By Madla S.B. No. 464 76R5650 CAG-D A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to the creation of a consolidated municipal-county 1-3 government in Bexar County. 1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-5 SECTION 1. Title 3, Local Government Code, is amended by 1-6 adding Subtitle C to read as follows: 1-7 SUBTITLE C. CHARTER FOR MUNICIPAL-COUNTY CONSOLIDATION 1-8 CHAPTER 92. MUNICIPAL-COUNTY CONSOLIDATION IN BEXAR COUNTY 1-9 Sec. 92.001. APPOINTMENT OF CHARTER COMMISSION. (a) The 1-10 Commissioners Court of Bexar County shall appoint a charter 1-11 commission to draft the charter if the court is petitioned to do so 1-12 under Section 92.002. 1-13 (b) The number of members of the charter commission shall be 1-14 determined by the commissioners court and shall be a number that 1-15 complies with the commission's composition requirements under 1-16 Section 92.005. 1-17 Sec. 92.002. PETITION. (a) A petition for the 1-18 commissioners court to appoint a charter commission must: 1-19 (1) be filed with the office of the county clerk of 1-20 Bexar County; 1-21 (2) be signed by a number of registered voters in the 1-22 unincorporated area of Bexar County at least equal to 10 percent of 1-23 the number of votes received for governor in the unincorporated 1-24 area of the county in the most recent gubernatorial election; 2-1 (3) be signed by a number of registered voters of San 2-2 Antonio at least equal to 10 percent of the number of votes 2-3 received for governor in San Antonio in the most recent 2-4 gubernatorial election; and 2-5 (4) comply with the applicable requirements of general 2-6 law relating to a petition authorized or required to be filed in 2-7 connection with an election. 2-8 (b) In compiling the necessary signatures under Subsection 2-9 (a)(3), at least 10 percent of the necessary signatures must be 2-10 from the voters of each district that selects a member of the 2-11 municipality's governing body. 2-12 Sec. 92.003. VERIFICATION OF PETITION. (a) Within 30 days 2-13 after the date the petition is filed with the county clerk, the 2-14 clerk shall determine whether the petition meets the requirements 2-15 of Section 92.002(a)(2) and shall certify in writing to the 2-16 commissioners court whether the petition is valid or invalid. 2-17 (b) Within 30 days after the date the petition is filed with 2-18 the county clerk, the municipal clerk or secretary shall determine 2-19 whether the petition meets the requirements of Section 92.002(a)(3) 2-20 and shall certify in writing to the commissioners court whether the 2-21 petition is valid or invalid. 2-22 (c) If the county clerk and the municipal clerk or secretary 2-23 certify that the petition is valid, the commissioners court shall 2-24 appoint a charter commission within 120 days after the date the 2-25 commissioners court receives the certifications. 2-26 (d) If the petition is certified as invalid, the county 2-27 clerk or the municipal clerk or secretary shall state the reason 3-1 for that determination. A person circulating the petition has 60 3-2 days after the date of certification to submit additional petitions 3-3 or signatures to cure the determination of a deficiency, and the 3-4 appropriate clerk or secretary, not later than the 21st day after 3-5 the filing of the additional petitions or signatures, shall 3-6 determine whether the additional petitions or signatures are 3-7 sufficient to cure the deficiency and shall certify that 3-8 determination to the commissioners court. 3-9 Sec. 92.004. NOTIFICATION OF OTHER POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS. 3-10 Not later than the 30th day after the date the commissioners court 3-11 receives the certifications under Section 92.003(c), the 3-12 commissioners court shall give notice to the governing body of each 3-13 municipality having any portion of its area in Bexar County of the 3-14 court's intention to appoint a charter commission. The notice to 3-15 the governing body of San Antonio must specify the number of 3-16 charter commission members who are to be appointed to represent San 3-17 Antonio on the charter commission under Section 92.005. 