By Eckels H.B. No. 2663 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to the powers and duties of the commissioners court. 1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-4 SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 81, Local Government Code, 1-5 is amended by adding Section 81.028 to read as follows: 1-6 Sec. 81.028. CERTAIN POWERS SPECIFIED. Each commissioners 1-7 court may: 1-8 (1) establish public ferries whenever the public 1-9 interest may require; 1-10 (2) lay out and establish, change, discontinue, close, 1-11 abandon, or vacate public roads and highways; 1-12 (3) build bridges and keep them in repair; 1-13 (4) appoint road overseers and apportion hands; 1-14 (5) exercise general control over all roads, highways, 1-15 ferries, and bridges in their counties; 1-16 (6) provide for the support of paupers, residents of 1-17 their county, who are unable to support themselves. A county is 1-18 obligated to provide health care assistance to eligible residents 1-19 only to the extent prescribed by Chapter 61, Health and Safety 1-20 Code, but that chapter does not affect the authority of a 1-21 commissioners court to provide eligibility standards or other 1-22 requirements relating to other assistance programs or services that 1-23 are not covered by Chapter 61; and 2-1 (7) use county road machinery and funds from the 2-2 general fund or road and bridge funds in cleaning streams and in 2-3 aiding flood control when such improvements are deemed to be of aid 2-4 to the county in the maintenance and the building of county roads. 2-5 SECTION 2. Article 2351, Revised Statutes, is repealed. 2-6 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 1993. 2-7 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the 2-8 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 2-9 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 2-10 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 2-11 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.