By Hochberg, Coleman                                  H.B. No. 1130
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to the fees charged by a county to provide law enforcement
    1-3  services.
    1-4        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-5        SECTION 1.  Section 351.061, Local Government Code, is
    1-6  amended to read as follows:
    1-7        Sec. 351.061.  AUTHORITY TO CONTRACT.  (a)  To protect the
    1-8  public interest, the commissioners court of a county may contract
    1-9  with a nongovernmental association for the provision of law
   1-10  enforcement services by the county on a fee basis in the
   1-11  geographical area represented by the association.
   1-12        (b)  The commissioners court may not enter a contract under
   1-13  this chapter unless the county official providing law enforcement
   1-14  services under the contract:
   1-15              (1)  retains absolute discretion over the deployment of
   1-16  the official's law enforcement personnel; and
   1-17              (2)  certifies to the commissioner's court that
   1-18  providing services under the contract will not impair the ability
   1-19  of the official to provide necessary law enforcement services to
   1-20  the general public.
   1-21        SECTION 2.  Section 351.062, Local Government Code, is
   1-22  amended to read as follows:
   1-23        Sec. 351.062.  FEES.  (a)  The commissioners court shall
    2-1  determine the amount of the fee charged by the county.  Except as
    2-2  provided by Subsection (b), the <The> fees must be uniform
    2-3  throughout the county, relative to the amount of service provided,
    2-4  and must recover not more than 100 percent of the cost to the
    2-5  county for supplying the law enforcement services, including
    2-6  salaries and any additional expenses the county may incur in
    2-7  providing the services.  If the time of the sheriff or county
    2-8  official who provides the services is divided between services to
    2-9  the political subdivision and a nongovernmental association, the
   2-10  total cost to the association must be so prorated, as provided in
   2-11  the contract.
   2-12        (b)  The fee charged in Subsection (a) shall be reduced, for
   2-13  an area in the county, from the countywide rate if the
   2-14  commissioners court determines that the area is an economically
   2-15  disadvantaged area and that the reduced rate is necessary to
   2-16  provide law enforcement services to the area.
   2-17        (c)  The contract must provide for the payment of the fees to
   2-18  the county.  The fees shall be deposited in the general fund of the
   2-19  county.
   2-20        SECTION 3.  The change in law made by this Act to Section
   2-21  351.062, Local Government Code, applies only to a contract made by
   2-22  a county on or after the effective date of this Act.  A contract
   2-23  made before that date is governed by the law in effect at the time
   2-24  the contract is made, and the former law is continued in effect for
   2-25  that purpose.
    3-1        SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
    3-2  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
    3-3  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
    3-4  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
    3-5  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.