3-18 Sec. 92.005. COMMISSION COMPOSITION. (a) The charter 3-19 commission must include the same number of members from San Antonio 3-20 and from the unincorporated areas of Bexar County. Each district 3-21 that selects a member of the municipality's governing body shall 3-22 have the same number of persons appointed to the commission. Each 3-23 precinct that selects a member of the commissioners court shall 3-24 have the same number of persons appointed to the commission to 3-25 represent the unincorporated areas of Bexar County. Members of the 3-26 charter commission representing San Antonio are appointed by the 3-27 governing body of San Antonio. If the governing body of San Antonio 4-1 fails to appoint members within 60 days after the date of receiving 4-2 notice of the commissioners court's intent to appoint a charter 4-3 commission, the commissioners court shall appoint the appropriate 4-4 number of residents of San Antonio to the commission. 4-5 (b) The charter commission also must include reasonable 4-6 representation of the population of other incorporated areas within 4-7 Bexar County. 4-8 Sec. 92.006. PREPARATION OF CHARTER. (a) The charter 4-9 commission shall prepare the charter. The charter commission shall 4-10 file its proposed charter with the commissioners court on or before 4-11 the second anniversary of the date the first appointment to the 4-12 commission is made. 4-13 (b) When the proposed charter is filed with the 4-14 commissioners court, the commissioners court shall submit the 4-15 charter to the United States Department of Justice for preclearance 4-16 under the federal Voting Rights Act (42 U.S.C. Section 1973c et 4-17 seq.), as amended. If the requirement for preclearance under the 4-18 Voting Rights Act is not applicable to the proposed charter, the 4-19 commissioners court shall submit the charter to the attorney 4-20 general. The attorney general shall determine whether the adoption 4-21 of the proposed charter would result in any retrogression in the 4-22 effective voting strength of minority populations in the county, 4-23 under standards or analysis similar to the standards or analysis 4-24 applied to proposed local government charters under the federal 4-25 Voting Rights Act. 4-26 (c) If the proposed charter is precleared or the attorney 4-27 general determines that no retrogression would occur, the 5-1 commissioners court by order and the governing body of San Antonio 5-2 by resolution shall jointly call an election to approve the 5-3 proposed charter on the first authorized uniform election date 5-4 prescribed by general law after the date the proposed charter is 5-5 filed with the commissioners court and that allows sufficient time 5-6 to comply with applicable requirements of general law. 5-7 (d) On the date of the election called under Subsection (c), 5-8 the charter commission is dissolved. 5-9 (e) Not later than the seventh day and not earlier than the 5-10 10th day before the first day of voting on the adoption of the 5-11 charter under Section 92.007, the commissioners court and the 5-12 governing body of San Antonio shall publish in each newspaper of 5-13 general circulation published in Bexar County a public notice. The 5-14 notice shall: 5-15 (1) contain a complete copy of the charter proposal; 5-16 (2) explain the estimated cost or savings to taxpayers 5-17 of the areas affected by the proposed charter, itemized by 5-18 governmental function; and 5-19 (3) describe the composition of the proposed governing 5-20 body under Section 92.008 and the disposition of any consolidated 5-21 governing body, including any board appointed by a governing body. 5-22 Sec. 92.007. ADOPTION OF CHARTER. (a) The adoption of the 5-23 charter must be initially approved at the election by a majority of 5-24 the votes received from the voters of Bexar County. 5-25 (b) If a majority of the votes received at an election under 5-26 Subsection (a) favor consolidation, the consolidated 5-27 municipal-county government is established under the terms of the 6-1 charter. 6-2 Sec. 92.008. GOVERNING BODY OF CONSOLIDATED GOVERNMENT. (a) 6-3 A charter adopted under this section shall provide for a governing 6-4 body that consists of: 6-5 (1) a presiding officer elected at large; 6-6 (2) four members elected from single-member districts 6-7 that when placed together encompass the entire territory of the 6-8 consolidated municipal-county government; and 6-9 (3) a number of members elected from single-member 6-10 districts that when placed together encompass the territory of the 6-11 consolidated municipal-county government. 