one county assistance district may be |
|
created in a county. |
|
(a-1) A district may [to] perform the following functions in |
|
the district: |
|
(1) the construction, maintenance, or improvement of |
|
roads or highways; |
|
(2) the provision of law enforcement and detention |
|
services; |
|
(3) the maintenance or improvement of libraries, |
|
museums, parks, or other recreational facilities; |
|
(4) the provision of services that benefit the public |
|
health or welfare, including the provision of firefighting and fire |
|
prevention services; or |
|
(5) the promotion of economic development and tourism. |
|
(b) The order calling the election must: |
|
(1) define the boundaries of the district to include |
|
any portion of the county in which the combined tax rate of all |
|
local sales and use taxes imposed, including the rate to be imposed |
|
by the district if approved at the election, would not exceed the |
|
maximum combined rate of sales and use taxes imposed by political |
|
subdivisions of this state that is prescribed by Sections 321.101 |
|
and 323.101, Tax Code [two percent]; and |
|
(2) call for the election to be held within those |
|
boundaries. |
|
(b-1) If the proposed district includes any territory of a |
|
municipality, the commissioners court shall send notice by |
|
certified mail to the governing body of the municipality of the |
|
commissioners court's intent to create the district. If the |
|
municipality has created a development corporation under Chapter |
|
504 or 505, the commissioners court shall also send the notice to |
|
the board of directors of the corporation. The commissioners court |
|
must send the notice not later than the 60th day before the date the |
|
commissioners court orders the election. The governing body of the |
|
municipality may exclude the territory of the municipality from the |
|
proposed district by sending notice by certified mail to the |
|
commissioners court of the governing body's desire to exclude the |
|
municipal territory from the district. The governing body must |
|
send the notice not later than the 45th day after the date the |
|
governing body receives notice from the commissioners court under |
|
this subsection. The territory of a municipality that is excluded |
|
under this subsection may subsequently be included in: |
|
(1) the district in an election held under Subsection |
|
(f) with the consent of the municipality; or |
|
(2) another district after complying with the |
|
requirements of this subsection and after an election held under |
|
Subsection (f). |
|
(c) The ballot at the election must be printed to permit |
|
voting for or against the proposition: "Authorizing the creation |
|
of the ____ County Assistance District No.___ (insert name of |
|
district) and the imposition of a sales and use tax at the rate of |
|
____ [of one] percent (insert [one-eighth, one-fourth,
|
|
three-eighths, or one-half, as] appropriate rate) for the purpose |
|
of financing the operations of the district." |
|
(e) If a majority of the votes received at the election are |
|
against the creation of the district, the district is not created. |
|
The failure to approve the creation of a district under this |
|
subsection does not affect the authority of the county to call one |
|
or more elections [another election] on the question of creating |
|
one or more [a] county assistance districts [district may not be
|
|
held in the county before the first anniversary of the most recent
|
|
election concerning the creation of a district]. |
|
(f) The commissioners court may call an election to be held |
|
in an area of the county that is not located in a district created |
|
under this section to determine whether the area should be included |
|
in the district and whether the district's sales and use tax should |
|
be imposed in the area. An election may not be held in an area in |
|
which the combined tax rate of all local sales and use taxes |
|
imposed, including the rate to be imposed by the district if |
|
approved at the election, would exceed the maximum combined rate of |
|
sales and use taxes imposed by political subdivisions of this state |
|
that is prescribed by Sections 321.101 and 323.101, Tax Code [two
|
|
percent]. |
|
(h) If more than one election to authorize a local sales and |
|
use tax is held on the same day in the area of a proposed district or |
|
an area proposed to be added to a district and if the resulting |
|
approval by the voters would cause the imposition of a local sales |
|
and use tax in any area to exceed the maximum combined rate of sales |
|
and use taxes of political subdivisions of this state that is |
|
prescribed by Sections 321.101 and 323.101, Tax Code [two percent], |
|
only a tax authorized at an election under this section may be |
|
imposed. |
|
(i) In addition to the authority to include an area in a |
|
district under Subsection (f), the governing body of a district by |
|
order may include an area in the district on receipt of a petition |
|
or petitions signed by the owner or owners of the majority of the |
|
land in the area to be included in the district. If there are no |
|
registered voters in the area to be included in the district, no |
|
election is required. |
|
(j) The commissioners court by order may exclude an area |
|
from the district if the district has no outstanding bonds payable |
|
wholly or partly from sales and use taxes and the exclusion does not |
|
impair any outstanding district debt or contractual obligation. |
|
SECTION 2. Section 387.005, Local Government Code, is |
|
amended to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 387.005. GOVERNING BODY. (a) The commissioners court |
|
of the county in which the district is created by order shall |
|
provide that: |
|
(1) the commissioners court is the governing body of |
|
the district; or |
