1-1           By:  Harris                                      S.B. No. 195

 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed January 13, 1997; January 14, 1997,

 1-3     read first time and referred to Committee on Administration;

 1-4     January 15, 1997, reported favorably by the following vote:  Yeas

 1-5     5, Nays 0; January 15, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-7                                   AN ACT

 1-8     relating to the creation, purpose, implementation, and funding of

 1-9     the County Park Beautification and Improvement Program.

1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-11           SECTION 1.  SHORT TITLE.  This Act shall be known and may be

1-12     cited as the County Park Beautification and Improvement Program

1-13     Act.

1-14           SECTION 2.  PURPOSE; CREATION.  It is the intent of the

1-15     legislature that each county dedicating land for use as county

1-16     parks be encouraged to beautify and improve those parks through

1-17     measures including but not limited to improvements in or additions

1-18     to lighting, directional and educational signs, litter abatement

1-19     strategies, and landscaping and landscape maintenance policies.  In

1-20     furtherance of these goals, the County Park Beautification and

1-21     Improvement Program is established.

1-22           SECTION 3.  IMPLEMENTATION.  The commissioners court of a

1-23     county may by majority vote elect to participate in the program.

1-24     On such election, the commissioners court shall designate one

1-25     person in the division of the county government responsible for the

1-26     care and maintenance of the county parks as the coordinator for the

1-27     program.  The coordinator may solicit advice and assistance from

1-28     state and county agencies and private organizations in developing

1-29     and implementing the program.

1-30           SECTION 4.  REPORT; ADOPTION.  The coordinator shall report

1-31     to the commissioners court the coordinator's findings and shall

1-32     recommend an implementation strategy to the commissioners court.

1-33     The commissioners court may reject or adopt the implementation

1-34     strategy.  If the commissioners court rejects the strategy, it

1-35     shall specify to the coordinator the reasons for such rejection,

1-36     and the coordinator shall develop a new implementation strategy to

1-37     present to the commissioners court within six months of the

1-38     rejection.  On adoption of an implementation strategy, the

1-39     commissioners court may fund the program as provided in Section 5

1-40     of this Act.

1-41           SECTION 5.  FUNDING.  The commissioners court of a county

1-42     electing to participate in the County Park Beautification and

1-43     Improvement Program under this Act may solicit and accept bequests,

1-44     donations, grants, and other money, goods, and services from

1-45     federal, state, and private sources to finance and further the

1-46     goals of the program but may not levy any tax or receive any

1-47     legislative appropriation to fund such participation.  The state is

1-48     not liable for debts or other obligations incurred by a county in

1-49     implementing or planning to implement the program under this Act.

1-50           SECTION 6.  EMERGENCY.  The importance of this legislation

1-51     and the crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

1-52     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

1-53     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

1-54     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,

1-55     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its

1-56     passage, and it is so enacted.

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