By Williams H.B. No. 2761
Line and page numbers may not match official copy.
Bill not drafted by TLC or Senate E&E.
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 amending Chapter 43, Subchapter D, Local Government Code, by adding
1-3 Section 43.0752 relating to the authority of certain districts and
1-4 municipalities to enter into regional development agreements and
1-5 related agreements; containing legislative findings; and declaring
1-6 an emergency.
1-7 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-8 SECTION 1. That Chapter 43, Subchapter D, Local Government
1-9 Code, is amended by adding Section 43.0752 as follows:
1-10 Sec. 43.0752. REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENTS. (a) It is
1-11 the intent of the legislature to make certain and expand the
1-12 authority of certain municipalities and conservation and
1-13 reclamation districts located in an extraterritorial jurisdiction
1-14 to negotiate and enter into mutually acceptable agreements in lieu
1-15 of annexation.
1-16 (b) In this section:
1-17 (1) "Municipality" means a home rule municipality
1-18 having a population of (,) 1,600,000 or more.
1-19 (2) "District" means a conservation and reclamation
1-20 district created or operating pursuant to Chapters 49 and 54, Water
1-21 Code and situated entirely within a planned community and entirely
2-1 within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of a municipality.
2-2 (3) "Planned community" means a planned community of
2-3 10,000 acres or more that is subject, in whole or in part, to
2-4 restrictive covenants containing ad valorem based assessments on
2-5 real property used or to be used, in whole or in part, to fund
2-6 governmental or quasi-governmental services and facilities within
2-7 and for the planned community.
2-8 (4) "Regional development agreement" means a contract
2-9 or agreement entered into pursuant to or in anticipation of the
2-10 authority granted by this section, and any amendments,
2-11 modifications, supplements, additions, renewals or extensions
2-12 thereto, and any proceedings evidencing the addition of one or more
2-13 districts as parties thereto.
2-14 (c) Notwithstanding any general or special law or any home
2-15 rule charter provision to the contrary, the governing body of a
2-16 municipality and the governing body of one or more districts may
2-17 enter into a regional development agreement to further regional
2-18 cooperation between the district(s) and the municipality. A
2-19 regional development agreement may provide for any one or more of
2-20 the following:
2-21 (1) Deferral of the annexation of all or any portion
2-22 of the lands in the district(s) for full, limited or other purposes
2-23 for a mutually agreeable period of time;
2-24 (2) Provision of facilities and services by the
2-25 parties or others to the lands that may be included from time to
3-1 time within the district(s) included or added as parties thereto,
3-2 including, without limitation, optional, backup, emergency, mutual
3-3 aid or supplementary facilities or services;
3-4 (3) One or more payments to be made by the
3-5 municipality to the district(s) included or added as parties
3-6 thereto or to others for services provided by such district(s) or
3-7 others;
3-8 (4) One or more payments to be made by the district(s)
3-9 included or added as parties thereto or by others to the
3-10 municipality for services provided by the municipality;
3-11 (5) the procedures or standards for receiving any
3-12 required approvals and consents of the municipality;
3-13 (6) The standards for the issuance of bonds, notes,
3-14 refunding bonds or other indebtedness by the district(s) included
3-15 or added as parties thereto;
3-16 (7) Coordination of local, regional and areawide
3-17 planning efforts;
3-18 (8) Remedies not inconsistent with general law in the
3-19 event of breach thereof;
3-20 (9) Modification, amendment, renewal, extension,
3-21 rescission or termination thereof;
3-22 (10) Joinder or addition of other districts as parties
3-23 thereto;
3-24 (11) Designation of express third party beneficiaries
3-25 thereto and, to the extent not inconsistent with general law, the
4-1 rights and remedies of such designated beneficiaries;
4-2 (12) Such other lawful terms that the parties consider
4-3 appropriate.
