By Averitt H.B. No. 3793
76R4786 T
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the powers, duties and financing of the Brazos River
1-3 Authority, the authority of persons and public agencies to contract
1-4 with the authority with reference thereto by amending Chapter 13,
1-5 Acts of the 41st Legislature, 2nd Called Session, 1929, as amended,
1-6 by adding Section 11 and changing the conditions upon which
1-7 Authority may sell property by amending Section 12, Chapter 368,
1-8 Acts of the 44th Legislature, 1st Called Session, 1935, as amended.
1-9 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-10 SECTION 1. Chapter 13, Acts of the 41st Legislature, 2nd
1-11 Called Session, 1929, as amended, is amended by adding Section 11
1-12 to read as follows:
1-13 Section 11. (a) The Authority is a district and a river
1-14 authority as defined in the Regional Waste Disposal Act, as amended
1-15 (Chapter 30, Water Code), and all of the provisions of the Regional
1-16 Waste Disposal Act, as amended, are applicable to the Authority.
1-17 (b) As used in this Act:
1-18 (1) "Person" means any individual, partnership,
1-19 corporation, public utility, or other private entity or any public
1-20 agency.
1-21 (2) "Public agency" means any authority, district,
1-22 city, town, or other political subdivision, joint board, or other
1-23 public agency created pursuant to and operating under the laws of
1-24 the State of Texas.
2-1 (c) The Authority and all persons are authorized to contract
2-2 with each other in any manner and on terms as to which the parties
2-3 may agree with respect to any power, function, facilities, or
2-4 services which the Authority is authorized by law to provide or
2-5 finance. All public agencies are authorized to use and pledge any
2-6 available revenues for and in the payment of amounts due under the
2-7 contracts as an additional source or sources of payment of the
2-8 contracts or as the sole source or sources of payment of the
2-9 contracts and may covenant with respect to available revenues so as
2-10 to assure the availability of these revenues when required. The
2-11 term "revenues" as used in this subsection does not mean or include
2-12 revenues from ad valorem taxes levied and collected by a public
2-13 agency or the proceeds from the sale or refunding of bonds of a
2-14 public agency that are to be wholly or partially paid from ad
2-15 valorem taxes levied and collected by the public agency unless the
2-16 use or pledge of the tax revenues or bond proceeds are approved by
2-17 the qualified voters of the public agency at an election called for
2-18 the purpose of levying taxes or issuing or refunding bonds or both
2-19 for the purpose of using or pledging their revenues or proceeds
2-20 under contracts entered into under this subsection.
2-21 (d) Each public agency is authorized to fix, charge, and
2-22 collect fees, rates, charges, rentals, and other amounts for any
2-23 services or facilities provided by any utility operated by it or
2-24 provided pursuant to or in connection with any contract with the
2-25 Authority from its inhabitants or from any users or beneficiaries
2-26 of any utility, services, or facilities, including specifically
2-27 water charges, sewage charges, solid waste disposal system fees and
3-1 charges, including garbage collection or handling fees, and other
3-2 fees or charges and to use and pledge same to make payments to the
3-3 Authority required under the contract and may covenant to do so in
3-4 amounts sufficient to make all or any part of the payments to the
3-5 Authority when due. The payments shall, if the parties agree in
3-6 the contract, constitute an expense of operation of any facilities
3-7 or utility operated by the public agency.
3-8 (e) The Authority, acting through its Board, is authorized
3-9 to undertake and carry out any activities and to acquire, purchase,
3-10 construct, own, operate, maintain, repair, improve, or extend and
3-11 to lease or sell on terms and conditions, including rentals or sale
3-12 prices, on which the parties may agree any and all works,
3-13 improvements, facilities, plants, buildings, structures, equipment,
3-14 and appliances and all real and personal property or any interest
3-15 in real or personal property related thereto that are incident to
3-16 or necessary in carrying out or performing any power or function of
3-17 the Authority under this section.
3-18 (f) The Authority is authorized to issue bonds with respect
3-19 to the acquisition, purchase, construction, maintenance, repair,
3-20 improvement, and extension of works, improvements, facilities,
3-21 plants, buildings, structures, appliances, and property for the
3-22 purpose of exercising any of its powers and functions under this
3-23 section in the manner provided by this Act or any other applicable
3-24 law. The Authority is further authorized to issue revenue bonds to
3-25 pay for the costs of feasibility studies for proposed projects of
3-26 the Authority, including engineering, planning and design, and
3-27 environmental studies. The Authority is authorized to include in
4-1 any revenue bond issue the funds to operate and maintain for a
4-2 period not to exceed two years after completion of the facilities
4-3 acquired or constructed through the revenue bond issue. If any
4-4 bonds issued by the Authority recite that they are secured by a
4-5 pledge of payments under any contract, a copy of the contract and
4-6 the proceedings relating to the contract may be submitted to the
4-7 attorney general along with the bonds, and if the attorney general
4-8 finds that the bonds have been authorized and the contract or
4-9 contracts has or have been made and entered into in accordance with
4-10 law, then he shall approve the bonds and the contract or contracts,
4-11 and after the approval, the bonds and the contract or contracts
4-12 shall be incontestable in any court or other forum for any reason
4-13 and shall be valid and binding in accordance with its or their
4-14 terms and provisions for all purposes. The provisions of Chapter
4-15 503, Acts of the 54th Legislature, Regular Session, 1955, as
4-16 amended (Article 717k, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), Chapter 3,
4-17 Acts of the 61st Legislature, Regular Session, 1969, as amended
4-18 (Article 717k-2, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), Chapter 784, Acts
4-19 of the 61st Legislature, Regular Session, 1969, as amended (Article
4-20 717k-3, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), Chapter 845, Acts of the
4-21 67th Legislature, Regular Session, 1981, as amended (Article
4-22 717k-6, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), the Texas Uniform Facsimile
4-23 Signature of Public Officials Act, as amended (Article 717j-1,
4-24 Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), and Chapter 656, Acts of the 68th
4-25 Legislature, Regular Session, 1983, as amended (Article 717q,
4-26 Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), are applicable to bonds issued by
4-27 the Authority.
