1-1     By:  Hilderbran (Senate Sponsor - Wentworth)          H.B. No. 3544
 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House April 23, 2001;
 1-3     April 24, 2001, read first time and referred to Committee on
 1-4     Natural Resources; May 11, 2001, reported adversely, with favorable
 1-5     Committee Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 6, Nays 0;
 1-6     May 11, 2001, sent to printer.)
 1-7     COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 3544              By:  Barrientos
 1-8                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-9                                   AN ACT
1-10     relating to the ratification of the creation of and to the
1-11     administration, powers, duties, operation, and financing of the Cow
1-12     Creek Groundwater Conservation District.
1-13           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-14           SECTION 1.  RATIFICATION OF CREATION. The creation by Chapter
1-15     1331, Acts of the 76th Legislature, Regular Session, 1999 (Senate
1-16     Bill No. 1911), of the Cow Creek Groundwater Conservation District
1-17     in Kendall County is ratified as required by Section 15(a) of that
1-18     Act, subject to approval at a confirmation election under Section 8
1-19     of this Act.
1-20           SECTION 2.  DEFINITIONS. In this Act:
1-21                 (1)  "District" means the Cow Creek Groundwater
1-22     Conservation District.
1-23                 (2)  "Retail public utility" means a retail public
1-24     utility as defined by Section 13.002, Water Code, that is providing
1-25     service in the district on the effective date of this Act.
1-26                 (3)  "Well" includes any excavation drilled or dug into
1-27     the ground that may intercept or penetrate a water bearing strata
1-28     or formation.
1-29           SECTION 3.  BOUNDARIES. The boundaries of the district are
1-30     coextensive with the boundaries of Kendall County, Texas.
1-31           SECTION 4.  GENERAL POWERS. (a)  The district has all of the
1-32     rights, powers, privileges, authority, functions, and duties
1-33     provided by the general law of this state, including Chapter 36,
1-34     Water Code, applicable to groundwater conservation districts
1-35     created under Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution.  This
1-36     Act prevails over any provision of general law that is in conflict
1-37     or inconsistent with this Act, including any provision of Chapter
1-38     1331, Acts of the 76th Legislature, Regular Session, 1999 (Senate
1-39     Bill No. 1911).
1-40           (b)  Notwithstanding Subsection (a), the following provisions
1-41     prevail over a conflicting or inconsistent provision of this Act:
1-42                 (1)  Sections 36.1071-36.108, Water Code;
1-43                 (2)  Sections 36.159-36.161, Water Code; and
1-44                 (3)  Subchapter I, Chapter 36, Water Code.
1-45           SECTION 5.  BOARD OF DIRECTORS. (a)  The district is governed
1-46     by a board of five directors.
1-47           (b)  Temporary directors serve until initial directors are
1-48     elected under Section 8 of this Act.
1-49           (c)  Initial directors serve until permanent directors are
1-50     elected under Section 10 of this Act.
1-51           (d)  Permanent directors serve staggered four-year terms.
1-52           (e)  Each director must qualify to serve as director in the
1-53     manner provided by Section 36.055, Water Code.
1-54           (f)  A director serves until the director's successor has
1-55     qualified.
1-56           (g)  If there is a vacancy on the board, the remaining
1-57     directors shall appoint a director to serve until the next election
1-58     for directors.  At the next election for directors, a person shall
1-59     be elected to fill the position.  If the position is not scheduled
1-60     to be filled at the election, the person elected to fill the
1-61     position shall serve only for the remainder of the unexpired term.
1-62           SECTION 6.  METHOD OF ELECTING DIRECTORS. (a)  The directors
1-63     of the district shall be elected according to the commissioners
1-64     precinct method as provided by this section.
 2-1           (b)  One director shall be elected by the qualified voters of
 2-2     the entire district, and one director shall be elected from each
 2-3     county commissioners precinct by the qualified voters of that
 2-4     precinct.
 2-5           (c)  To be qualified to be a candidate for or to serve as a
 2-6     director at large, a person must be a registered voter in the
 2-7     district.  To be qualified to be a candidate for or to serve as a
 2-8     director from a county commissioners precinct, a person must be a
 2-9     registered voter of that precinct.
2-10           (d)  A person shall indicate on the application for a place
2-11     on the ballot:
2-12                 (1)  the precinct that the person seeks to represent;
2-13     or
2-14                 (2)  that the person seeks to represent the district at
2-15     large.