4-4 (d) A regional development agreement must be in writing and
4-5 shall not be effective until approved by the governing bodies of
4-6 the municipality and the district(s) included as parties thereto;
4-7 provided, however, that a subsequent joinder or addition of other
4-8 districts as parties may be authorized and evidenced in the manner
4-9 provided therein. Upon approval, a regional development agreement
4-10 is binding on subsequent governing bodies of the district(s)
4-11 included or added as parties thereto and of the municipality
4-12 throughout the term thereof.
4-13 (e) A regional development agreement need not include a
4-14 description of the lands contained within the boundaries of the
4-15 district(s) included or added as parties thereto, but shall be
4-16 recorded in the deed records of the county or counties in which the
4-17 lands contained in the district(s) included or added as parties
4-18 thereto are located.
4-19 (f) Upon recordation, a regional development agreement, and
4-20 any proceedings evidencing the joinder or addition of one or more
4-21 other district(s) as parties thereto, shall also bind each owner
4-22 and each future owner of land which may from time to time be
4-23 included within the boundaries of the district(s) that are included
4-24 or added as parties thereto. Upon compliance with the requirements
4-25 for recordation included in Subchapter J, Chapter 49, Water Code or
5-1 in any similar general or special law, relating to the addition or
5-2 exclusion of lands, the owners and future owners of such added or
5-3 excluded lands shall likewise be bound thereby or released
5-4 therefrom.
5-5 (g) The provisions of Sections 42.023 and Section 42.041(b)
5-6 through (e), Local Government Code, shall not be applicable to any
5-7 land or owner of land within district(s) included or added as
5-8 parties to a regional development agreement during the period of
5-9 deferral of annexation established in a regional development
5-10 agreement, and any proceedings initiated pursuant thereto but not
5-11 completed prior to the effective date of this section shall be
5-12 suspended during such deferral period.
5-13 (h) Nothing herein shall be deemed or construed to permit or
5-14 require a district to provide public services and facilities or to
5-15 make payment of public funds from sources not otherwise authorized
5-16 by law; provided, however, that in consideration of the mutual
5-17 benefits to be received by the implementation of a regional
5-18 development agreement or for other lawful consideration, a district
5-19 may contract with any person for the provision of any service or
5-20 facility or the payment of funds by such person, at no cost or
5-21 expense to the district, directly or indirectly, in support or
5-22 furtherance of a regional development agreement to which the
5-23 district is a party.
5-24 (i) A regional development agreement and any action taken
5-25 pursuant thereto by the parties are not subject to approval or an
6-1 appeal brought under the Water Code.
6-2 (j) This section shall be liberally construed so as to give
6-3 effect to its legislative purposes and to sustain the validity of
6-4 regional development agreements, whether entered into pursuant to
6-5 or in anticipation of the authority granted by this section."
6-6 SECTION 2. An agreement entered into in anticipation of the
6-7 passage or effectiveness of this Act, or any portion of such an
6-8 agreement, shall not be invalid because of its authorization,
6-9 execution or delivery prior to the effective date of this Act.
6-10 SECTION 3. This Act is intended as remedial legislation to
6-11 facilitate and to relieve any uncertainty under existing law as to
6-12 the authority of certain municipalities and districts to enter into
6-13 regional development agreements.
6-14 SECTION 4. The legislature finds that there exists a public
6-15 necessity to make certain the law governing the authority of
6-16 municipalities and certain conservation and reclamation districts
6-17 to enter into mutually acceptable agreements providing for the
6-18 joint funding of services in lieu of annexation.
6-19 SECTION 5. The public benefits and the furtherance of the
6-20 legislative goal of conservation and development of the natural
6-21 resources of the state to be derived from making certain the
6-22 existing law so as to facilitate regional development agreements.
6-23 SECTION 6. EMERGENCY. The importance of this legislation
6-24 and the crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
6-25 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
7-1 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
7-2 days in each house be suspended and this rule is hereby suspended.