73R1186 LJD-F
          By Rudd                                                H.B. No. 198
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to the filing and processing of condemnation proceedings.
    1-3        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-4        SECTION 1.  Section 21.013, Property Code, is amended to read
    1-5  as follows:
    1-6        Sec. 21.013.  VENUE; FEES AND PROCESSING FOR SUIT FILED IN
    1-7  DISTRICT COURT.  (a)  The venue of a condemnation proceeding is the
    1-8  county in which the owner of the property being condemned resides
    1-9  if the owner resides in a county in which part of the property is
   1-10  located.  Otherwise, the venue of a condemnation proceeding is any
   1-11  county in which at least part of the property is located.
   1-12        (b)  Except where otherwise provided by law, a party
   1-13  initiating a condemnation proceeding in a county in which there is
   1-14  one or more county courts <court> at law may <with jurisdiction
   1-15  must> file the petition with either the <judge of that court or, if
   1-16  there is more than one county court at law with jurisdiction, with
   1-17  the> county clerk or the district clerk.
   1-18        (c)  A party initiating a condemnation proceeding in a county
   1-19  in which there is not a county court at law <with jurisdiction>
   1-20  must file the condemnation petition with the <district judge or, if
   1-21  there is more than one district court in the county, with the>
   1-22  district clerk.  The district clerk shall file and process the case
   1-23  in the same manner as any other civil law suit, with the filing fee
   1-24  due at the time of filing in accordance with Section 51.317,
    2-1  Government Code.
    2-2        (d)  District and county clerks shall assign an equal number
    2-3  of eminent domain cases in rotation to each court with jurisdiction
    2-4  that the clerk serves.  A district court or county court at law may
    2-5  not by local rule or order alter the rotational assignment of cases
    2-6  provided by this subsection.
    2-7        SECTION 2.  The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
    2-8  a condemnation proceeding for which the petition is filed on or
    2-9  after the effective date of this Act.  A condemnation proceeding
   2-10  for which the petition was filed before that date is governed by
   2-11  the law as it existed on the date of filing, and that law is
   2-12  continued in effect for that purpose.
   2-13        SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1993.
   2-14        SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
   2-15  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   2-16  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
   2-17  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   2-18  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
   2-19                       COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO. 1
   2-20        Beginning on page 1, line 22, strike the new language and add
   2-21  the following new language after the word "clerk.":
   2-22  The filing fee shall be due at the time of filing in accordance
   2-23  with Section 51.317, Government Code.
   2-24                                                              Averitt