2-16           (e)  At the first election after the county commissioners
2-17     precincts are redrawn under Section 18, Article V, Texas
2-18     Constitution, four new directors shall be elected to represent the
2-19     precincts.  The directors elected shall draw lots to determine
2-20     which two directors serve two-year terms and which two directors
2-21     serve four-year terms.
2-22           SECTION 7. TEMPORARY DIRECTORS. (a)  The temporary board of
2-23     directors shall be appointed by the county commissioners court. The
2-24     county commissioners court shall appoint a temporary director from
2-25     each commissioners precinct and one director at large.
2-26           (b)  If a temporary director fails to qualify for office, the
2-27     temporary directors who have qualified shall appoint a person to
2-28     fill the vacancy.  If at any time there are fewer than three
2-29     qualified directors, the Texas Natural Resource Conservation
2-30     Commission shall appoint the necessary number of persons to fill
2-31     all vacancies on the board.
2-32           SECTION 8. CONFIRMATION AND INITIAL DIRECTORS' ELECTION. (a)
2-33     The temporary board of directors shall call and hold an election to
2-34     confirm establishment of the district and to elect initial
2-35     directors.
2-36           (b)  At the confirmation and initial directors' election, the
2-37     temporary board of directors shall have placed on the ballot the
2-38     names of the five temporary directors, the name of any other
2-39     candidate filing for an initial director's position, and blank
2-40     spaces to write in the names of other persons.
2-41           (c)  Section 41.001(a), Election Code, does not apply to a
2-42     confirmation and initial directors' election held as provided by
2-43     this section.
2-44           (d)  Except as provided by this section, a confirmation and
2-45     initial directors' election must be conducted as provided by
2-46     Sections 36.017(b)-(h), Water Code, and the Election Code.
2-47           (e)  If a majority of the votes cast at the election held
2-48     under this section is against the confirmation of the district, the
2-49     temporary directors may not call another election under this
2-50     section before the first anniversary of that election.
2-51           (f)  If a majority of the votes cast at the election held
2-52     under this section is in favor of the creation of the district, the
2-53     temporary directors shall declare the district created.
2-54           (g)  If the district is created at the confirmation election,
2-55     the temporary directors, at the time the vote is canvassed, shall
2-56     declare the candidate receiving the most votes from each
2-57     commissioners precinct and at large to be elected as initial
2-58     directors.
2-59           (h)  The temporary directors shall file a copy of the
2-60     election results with the Texas Natural Resource Conservation
2-61     Commission.
2-62           SECTION 9. TERMS OF OFFICE OF INITIAL DIRECTORS.  The initial
2-63     directors for precincts 2 and 3 shall serve as initial directors
2-64     until the first regular meeting of the board of directors held
2-65     after the first permanent director's election under Section 10 of
2-66     this Act.  The initial directors for precincts 1 and 4 and the
2-67     initial director representing the district at large shall serve as
2-68     initial directors until the first regular meeting of the board of
2-69     directors held after the second permanent director's election under
 3-1     Section 10 of this Act.
 3-2           SECTION 10. ELECTION OF DIRECTORS.  Beginning in the second
 3-3     year after the year in which the creation of the district is
 3-4     confirmed at a confirmation election, an election shall be held in
 3-5     the district on the first Saturday in May every second year to
 3-6     elect the appropriate number of directors to the board.
 3-7           SECTION 11. ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY. (a)  The district may
 3-8     contract with one or more state agencies or other governmental
 3-9     bodies, including a county, a river authority, or another district
3-10     to carry out any function of the district.
3-11           (b)  The district may require a drilling permit before a new
3-12     well is drilled or an existing well is substantially altered.
3-13     Notwithstanding an exemption for a well under Section 36.117, Water
3-14     Code, written authorization from the district must be received
3-15     before a new well is drilled or an existing well is substantially
3-16     altered.
3-17           (c)  The district may participate in the construction,
3-18     implementation, and maintenance of best management practices for
3-19     water resource management in the district and may engage in and
3-20     promote the acceptance of best management practices through
3-21     education efforts sponsored by the district.  Construction,
3-22     implementation, and maintenance of best management practices must
3-23     address water quantity and quality practices such as brush
3-24     management, prescribed grazing, recharge structures, water and silt
3-25     detention and retention structures, plugging of abandoned wells,
3-26     rainwater harvesting, and other treatment measures for the
3-27     conservation of water resources.
3-28           (d)  Reasonable fees, as determined by the district, may be
3-29     imposed on an annual basis on each nonexempt well.  The district
3-30     shall adopt any rules necessary for the assessment and collection
3-31     of fees under this subsection.
