76R12638 E
By Williams, Coleman, Woolley, et al. H.B. No. 2761
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2761:
By Hardcastle C.S.H.B. No. 2761
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the establishment of regional development agreements
1-3 between certain municipalities and special districts.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. It is the intent of the legislature that this Act
1-6 authorize, promote, and encourage interlocal governmental
1-7 efficiency and cooperation, make clear and expand the authority of
1-8 a municipality and a conservation and reclamation district located
1-9 in the extraterritorial jurisdiction of a municipality to negotiate
1-10 and enter into a mutually acceptable agreement in lieu of
1-11 annexation, and limit the power and authority of certain
1-12 municipalities to initiate and complete annexation proceedings
1-13 under certain circumstances.
1-14 SECTION 2. Subchapter D, Chapter 43, Local Government Code,
1-15 is amended by adding Section 43.0752 to read as follows:
1-16 Sec. 43.0752. REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENTS. (a) In this
1-17 section:
1-18 (1) "District" means a conservation and reclamation
1-19 district that is created or operating under Chapters 49 and 54,
1-20 Water Code, and that is located entirely within the boundaries of a
1-21 planned community and entirely within the extraterritorial
1-22 jurisdiction of a municipality.
1-23 (2) "Municipality" means a municipality with a
1-24 population of 1.6 million or more.
2-1 (3) "Planned community" means a planned community of
2-2 10,000 acres or more that is subject in whole or in part to a
2-3 restrictive covenant that contains an ad valorem based assessment
2-4 on real property used or to be used, in any part, to fund
2-5 governmental or quasi-governmental services and facilities within
2-6 and for the planned community.
2-7 (4) "Regional development agreement" means a contract
2-8 or agreement entered into under this section or in anticipation of
2-9 the passage of this section and any amendment, modification,
2-10 supplement, addition, renewal, or extension of the contract or
2-11 agreement or any proceeding relating to the contract or agreement.
2-12 (b) Notwithstanding any other contrary law or municipal
2-13 charter provision, the governing body of a municipality and the
2-14 governing body of one or more districts may enter into a regional
2-15 development agreement to further regional cooperation between the
2-16 municipality and the district.
2-17 (c) A regional development agreement may allow:
2-18 (1) any type of annexation of any part of the land in
2-19 the district to be deferred for a mutually agreeable period of
2-20 time;
2-21 (2) facilities or services to be provided to the land
2-22 within the district by any party to the agreement, including
2-23 optional, backup, emergency, mutual aid, or supplementary
2-24 facilities or services;
2-25 (3) payments to be made by the municipality to the
2-26 district or another person or by the district or another person to
2-27 the municipality for services provided to the district or
3-1 municipality;
3-2 (4) a procedure for requesting and receiving any form
3-3 of required consent or approval from the municipality;
3-4 (5) a district to issue bonds, notes, refunding bonds,
3-5 or other forms of indebtedness;
3-6 (6) the coordination of local, regional, and area-wide
3-7 planning;
3-8 (7) remedies for breach of the agreement;
3-9 (8) the modification, amendment, renewal, extension,
3-10 or termination of the agreement;
3-11 (9) any other district to join the agreement at any
3-12 time;
3-13 (10) third-party beneficiaries to be specifically
3-14 assigned rights or remedies under the agreement; and
3-15 (11) any other term to which the parties agree.
3-16 (d) A regional development agreement must be:
3-17 (1) in writing;
3-18 (2) approved by the governing body of the municipality
3-19 and the district; and
3-20 (3) recorded:
3-21 (A) in the real property records of any county
3-22 in which any part of a district that is party to the agreement is
3-23 located; and
3-24 (B) in any manner that complies with Subchapter
3-25 J, Chapter 49, Water Code.
3-26 (e) Another district may join or become a party to a
3-27 regional development agreement if the district complies with
4-1 Subsection (d).
4-2 (f) A regional development agreement does not need to
4-3 describe the land contained within the boundaries of a district
4-4 that is a party to the agreement. The agreement must be recorded
4-5 in the deed records of any county in which any land in the district
4-6 is located.
4-7 (g) A regional development agreement binds each party to the
4-8 agreement and each owner and future owner of land that is subject
4-9 to the agreement. If a party or landowner is excluded or removed
4-10 from an agreement, the removal or exclusion is effective on the
4-11 recordation requirement of Subsection (d).
4-12 (h) A regional development agreement may not require a
4-13 district to provide public services and facilities to a person to
4-14 whom the district is not otherwise authorized to provide services
4-15 or facilities or to make payments from any source from which the
4-16 district is not otherwise authorized to make payments.
4-17 (i) A district may contract with any person for services or
4-18 facilities to be provided at no cost to the district or for the
4-19 payment of funds by the person in support of a regional development
4-20 agreement.
4-21 (j) A regional development agreement and any action taken
4-22 under the agreement is not subject to any method of approval under
4-23 the Water Code or any method of appeal under the Water Code.
4-24 (k) Notwithstanding any defect, ambiguity, discrepancy,
4-25 invalidity, or unenforceability of a regional development agreement
4-26 that has been voluntarily entered into and fully executed by the
4-27 parties thereto, or any contrary law, common law doctrine, or
5-1 municipal charter provision, and for the duration of any annexation
5-2 deferral period established in the regional development agreement,
5-3 during which a district continues to perform its obligations under
5-4 the regional development agreement:
5-5 (1) Sections 42.023 and 42.041(b)-(e), Local
5-6 Government Code, do not apply to any land or owner of land within a
5-7 district that is a party to the regional development agreement; and
5-8 (2) the governing body of the municipality may not
5-9 include the area covered by the regional development agreement in a
5-10 municipal annexation plan and may not initiate or continue an
5-11 annexation proceeding relating to that area after the effective
5-12 date of this section.
5-13 (l) This section shall be liberally construed so as to give
5-14 effect to its legislative purposes and to sustain the validity of a
5-15 regional development agreement if the agreement was entered into
5-16 under or in anticipation of this section.
5-17 SECTION 3. An agreement entered into in anticipation of this
5-18 Act is not invalid because of the agreement's authorization,
5-19 execution, or delivery before the effective date of this Act.
5-20 SECTION 4. The legislature finds that there exists a public
5-21 necessity to authorize, promote, and encourage interlocal
5-22 governmental cooperation and efficiency and to make certain the law
5-23 governing the authority of municipalities and certain conservation
5-24 and reclamation districts to enter into mutually acceptable
5-25 agreements providing for the joint funding of services in lieu of
5-26 annexation. The public benefits and it furthers the legislative
5-27 goal of governmental efficiency and conservation and development of
6-1 the natural resources of the state to make certain that the
6-2 existing law facilitates regional development agreements.
6-3 SECTION 5. The importance of this legislation and the
6-4 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
6-5 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
6-6 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
6-7 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
6-8 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
6-9 passage, and it is so enacted.