By:  Lucio                                            S.B. No. 1609
         Line and page numbers may not match official copy.
         Bill not drafted by TLC or Senate E&E.
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
                                       AN ACT
 1-1     relating to the administration, powers, duties and operations of
 1-2     Emergency Services Districts:
 1-3           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-4           SECTION 1.  Section 775.022, Health & Safety Code, is amended
 1-5     by amending Subsection (c) to read as follows:
 1-6           (c)  If a municipality annexes a portion of a district, the
 1-7     municipality shall compensate the district in an amount equal to
 1-8     the annexed territory's pro rata share of the district's
 1-9     indebtedness based upon the unpaid principal balances and the
1-10     property values at the time the territory is annexed.  The district
1-11     shall apply compensation received from a municipality under this
1-12     subsection exclusively to the payment of the annexed territory's
1-13     pro rata share of the district's indebtedness.
1-14           SECTION 2.  Section 775.034, Health & Safety Code, is amended
1-15     by amending Subsection (a) to read as follows:
1-16           (a)  The commissioners court of a county in which a
1-17     single-county district is located shall appoint a five-member board
1-18     of emergency services commissioners to serve as the district's
1-19     governing body.  A person is qualified to serve as a member of the
1-20     board if that person is:  at least 18 years old; a resident citizen
1-21     of the State of Texas; and, a qualified voter within areas served
1-22     by the District or the owner of land subject to taxation in the
 2-1     district.  Except as prescribed by Subsection (b), commissioners
 2-2     serve two-year terms.
 2-3           SECTION 3.  Section 775.036, Health & Safety Code, is amended
 2-4     by amending Subsection (b) to read as follows:
 2-5           (b)  The board may adopt and enforce a fire code, including
 2-6     fines for any violations, that does not conflict with a fire code
 2-7     adopted by another political subdivision that overlaps the
 2-8     district's boundaries and may require inspections in the district
 2-9     relating to the causes and prevention of fires and medical
2-10     emergencies, except as provided by Section 775.031(b).  The board
2-11     may not enforce the district's fire code within the boundaries of a
2-12     municipality that has adopted a fire code.
2-13           SECTION 4.  Section 775.040, Health & Safety Code, is amended
2-14     by amending the section to read as follows:
2-15           A district may charge a reasonable fee for emergency services
2-16     performed, including but not limited to responding to false alarms
2-17     and fire code inspections, for or on behalf of a person or entity.
2-18           SECTION 5.  Chapter 775, Subchapter C, Health & Safety Code,
2-19     is amended by adding Section 775.041 as follows:
2-20     Subsection 775.041.  Fee Payment and Collection
2-21                 (a)  When a district has imposed a reasonable fee in
2-22     accordance with Section 775.040, the fee must be paid within a
2-23     reasonable amount of time as established by the district.
2-24                 (b)  If the amount of time established by the district
2-25     has lapsed and the fee has not been paid, the district may seek to
2-26     collect the fee by complaints filed in the appropriate court of
 3-1     jurisdiction in the county in which the district's principal office
 3-2     or meeting place is located.
 3-3                 (c)  If the district prevails in any suit to collect
 3-4     such fee, it may, in the same action, recover reasonable fees for
 3-5     attorneys, expert witnesses, and other costs incurred by the
 3-6     district before the court.  The amount of the attorney's fees shall
 3-7     be fixed by the court.
 3-8           SECTION 6.  TRANSITION PROVISION.  The changes in law made by
 3-9     Section 2 of this Act in the qualifications of, and the
3-10     prohibitions applying to, members of the emergency services
3-11     commissioners board do not affect the entitlement of a member
3-12     serving on the board immediately before the effective date of this
3-13     Act to continue to carry out the board's functions for the
3-14     remainder of the member's term.  The changes in law apply only to a
3-15     member appointed on or after the effective date of this Act.  This
3-16     Act does not prohibit a person who is a member of the board on the
3-17     effective date of this Act from being reappointed to the board if
3-18     the person has the qualifications required for a member under
3-19     Section 775.034, Health & Safety Code, as amended by this Act.
3-20           SECTION 7.  EMERGENCY.  The importance of this legislation
3-21     and the crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
3-22     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
3-23     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
3-24     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
3-25     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
3-26     passage, and is so enacted.