3-32           (e)  The district may use money collected from fees:
3-33                 (1)  in any manner necessary for the management and
3-34     operation of the district;
3-35                 (2)  to pay all or part of the principal of and
3-36     interest on district bonds or notes; and
3-37                 (3)  for any purpose consistent with the district's
3-38     certified water management plan.
3-39           (f)  The district shall adopt rules providing for granting
3-40     exemptions from ad valorem taxes on property on which a water
3-41     conservation initiative has been implemented.  The rules adopted by
3-42     the district must be consistent with the rules adopted by the
3-43     comptroller to implement Section 11.32, Tax Code.
3-44           (g)  The rules must provide that a retail public utility is
3-45     eligible to receive an exemption from ad valorem taxes on property
3-46     on the same grounds as for any other district customer.  To
3-47     encourage retail public utilities to obtain water supplies from
3-48     sources other than groundwater, the rules adopted by the district
3-49     under Subsection (f) must include an exemption from ad valorem
3-50     taxes on property served by a retail public utility based on:
3-51                 (1)  the percentage of potable water supplied within
3-52     the district by the retail public utility from sources other than
3-53     groundwater compared to the total water supplied by the retail
3-54     public utility for the preceding year; and
3-55                 (2)  the percentage of wastewater effluent produced by
3-56     the retail public utility that is used as reclaimed water within
3-57     the district compared to the total wastewater effluent produced by
3-58     the retail public utility for the preceding year.
3-59           (h)  The district may consider the impact of floods and
3-60     equipment breakage upon the retail public utility's ability to
3-61     supply water from sources other than groundwater.
3-62           (i)  The total amount of the exemption from ad valorem taxes
3-63     shall not exceed one-half of the tax imposed by the district.
3-64           SECTION 12.  PROHIBITED ACTS. The district may not:
3-65                 (1)  impose an ad valorem tax for administrative,
3-66     operation, or maintenance expenses that exceeds the lesser of the
3-67     rate approved by the majority of the qualified voters voting in an
3-68     election authorizing the tax or three cents per $100 of assessed
3-69     valuation;
 4-1                 (2)  require the owner of a well used solely for
 4-2     domestic or livestock purposes to install a meter or measuring
 4-3     device on the well;
 4-4                 (3)  sell, transport, or export groundwater outside of
 4-5     the district;
 4-6                 (4)  enter into a contract or engage in an action to
 4-7     supply water to a person in the service area of any municipality or
 4-8     retail public utility located in the district, except with the
 4-9     express permission of the municipality or retail public utility; or
4-10                 (5)  issue before September 1, 2004, any bonds secured
4-11     by ad valorem taxes.
4-12           SECTION 13.  VALIDATION. (a)  Any act or proceeding taken by
4-13     or on  behalf of the Cow Creek Groundwater Conservation District
4-14     before the effective date of this Act is validated in all respects
4-15     as if the act or proceeding had occurred as authorized by law.
4-16           (b)  Subsection (a)  does not apply to any matter that on the
4-17     effective date of this Act:
4-18                 (1)  is involved in litigation if the litigation
4-19     ultimately results in the matter being held invalid by a final
4-20     judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction; or
4-21                 (2)  has been held invalid by a final judgment of a
4-22     court of competent jurisdiction.
4-23           SECTION 14.  FINDINGS RELATED TO PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS. (a)
4-24     The proper and legal notice of the intention to introduce this Act,
4-25     setting forth the general substance of this Act, has been published
4-26     as provided by law, and the notice and a copy of this Act have been
4-27     furnished to all persons, agencies, officials, or entities to which
4-28     they are required to be furnished by the constitution and other
4-29     laws of this state, including the governor, who has submitted the
4-30     notice and Act to the Texas Natural Resource Conservation
4-31     Commission.
4-32           (b)  The Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission has
4-33     filed its recommendations relating to this Act with the governor,
4-34     lieutenant governor, and speaker of the house of representatives
4-35     within the required time.
4-36           (c)  All requirements of the constitution and laws of this
4-37     state and the rules and procedures of the legislature with respect
4-38     to the notice, introduction, and passage of this Act are fulfilled
4-39     and accomplished.
4-40           SECTION 15.  EXPIRATION DATE; EFFECTIVE DATE. (a)  If the
4-41     creation of the district is not confirmed at a confirmation
4-42     election held under Section 8 of this Act before September 1, 2003,
4-43     this Act expires on that date.
4-44           (b)  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote
4-45     of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided
4-46     by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this Act does
4-47     not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes
4-48     effect September 1, 2001.
4-49                                  * * * * *