1-1 By: Turner of Harris (Senate Sponsor - Gallegos) H.B. No. 943
1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House April 25, 1995;
1-3 April 26, 1995, read first time and referred to Committee on
1-4 Intergovernmental Relations; May 19, 1995, reported favorably, as
1-5 amended, by the following vote: Yeas 8, Nays 0; May 19, 1995, sent
1-6 to printer.)
1-7 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO. 1 By: Gallegos
1-8 Amend H.B. No. 943 as follows:
1-9 On page 1, line 22 delete the word "or"
1-10 On Page 1, line 24 between the words "authority," and the word
1-11 "except" add the following:
1-12 "or, in an authority in which the principal city has a
1-13 population of less than 750,000, the Chair of the Metropolitan
1-14 Planning Organization certified by the U.S. Department of
1-15 Transportation which covers the area in which the authority
1-16 operates,"
1-17 On Page 2, add a new subsection (d) to read as follows:
1-18 "(d) If a request for a performance audit is made for an
1-19 authority in which the population of the principal city is less
1-20 than 1.2. million, the authority may not collect a sales tax
1-21 greater than that which it was collecting on January 1, 1995 until
1-22 such time as the performance audit is conducted by the comptroller
1-23 and filed with the person who requested the audit."
1-24 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO. 2 By: Gallegos
1-25 Amend H.B. No. 943 in SECTION 1 of the bill, in added Section
1-26 12H(a) of Article 1118x, by striking the first sentence (house
1-27 engrossment, page 1, lines 9-14) and substituting the following:
1-28 In addition to the audit required by Section 12D of this Act, an
1-29 authority in which the principal city has a population of more than
1-30 1.2 million and an authority in which the principal city has a
1-31 population of less than 750,000 and that was confirmed at a tax
1-32 election before July 1, 1985, are subject to performance audits by
1-33 the state comptroller of public accounts to determine whether the
1-34 particular authority is accomplishing the purposes for which it was
1-35 created.
1-36 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO. 3 By: Madla
1-37 Amend HB 943 as follows:
1-38 In SECTION 1, Subsection 12H(a), line 11 (House Engrossment),
1-39 after the word "million" strike the word "is" and insert the
1-40 following "and of an authority created before January 1, 1980, with
1-41 a principal city having a population of less than 1.2 million are".
1-42 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-43 AN ACT
1-44 relating to performance audits of certain metropolitan transit
1-45 authorities.
1-46 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-47 SECTION 1. Chapter 141, Acts of the 63rd Legislature,
1-48 Regular Session, 1973 (Article 1118x, Vernon's Texas Civil
1-49 Statutes), is amended by adding Section 12H to read as follows:
1-50 Sec. 12H. COMPTROLLER'S PERFORMANCE AUDITS OF CERTAIN
1-51 AUTHORITIES. (a) In addition to the audit required by Section 12D
1-52 of this Act, an authority in which the principal city has a
1-53 population of more than 1.2 million is subject to performance
1-54 audits by the state comptroller of public accounts to determine
1-55 whether the authority is accomplishing the purposes for which it
1-56 was created. In performing an audit under this section, the
1-57 comptroller may examine any budgets and operations of the
1-58 authority, determine whether the authority is effectively and
1-59 efficiently providing the services it was created to provide, and
1-60 make appropriate recommendations to the legislature.
1-61 (b) The comptroller may initiate an audit under this section
1-62 at the comptroller's discretion and shall initiate an audit at the
1-63 request of the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of
1-64 the house of representatives, or the presiding officer of the
1-65 committee of the senate or the house of representatives responsible
1-66 for approving legislation governing the authority, except that an
1-67 audit under this section may not be performed more often than once
1-68 every two years.
2-1 (c) The comptroller shall file a copy of the report of each
2-2 audit performed under this section with each person who has
2-3 authority to initiate the audit.
2-4 SECTION 2. The importance of this legislation and the
2-5 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-6 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-7 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-8 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
2-9 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
2-10 passage, and it is so enacted.
2-11 * * * * *