By Talton H.B. No. 3374 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 relating to the appointment of peace officers by a water district. 1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-4 SECTION 1. Title 4, Chapter 49, Section 49.216, Water Code, 1-5 is amended to read as follows: 1-6 Sec. 49.216. ENFORCEMENT BY PEACE OFFICERS. (a) A district 1-7 may contract for or employ its own peace officers with power to 1-8 make arrests when necessary to prevent or abate the commission of: 1-9 (1) any offense against the rules of the district when 1-10 the offense or threatened offense occurs on any land, water, or 1-11 easement owned or controlled by the district; 1-12 (2) any offense involving injury or detriment to any 1-13 property owned or controlled by the district; and 1-14 (3) any offense against the laws of the state. 1-15 (b) A district may appoint reserve peace officers who may be 1-16 called to serve as peace officers by the district during the actual 1-17 discharge of their official duties. 1-18 (c) A reserve peace officer serves at the discretion of the 1-19 district and may be called into service if the district considers 1-20 it necessary to have additional officers to preserve the peace in 1-21 or enforce the law of the district. 2-1 (d) A reserve peace officer on active duty and actively 2-2 engaged in assigned duties has the same rights, privileges, and 2-3 duties as any other peace officer of the district. 2-4 (e) Any peace officer, before beginning to perform any 2-5 duties and at the time of appointment, must take an oath and 2-6 execute a bond conditioned on faithful performance of such 2-7 officer's duties in the amount of $1,000 payable to the district. 2-8 The oath and the bond shall be filed in the district office. 2-9 (f) A peace officer for a district must be a full-time paid 2-10 employee of the district who works on the average of at least 32 2-11 hours a week for the district, is compensated by the district at 2-12 the rate of the minimum wage or higher, and is entitled to all 2-13 employee benefits offered to other employees of the district. 2-14 SECTION 2. The importance of this legislation and the 2-15 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 2-16 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 2-17 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 2-18 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended, 2-19 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its 2-20 passage, and it is so enacted. 2-21 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.