5-1 (g) This section is wholly sufficient authority within
5-2 itself for the issuance of the bonds, the execution of contracts,
5-3 and the performance of the other acts and procedures authorized in
5-4 this section by the Authority and all persons, including
5-5 specifically public agencies, without reference to any other
5-6 provisions of law or any restrictions or limitations contained
5-7 therein, except as in this section specifically provided; and in
5-8 any case, to the extent of any conflict or inconsistency between
5-9 any provisions of this subsection and any other provisions of law,
5-10 including any home-rule city charter, this subsection shall prevail
5-11 and control; provided, however, that the Authority and all persons,
5-12 including specifically public agencies, shall have the right to use
5-13 any other provisions of law not in conflict with the provisions of
5-14 this section to the extent convenient or necessary to carry out any
5-15 power or authority, express or implied, granted by this section.
5-16 SECTION 2. Section 12, Chapter 368, Acts of the 44th
5-17 Legislature, 1st Called Session, 1935, as amended, is amended to
5-18 read as follows:
5-19 Section 12. Nothing in this Act shall be construed as
5-20 authorizing the Authority, and it shall not be authorized to
5-21 mortgage, or otherwise encumber any of its property of any kind,
5-22 real, personal or mixed, or any interest therein, or to acquire any
5-23 such property or interest subject to a mortgage or conditional
5-24 sale, provided that this Section shall not be construed as
5-25 preventing the pledging of the revenues of the Authority as herein
5-26 authorized. Nothing in this Act shall be construed as authorizing
5-27 the sale, release or other disposition of any such property or
6-1 interest by the Authority, or any receiver of any of the Authority
6-2 property, or through any court proceedings, or otherwise; provided,
6-3 however, that the Authority may sell for cash any such property or
6-4 interest [in an aggregate value not exceeding the sum of One
6-5 Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100,000) in any one (1) year] if the
6-6 Board by affirmative vote of eleven (11) of its members shall have
6-7 determined that the property or interest is not necessary to the
6-8 business of the Authority, and shall have approved the terms of any
6-9 such sale, it being the intention of this Act that except by sale
6-10 as in this Section expressly authorized, no such property or
6-11 interest shall ever come into the ownership or control, directly of
6-12 indirectly, of any person, firm or corporation other than a public
6-13 authority created under the laws of the State of Texas. All
6-14 property of the Authority shall be at all times exempted from
6-15 forced sale, and nothing in this Act contained shall authorize the
6-16 sale of any of the property of the Authority under any judgment
6-17 rendered in any suit and such sales are hereby prohibited and
6-18 forbidden. Notwithstanding any restrictions or provisions in this
6-19 Section 12 or in this Act contained, the Authority, acting by a
6-20 majority vote of the members of its Board, shall have the power to
6-21 construct or purchase from any person, firm or corporation with
6-22 which Authority shall have contracted to sell hydro-electric power,
6-23 (herein referred to in this Section as "Customer"), transmission
6-24 lines and other property used or to be used by such Customer for
6-25 the transmission of or in connection with power purchased or to be
6-26 purchased from the Authority, and to lease all, or any portion of
6-27 such property to such Customer for all or any portion of the time
7-1 during the term of such hydro-electric power purchase contract,
7-2 which lease may contain provisions, which shall be valid and
7-3 enforceable, giving the lessee the right to purchase from the
7-4 Authority all or any portion of said property at or within the time
7-5 specified in the lease and for a price and upon terms and
7-6 conditions specified in the lease. Such price shall never be less
7-7 than the depreciated value, determined in the manner prescribed in
7-8 such lease plus one per cent (1%) of the original cost of such
7-9 property. [Any price paid or to be paid because of such purchase
7-10 shall not be taken into consideration in applying the limitation of
7-11 One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100,000) in any one (1) year of the
7-12 value of property that may be sold by the Authority as hereinabove
7-13 in this Section 12 prescribed, but such payment may be made in
7-14 excess of such limitation.]
7-15 SECTION 3. Proof of publication of the constitutional notice
7-16 required in the enactment hereof under the provisions of Article
7-17 XVI, Section 59(d), of the Texas Constitution has been made in the
7-18 manner provided therein and a copy of said notice and the bill as
7-19 originally introduced have been delivered to the Governor of the
7-20 State of Texas as required in such constitutional provision, and
7-21 such notice and delivery are hereby found and declared to be proper
7-22 and sufficient to satisfy such requirements.
7-23 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
7-24 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
7-25 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
7-26 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
7-27 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
8-1 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
8-2 passage, and it is so enacted.