6-12 (b) The number of districts adopted under Subsection (a)(3) 6-13 must be sufficient to ensure that, in the first election following 6-14 the consolidation, the average population of each district is less 6-15 than the average population of a single-member district of the 6-16 governing body of San Antonio preceding the date of the 6-17 consolidation and provide for equal representation from both 6-18 incorporated and unincorporated areas of the county. 6-19 Sec. 92.009. SERVICE DISTRICTS. The charter shall provide 6-20 that the consolidated municipal-county government provides equal 6-21 services and may only establish and charge taxes that are uniform 6-22 throughout the consolidated municipal-county government. 6-23 Sec. 92.010. AD VALOREM TAXES. The charter shall provide 6-24 that an ad valorem tax levied for debt service of the general 6-25 obligation debt that was authorized or issued by any consolidated 6-26 municipality, any special district or authority, or any other 6-27 political subdivision that is a part of the consolidated 7-1 municipal-county government shall continue to be levied by the 7-2 consolidated government. 7-3 Sec. 92.011. CONSOLIDATION OF EMPLOYEES. (a) The charter 7-4 shall provide that every employee, other than elected officials, of 7-5 the county or a municipality, special district or authority, or 7-6 other political subdivision that is part of the consolidated 7-7 municipal-county government and whose position is eliminated or 7-8 abolished as a result of the consolidation or within two years 7-9 after the date of the adoption of the charter, by a reduction in 7-10 force or by administrative reorganization, must be offered 7-11 alternative employment by the consolidated municipal-county 7-12 government at a salary equal to the salary of the abolished 7-13 position and with substantially equal employee or retirement 7-14 benefits. 7-15 (b) Any employee whose position is eliminated or abolished 7-16 and who would have been eligible to retire not later than the fifth 7-17 year after the abolition or elimination of the position shall be 7-18 offered an early retirement package equal to the benefits that 7-19 would have been received on attaining full retirement benefits. An 7-20 employee has three months to decide to accept an offer of 7-21 alternative employment or the early retirement package. 7-22 Sec. 92.012. RETIREMENT BENEFITS. (a) The charter shall 7-23 provide for the continuation of a pension fund or the retirement 7-24 system contributions by both the consolidated municipal-county 7-25 government and the employees of the consolidated municipal-county 7-26 government that would have been made by the former county 7-27 government or the municipalities, special districts or authorities, 8-1 or other political subdivisions before the adoption of the charter. 8-2 (b) Employees of the consolidated municipal-county 8-3 government hired after the adoption of the charter shall be placed 8-4 in an appropriate pension fund or retirement system. 8-5 Sec. 92.013. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING. The charter may not 8-6 diminish the right of employees of the consolidated 8-7 municipal-county government to organize, to meet and confer, and to 8-8 bargain collectively with the officials of the consolidated 8-9 municipal-county government over wages, hours of work, and other 8-10 terms of employment as provided by state law. 8-11 Sec. 92.014. ANNEXATION. (a) The charter shall, within 8-12 Bexar County, establish procedures for the progressive territorial 8-13 expansion of the consolidated government to reflect the growth of 8-14 the urbanized area of the consolidated government. 8-15 (b) The boundaries of the consolidated municipal-county 8-16 government may not extend beyond the boundaries of Bexar County as 8-17 those boundaries exist on the day before the effective date of the 8-18 consolidated municipal-county charter. 8-19 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect on the date on which the 8-20 constitutional amendment proposed by the 76th Legislature, Regular 8-21 Session, 1999, that provides for the consolidation of county 8-22 government and local governments, takes effect. If that amendment 8-23 is not approved by the voters, this Act has no effect. 8-24 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 8-25 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 8-26 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 8-27 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 9-1 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.