By:  Harris                                           S.B. No. 1843

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

                                       AN ACT

 1-1     relating to authorizing certain public entities to join together to

 1-2     finance, construct, acquire, operate, and maintain public

 1-3     facilities; authorizing the issuance of bonds and granting the

 1-4     power of eminent domain.

 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-6           SECTION 1.  Subtitle C, Title 12, Local Government Code, is

 1-7     amended by adding Chapter 396 to read as follows:

 1-8             CHAPTER 396.  JOINT OWNERSHIP OF PUBLIC FACILITIES

 1-9           Sec. 396.001.  PURPOSE.  The purpose of this chapter is to

1-10     clarify and make definite and secure the right and authority of

1-11     public entities to join together as co-tenants or co-owners in the

1-12     planning, financing, acquisition, construction, ownership,

1-13     operation, and maintenance of public facilities as a means of

1-14     achieving economies of scale and making more efficient use of

1-15     public resources.

1-16           Sec. 396.002.  DEFINITIONS.  In this chapter:

1-17                 (1)  "Public entity" means an incorporated city or

1-18     town, a county, or an independent school district or a public

1-19     corporation acting on behalf of such entities.

1-20                 (2)  "Public facility" means an administrative

1-21     facility, public safety facility, parks and recreational facility,

1-22     maintenance and service center facility, library facility,

1-23     communications facility, water treatment and storage facility,

 2-1     judicial facility, emergency medical service facility, detention

 2-2     facility, or any other similar facility necessary or incident to

 2-3     providing public services or public accommodations.

 2-4           Sec. 396.003.  AGREEMENTS BY PUBLIC ENTITIES.  (a)  Two or

 2-5     more public entities are authorized to join together to finance,

 2-6     acquire, construct, operate, and maintain public facilities and to

 2-7     enter into agreements for the planning, financing, acquisition,

 2-8     construction, ownership, operation, and maintenance of such public

 2-9     facilities so that the same, or an undivided interest in the

2-10     facilities, will be jointly owned in co-tenancy or co-ownership

2-11     with such ownership interests as may be approved by the governing

2-12     bodies of the public entities and provided in an agreement approved

2-13     and authorized by the governing bodies.

2-14           (b)  In connection with such jointly owned and operated

2-15     public facilities, each public entity entering into an agreement

2-16     under this section shall owe all of the duties and shall have and

2-17     be entitled to all of the rights, powers, liabilities, privileges,

2-18     and exemptions attributable to the undivided interest which it

2-19     would have with respect to an entire interest in public facilities

2-20     planned, financed, acquired, constructed, owned, operated, and

2-21     maintained by it alone.

2-22           (c)  Any agreement by and between public entities relating to

2-23     the joint financing, acquisition, construction, operation, and

2-24     maintenance of public facilities executed pursuant to the

2-25     provisions of this section may be submitted to the attorney general

 3-1     in connection with any proceedings submitted for approval for the

 3-2     issuance of bonds or other obligations issued by the public

 3-3     entities to finance the costs of constructing or acquiring such

 3-4     public facilities, and when approved as to legality by the attorney

 3-5     general, the agreement shall be incontestable.

 3-6           (d)  In an agreement entered into under this section, the

 3-7     governing bodies of the public entities may delegate to one or more

 3-8     officials of the public entities such powers and authority with

 3-9     respect to the planning, design, construction, acquisition,

3-10     operation, and maintenance of the jointly owned public facilities

3-11     as the governing bodies deem appropriate.

3-12           Sec. 396.004.  POWERS OF PARTICIPATING ENTITIES.  (a)  Each

3-13     public entity entering into an agreement under Section 396.003

3-14     shall have the right and power to use its means and assets in

3-15     planning, acquiring, constructing, owning, operating, and

3-16     maintaining its undivided interest and share in the public

3-17     facilities and to issue bonds and other securities to raise funds

3-18     for those purposes in the same way and to the same extent and

3-19     subject to all of the conditions which would apply if the undivided

3-20     interest of the entity were an entire interest in the public

3-21     facility.

3-22           (b)  A public entity entering into an agreement under Section

3-23     396.003 shall have the right and power to acquire, for the use and

3-24     benefit of all participating public entities, by purchase or

3-25     through the exercise of the power of eminent domain, lands,

 4-1     easements, and properties for the purpose of jointly owned public

 4-2     facilities and shall have the power to transfer or convey such

 4-3     lands, easements, and properties, or interests therein, or

 4-4     otherwise to cause such lands, easements, and properties, or

 4-5     interests therein, to become vested in other participating public

 4-6     entities to the extent and in the manner agreed between the

 4-7     participating public entities.  In all cases in which a

 4-8     participating public entity exercises the right and power of

 4-9     eminent domain conferred by this subsection, it shall be controlled

4-10     by the law governing the condemnation of property by incorporated

4-11     cities and towns in this state, and the right and power of eminent

4-12     domain conferred by this subsection shall include the right and

4-13     power to take the fee title in land so condemned, except that no

4-14     participating public entity has the right or power to take by the

4-15     exercise of the power of eminent domain any public facilities, or

4-16     interest in any public facilities, belonging to any other entity,

4-17     or the power to take land or any interest in land by the exercise

4-18     of the power of eminent domain.

4-19           (c)  Each participating public entity shall have the right

4-20     and power to enter into contracts for specialized insurance

4-21     appertaining to property and risks in connection with and incident

4-22     to the ownership, operation, and maintenance of the public

4-23     facilities, in addition to the usual forms of available insurance.

4-24     Each participating public entity shall be authorized to enter into

4-25     contracts for insurance for the use and benefit of each of the

 5-1     other participating public entities as though the insurance were

 5-2     for its sole benefit and to cause the rights of the other

 5-3     participating public entities to be protected under such contracts

 5-4     according to their respective undivided interests or entitlement

 5-5     under applicable agreements between the participating public

 5-6     entities.

 5-7           (d)  Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the

 5-8     scope and application of Section 396.003.

 5-9           Sec. 396.005.  ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY OF CHAPTER.  The powers

5-10     and authority granted to public entities by this chapter shall be

5-11     in addition to and in substitution for any powers and authority

5-12     granted to public entities under the laws of this state, and the

5-13     exercise by any public entities of the powers and authority granted

5-14     by this chapter and the performance or effectuation of any

5-15     agreements entered into pursuant to the provisions of this chapter

5-16     shall be deemed to constitute additional public purposes of such

5-17     public entities, including the power to issue bonds, notes, or

5-18     other obligations for the accomplishment of such purposes,

5-19     notwithstanding the existence of any express or implied limitations

5-20     of the powers, authority, or purposes under any other laws or

5-21     charter provisions.

5-22           SECTION 2.  The importance of this legislation and the

5-23     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

5-24     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

5-25     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 6-1     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,

 6-2     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its

 6-3     passage, and it is so enacted.

 6-4                          COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO. 1

 6-5           Amend S.B. 1843 as follows:

 6-6           (1)  On page 3, lines 24-25 strike "or through the exercise

 6-7     of the power of eminent domain,"; and

 6-8           (2)  On page 4, lines 7-18 after "entities." strike the

 6-9     remaining language in Subsection (b).

6-10                                                                   Denny