By Williams                                           H.B. No. 3407
         76R4769 JRD-D                           
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to applying the open meetings and open records laws to
 1-3     certain property owners' associations.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 551, Government Code, is
 1-6     amended by adding Section 551.0015 to read as follows:
 1-7           Sec. 551.0015.  CERTAIN PROPERTY OWNERS' ASSOCIATIONS SUBJECT
 1-8     TO LAW.  (a)  A property owners' association is subject to this
 1-9     chapter in the same manner as a governmental body if:
1-10                 (1)  membership in the property owners' association is
1-11     mandatory for owners or for a defined class of owners of private
1-12     real property in a defined geographic area;
1-13                 (2)  the property owners' association has the power to
1-14     make mandatory special assessments for capital improvements or
1-15     mandatory regular assessments; and
1-16                 (3)  the amount of the mandatory special or regular
1-17     assessments is or has ever been based in whole or in part on the
1-18     value at which the state or a local governmental body assesses the
1-19     property for purposes of ad valorem taxation under Section 20,
1-20     Article VIII, Texas Constitution.
1-21           (b)  The governing body of the association, a committee of
1-22     the association, and members of the governing body or of a
1-23     committee of the association are subject to this chapter in the
1-24     same manner as the governing body of a governmental body, a
 2-1     committee of a governmental body, and members of the governing body
 2-2     or of a committee of the governmental body.
 2-3           SECTION 2.  Subchapter A, Chapter 552, Government Code,  is
 2-4     amended by adding Section 552.0035 to read as follows:
 2-5           Sec. 552.0035.  CERTAIN PROPERTY OWNERS' ASSOCIATIONS SUBJECT
 2-6     TO LAW.  A property owners' association is subject to this chapter
 2-7     in the same manner as a governmental body if:
 2-8                 (1)  membership in the property owners' association is
 2-9     mandatory for owners or for a defined class of owners of private
2-10     real property in a defined geographic area;
2-11                 (2)  the property owners' association has the power to
2-12     make mandatory special assessments for capital improvements or
2-13     mandatory regular assessments; and
2-14                 (3)  the amount of the mandatory special or regular
2-15     assessments is or has ever been based in whole or in part on the
2-16     value at which the state or a local governmental body assesses the
2-17     property for purposes of ad valorem taxation under Section 20,
2-18     Article VIII, Texas Constitution.
2-19           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.  Section
2-20     551.0015, Government Code, as added by this Act, applies only in
2-21     relation to a meeting of a property owners' association held on or
2-22     after that date.
2-23           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
2-24     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-25     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-26     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-27     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.