| |
| |
|
|
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
|
|
|
AN ACT
|
|
|
relating to the amounts budgeted by certain political subdivisions |
|
|
for fire protection, law enforcement, or emergency medical |
|
|
services. |
|
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Chapter 140, Local Government Code, is amended |
|
|
by adding Section 140.0046 to read as follows: |
|
|
Sec. 140.0046. LIMITATION ON AUTHORITY TO REDUCE BUDGET FOR |
|
|
PUBLIC SAFETY SERVICES. (a) In this section: |
|
|
(1) "Comparable service" means: |
|
|
(A) the services provided by a department or |
|
|
similar unit of a political subdivision that are identifiable in |
|
|
the political subdivision's budget, if the political subdivision is |
|
|
separated into departments or similar units; or |
|
|
(B) a service provided by a political subdivision |
|
|
that is identifiable in the political subdivision's budget, if the |
|
|
political subdivision is not separated into units described by |
|
|
Paragraph (A). |
|
|
(2) "Public safety service" means a fire protection, |
|
|
law enforcement, or emergency medical service. |
|
|
(b) This section does not apply to a school district. |
|
|
(c) Except as provided by Subsection (d), a political |
|
|
subdivision may not adopt a budget that allocates an amount of money |
|
|
to provide a public safety service that is less than the amount |
|
|
allocated to provide that service in the preceding fiscal year if: |
|
|
(1) the reduction in the amount of money allocated to |
|
|
provide the public safety service is greater than the reduction in |
|
|
the amount of money allocated in that budget to provide a comparable |
|
|
service if compared to the amounts allocated to provide those |
|
|
services in the preceding fiscal year; and |
|
|
(2) the percentage difference between the amount of |
|
|
money allocated in that budget to provide the public safety service |
|
|
and the amount allocated to provide that service in the preceding |
|
|
fiscal year is greater than the percentage difference between the |
|
|
amount of money allocated in that budget to provide the comparable |
|
|
service and the amount allocated to provide that comparable service |
|
|
in the preceding fiscal year. |
|
|
(d) A political subdivision may adopt a budget that does not |
|
|
meet the requirements of Subsection (c) as it relates to a public |
|
|
safety service if the political subdivision will not provide that |
|
|
service in the fiscal year for which the budget is adopted. |
|
|
(e) For purposes of this section, the amount of money |
|
|
allocated to provide a service includes all maintenance, |
|
|
operations, and debt service costs associated with providing the |
|
|
service. |
|
|
SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
|
|
to a budget adopted by a political subdivision on or after the |
|
|
effective date of this Act. |
|
|
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |