By: Harris S.B. No. 69 99S0006/1 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT 1-1 relating to the creation, purpose, implementation, and funding of 1-2 the County Park Beautification and Improvement Program. 1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-4 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act shall be known and may be 1-5 cited as the County Park Beautification and Improvement Program 1-6 Act. 1-7 SECTION 2. PURPOSE; CREATION. It is the intent of the 1-8 legislature that each county dedicating land for use as county 1-9 parks be encouraged to beautify and improve those parks through 1-10 measures including but not limited to improvements in or additions 1-11 to lighting, directional and educational signs, litter abatement 1-12 strategies, and landscaping and landscape maintenance policies. In 1-13 furtherance of these goals, the County Park Beautification and 1-14 Improvement Program is established. 1-15 SECTION 3. IMPLEMENTATION. The commissioners court of a 1-16 county may by majority vote elect to participate in the program. 1-17 On such election, the commissioners court shall designate one 1-18 person in the division of the county government responsible for the 1-19 care and maintenance of the county parks as the coordinator for the 1-20 program. The coordinator may solicit advice and assistance from 1-21 state and county agencies and private organizations in developing 1-22 and implementing the program. 1-23 SECTION 4. REPORT; ADOPTION. The coordinator shall report 1-24 to the commissioners court the coordinator's findings and shall 2-1 recommend an implementation strategy to the commissioners court. 2-2 The commissioners court may reject or adopt the implementation 2-3 strategy. If the commissioners court rejects the strategy, it 2-4 shall specify to the coordinator the reasons for such rejection, 2-5 and the coordinator shall develop a new implementation strategy to 2-6 present to the commissioners court within six months of the 2-7 rejection. On adoption of an implementation strategy, the 2-8 commissioners court may fund the program as provided in Section 5 2-9 of this Act. 2-10 SECTION 5. FUNDING. The commissioners court of a county 2-11 electing to participate in the County Park Beautification and 2-12 Improvement Program under this Act may solicit and accept bequests, 2-13 donations, grants, and other money, goods, and services from 2-14 federal, state, and private sources to finance and further the 2-15 goals of the program but may not levy any tax or receive any 2-16 legislative appropriation to fund such participation. The state is 2-17 not liable for debts or other obligations incurred by a county in 2-18 implementing or planning to implement the program under this Act. 2-19 SECTION 6. EMERGENCY. The importance of this legislation 2-20 and the crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 2-21 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 2-22 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 2-23 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended, 2-24 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its 2-25 passage, and it is so enacted.