By Lindsay                                       S.B. No. 774

      75R5424 CAS-F                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to certain procedures concerning condemnation of property

 1-3     by the Texas Department of Transportation.

 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Subchapter B, Chapter 21, Property Code, is

 1-6     amended by adding Section 21.023 to read as follows:

 1-7           Sec. 21.023.  POSSESSION OF PROPERTY AND DECLARATION OF

 1-8     TAKING.  (a)  In this section, "department" means the Texas

 1-9     Department of Transportation.

1-10           (b)  The department may file a declaration of taking as

1-11     provided by this section with the clerk of the court in which the

1-12     department files a condemnation petition or to which the eminent

1-13     domain case based on the petition is assigned.

1-14           (c)  The declaration of taking may be filed concurrently with

1-15     or subsequent to the filing of the condemnation petition but must

1-16     be filed before the date on which the special commissioners make an

1-17     award.

1-18           (d)  The declaration of taking must include:

1-19                 (1)  a specific reference to the legislative authority

1-20     for the condemnation;

1-21                 (2)  a description of the property proposed for

1-22     condemnation, including the following information if applicable:

1-23                       (A)  the municipality in which the property is

1-24     located;

 2-1                       (B)  the street address of the property; and

 2-2                       (C)  the lot and block number of the property;

 2-3                 (3)  a statement of the property interest that is

 2-4     subject to condemnation;

 2-5                 (4)  the name and address of each property owner and

 2-6     any party in possession that the department is able to obtain after

 2-7     reasonable investigation and the nature of the property owner's

 2-8     interest in the property; and

 2-9                 (5)  a statement that immediate possession of all or

2-10     part of the property proposed for condemnation is necessary for the

2-11     timely construction of a department project.

2-12           (e)  The declaration of taking must be accompanied by the

2-13     deposit in the registry of the court of an amount equal to the

2-14     appraised value that has been approved by the department to be

2-15     adequate compensation for the property being condemned.  A deposit

2-16     under this subsection shall be credited against the award of the

2-17     special commissioners under Section 21.021 and the total damages

2-18     finally adjudged against the department, including any damages

2-19     under Section 21.044.

2-20           (f)  As soon as practicable after the filing of the

2-21     declaration of taking, the department shall, by a method prescribed

2-22     for giving notice under Section 21.016(d), provide for serving on

2-23     each property owner and any party in possession a conformed copy of

2-24     the declaration.  Proof of that service must be filed with the

2-25     clerk of the court in which the condemnation petition is filed or

2-26     to which the eminent domain case based on the petition is assigned.

2-27     Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, once proof is

 3-1     filed, the department may take possession of the property described

 3-2     in the declaration of taking, pending the subsequent procedures

 3-3     under this chapter.

 3-4           (g)  A property owner or party in possession who refuses to

 3-5     vacate the property or yield possession is subject to the forcible

 3-6     entry and detainer provisions under Chapter 24.

 3-7           (h)  If the property being condemned is a homestead or a

 3-8     portion of a homestead as defined by Section 41.002, a writ of

 3-9     possession may not be executed before the 30th day after the date

3-10     the property owner and any party in possession are served with

3-11     notice under Subsection (f).

3-12           (i)  The date on which the declaration is filed is the date

3-13     of taking for the purpose of assessing damages to which a property

3-14     owner is entitled.

3-15           SECTION 2.  (a)  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

3-16           (b)  The changes in law made by this Act apply only to a

3-17     condemnation proceeding in which the petition is filed on or after

3-18     the effective date of this Act.

3-19           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

3-20     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

3-21     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

3-22     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

3-23     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.