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.