|
(2) the commissioners court shall appoint a governing |
|
body of the district. |
|
(b) A member of the governing body of the district |
|
[commissioners court] is not entitled to compensation for service |
|
[on the governing body of the district] but is entitled to |
|
reimbursement for actual and necessary expenses. |
|
(c) A board of directors appointed by the commissioners |
|
court under this section shall consist of five directors who serve |
|
staggered terms of two years. To be eligible to serve as a |
|
director, a person must be a resident of the county in which the |
|
district is located. The initial directors shall draw lots to |
|
achieve staggered terms, with three of the directors serving |
|
one-year terms and two of the directors serving two-year terms. |
|
SECTION 3. Subsection (a), Section 387.006, Local |
|
Government Code, is amended to read as follows: |
|
(a) A district may: |
|
(1) perform any act necessary to the full exercise of |
|
the district's functions; |
|
(2) accept a grant or loan from: |
|
(A) the United States; |
|
(B) an agency or political subdivision of this |
|
state; or |
|
(C) a public or private person; |
|
(3) acquire, sell, lease, convey, or otherwise dispose |
|
of property or an interest in property under terms determined by the |
|
district; |
|
(4) employ necessary personnel; [and] |
|
(5) adopt rules to govern the operation of the |
|
district and its employees and property; and |
|
(6) enter into agreements with municipalities |
|
necessary or convenient to achieve the district's purposes, |
|
including agreements regarding the duration, rate, and allocation |
|
between the district and the municipality of sales and use taxes. |
|
SECTION 4. Subsection (b), Section 387.007, Local |
|
Government Code, is amended to read as follows: |
|
(b) A district may not adopt a sales and use tax under this |
|
chapter if the adoption of the tax would result in a combined tax |
|
rate of all local sales and use taxes that would exceed the maximum |
|
combined rate prescribed by Sections 321.101 and 323.101, Tax Code, |
|
[of more than two percent] in any location in the district. |
|
SECTION 5. Section 387.009, Local Government Code, is |
|
amended to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 387.009. TAX RATE. The rate of a tax adopted under |
|
this chapter must be in increments of one-eighth[, one-fourth,
|
|
three-eighths, or one-half] of one percent. |
|
SECTION 6. Subsections (a), (b), and (c), Section 387.010, |
|
Local Government Code, are amended to read as follows: |
|
(a) A district that has adopted a sales and use tax under |
|
this chapter may, by order and subject to Section 387.007(b): |
|
(1) reduce[, change] the rate of the tax or repeal the |
|
tax without an election, except that the district may not repeal the |
|
sales and use tax or reduce the rate of the sales and use tax below |
|
the amount pledged to secure payment of an outstanding district |
|
debt or contractual obligation; |
|
(2) increase the rate of the sales and use tax, if the |
|
increased rate of the sales and use tax will not exceed the rate |
|
approved at an election held under Section 387.003; or |
|
(3) increase the rate of the sales and use tax to a |
|
rate that exceeds the rate approved at an election held under |
|
Section 387.003 after [if] the increase [change or repeal] is |
|
approved by a majority of the votes received in the district at an |
|
election held for that purpose. |
|
(b) The tax may be changed under Subsection (a) in one or |
|
more increments of one-eighth of one percent [to a maximum of
|
|
one-half of one percent]. |
|
(c) The ballot for an election to increase [change] the tax |
|
shall be printed to permit voting for or against the proposition: |
|
"The increase [change] of a sales and use tax for the ____ County |
|
Assistance District No. ___ (insert name of district) from the rate |
|
of ____ [of one] percent (insert [one-fourth, three-eighths, or
|
|
one-half, as] appropriate rate) to the rate of ____ [of one] percent |
|
(insert [one-fourth, three-eighths, or one-half, as] appropriate |
|
rate)." |
|
SECTION 7. Section 387.012, Local Government Code, is |
|
amended to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 387.012. EFFECTIVE DATE OF TAX. The adoption of the |
|
tax, the increase or reduction [change] of the tax rate, or the |
|
repeal of the tax takes effect on the first day of the first |
|
calendar quarter occurring after the expiration of the first |
|
complete quarter occurring after the date the comptroller receives |
|
a copy of the order of the district's governing body [notice of the
|
|
results of the election] adopting, increasing, reducing |
|
[changing], or repealing the tax. |
|
SECTION 8. Subsection (d), Section 387.010, Local |
|
Government Code, is repealed. |
|
SECTION 9. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
|
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
|
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
|
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
|
Act takes effect September 1, 2011. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
______________________________ |
______________________________ |
|
President of the Senate |
Speaker of the House |
|
|
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 520 passed the Senate on |
|
March 21, 2011, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0. |
|
|
|
|
______________________________ |
|
Secretary of the Senate |
|
|
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 520 passed the House on |
|
May 20, 2011, by the following vote: Yeas 149, Nays 0, one |
|
present not voting. |
|
|
|
|
______________________________ |
|
Chief Clerk of the House |
|
|
|
|
|
Approved: |
|
|
|
______________________________ |
|
Date |
|
|
|
|
|
______________________________ |
|
Governor |