SLC C.S.H.B. 1873 75(R)BILL ANALYSIS


LAND & RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
C.S.H.B. 1873
By: Williams
5-1-97
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND 

The Houston metropolitan area has experienced tremendous growth over the
past half-century, while the City of Houston itself has tripled in the
past forty years, primarily due to the large amount of unincorporated area
surrounding the city and municipalities' unilateral authority to annex.
The issue of regional government and regional cooperation will be pivotal
to the future of the Houston metropolitan area. 

PURPOSE

CSHB 1873 creates an interim committee designed to study regional
government in metropolitan areas and make specific recommendations on the
issue.  The committee's membership is composed of legislators and citizens
from the area chosen by the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and the
Speaker.  The bill also creates a temporary moratorium on annexation for a
period of two years. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does expressly grant
additional rulemaking authority to the interim committee created in this
Act by stating in SECTION 2.  subsection (k) of this Act that the
committee shall adopt rules to administer this section of the Act. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Subchapter B, Chapter 43, Local Government Code, by
adding Sec. 43.0201 as follows: 

 Sec. 43.0201.  TEMPORARY MORATORIUM ON ANNEXATION BY CERTAIN
MUNICIPALITIES.  Provides a two year moratorium on annexation in
municipalities with a population of 1.6 million or more.  Municipalities
may only annex an area if petitioned by the area to be annexed.  

SECTION 2.  This section stipulates the membership, focus, and duties of
an interim committee to study local government consolidation and municipal
annexation authority.  This section also provides definitions. 

SECTION 3.   The Governor, Lt. Governor, and Speaker shall appoint members
to the committee before November 1, 1997. 

SECTION 4.  Applies Act to any annexation action, regardless of whether
the annexation proceeding was started before, on, or after the effective
date of this Act. 

SECTION 5.  Emergency clause.  

  
COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

CSHB 1873 deletes the provision contained in the original legislation that
allowed for an area to  disannex from a municipality. 

CSHB 1873 provides a two year moratorium on annexation in municipalities
with a population of 1.6 million or more.  The original legislation
provided for a 10 year moratorium on annexation.