By: Whitmire S.B. No. 1606
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
1-1 relating to the appointment of the presiding officer and directors
1-2 of the board of certain venue districts.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Section 335.034, Local Government Code, is
1-5 amended to read as follows:
1-6 Sec. 335.034. OFFICERS. Except as provided by Section
1-7 335.035, the [The] presiding officer is designated as provided by
1-8 the concurrent order. The board shall designate from the members
1-9 of the board a secretary and other officers the board considers
1-10 necessary.
1-11 SECTION 2. Subchapter C, Chapter 335, Local Government Code,
1-12 is amended by adding Section 335.035 to read as follows:
1-13 Sec. 335.035. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR BOARD OF DISTRICT
1-14 CREATED BY POPULOUS MUNICIPALITY AND COUNTY. (a) This section
1-15 applies only to the board of a district located whole or part in a
1-16 county with a population of 2.8 million or more.
1-17 (b) The board is composed of one presiding officer and an
1-18 even number of directors. The mayor of the municipality and the
1-19 county commissioners court each shall appoint an equal number of
1-20 directors under the orders creating the district and Section
1-21 335.031. An appointment of a director by the mayor must be
1-22 confirmed by a majority vote of the governing body of the
1-23 municipality.
1-24 (c) The mayor, with the confirmation by a majority vote of
2-1 the governing body of the municipality, and the county
2-2 commissioners court shall appoint a presiding officer by concurrent
2-3 orders on or before the 30th day after the date a vacancy occurs in
2-4 the presiding officer's position. The presiding officer serves for
2-5 a two-year term.
2-6 (d) If the mayor of the municipality and the county
2-7 commissioners court fail to agree on the appointment of a presiding
2-8 officer, the board shall appoint, from the district's directors, a
2-9 presiding officer by a majority vote at the first board meeting
2-10 that follows the 30-day period described by Subsection (c). The
2-11 confirmation requirement of Subsection (c) does not apply to an
2-12 appointment of a presiding officer under this subsection.
2-13 (e) A presiding officer appointed under Subsection (d) shall
2-14 resign as a director before serving as presiding officer. The
2-15 director vacancy is filled by the mayor, with confirmation by a
2-16 majority vote of the governing body of the municipality, if the
2-17 mayor appointed the director or by the county commissioners court
2-18 if the commissioners court appointed the director. The mayor or
2-19 the county commissioners court shall make the appointment for the
2-20 vacant position under this section and Section 335.031. The
2-21 appointed director serves for the remainder of the vacated term.
2-22 SECTION 3. (a) This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
2-23 (b) The change in law made by this Act applies only to an
2-24 appointment under Section 335.035, Local Government Code, as added
2-25 by this Act, of a director or presiding officer to the board of a
2-26 venue district on or after the effective date of this Act. An
3-1 appointment of a director or presiding officer to the board of a
3-2 venue district before the effective date of this Act is governed by
3-3 the law in effect immediately before the effective date, and that
3-4 law is continued in effect for that purpose.
3-5 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
3-6 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
3-7 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
3-8 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
3-9 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.