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Senate Bill 520 |
Senate Author: Hegar |
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Effective: 6-17-11 |
House Sponsor: Zerwas |
Senate Bill 520 amends the Local Government Code to authorize the creation of more than one county assistance district in a county and to cap the combined rate of all local sales and use taxes imposed in such a district at the maximum combined rate prescribed by Tax Code provisions relating to municipal and county sales and use taxes rather than at two percent. The bill authorizes territory of a municipality that was included in a proposed county assistance district but is excluded from the district by the municipality's governing body to subsequently be included in another district after complying with applicable statutory requirements and after an election is held regarding inclusion in a district and imposition of the district's sales and use tax.
Previous law prohibited another election on the question of creating a county assistance district from being held in a county before the first anniversary of the most recent election concerning the creation of a district if a majority of the votes received at the election were against the creation. The bill provides that in the case of such a majority the district is not created and that the failure to approve a district's creation does not affect the county's authority to call one or more elections on the question of creating one or more county assistance districts.
Senate Bill 520 authorizes a district's governing body by order to 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 and provides that no election is required if there are no registered voters in the area to be so included. The bill authorizes a county commissioners court by order to exclude an area from the district if the district has no outstanding bonds payable from sales and use taxes and the exclusion does not impair any outstanding district debt or contractual obligation.
Senate Bill 520 requires the commissioners court of the county in which a county assistance district is created to provide by order that the commissioners court is the district's governing body or to appoint a five-member board of directors for the district whose members serve staggered two-year terms. The bill authorizes a district to enter into agreements with municipalities necessary or convenient to achieve the district's purpose.
Senate Bill 520 authorizes a county assistance district that has adopted a sales and use tax to reduce the tax rate or repeal the tax without an election unless the tax or tax rate is necessary to secure payment of outstanding district debt or contractual obligation and establishes certain conditions under which the district may increase the tax rate. The bill removes the cap of one‑half of one percent from the provision authorizing the sales and use tax to be changed in one or more increments of one-eighth of one percent. The bill repeals a Local Government Code provision relating to the language of a ballot for an election to repeal the tax.