By Nelson                                              S.B. No. 542
         77R1688 ATP-D                           
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the authority of the commissioners court of a county to
 1-3     meet and transact business in a municipality other than the county
 1-4     seat.
 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-6           SECTION 1. Section 81.005(c), Local Government Code, is
 1-7     amended to read as follows:
 1-8           (c)  Except as provided by Subsection (f) of this section,
 1-9     the term shall be held at:
1-10                 (1)  the county seat at the courthouse;
1-11                 (2)  an auxiliary courthouse, courthouse annex, or
1-12     another building in the county acquired by the county under Chapter
1-13     292, 293, or 305 or another law, that houses county administration
1-14     offices or county or district courts, located inside the municipal
1-15     limits of the county seat;
1-16                 (3)  the regular meeting place of another political
1-17     subdivision if:
1-18                       (A)  the commissioners court meets with the
1-19     governing body of that political subdivision located wholly or
1-20     partly within the county; and
1-21                       (B)  the regular meeting place of that political
1-22     subdivision is in the county;
1-23                 (4)  a meeting place in the county in a building owned
1-24     by another political subdivision located wholly or partly in the
 2-1     county if:
 2-2                       (A)  the commissioners court meets with the
 2-3     governing body of that political subdivision;
 2-4                       (B)  the places where the commissioners court and
 2-5     the governing body of the political subdivision regularly hold
 2-6     their meetings are not large enough to accommodate the number of
 2-7     persons expected to attend the meeting; and
 2-8                       (C)  the meeting place in the building owned by
 2-9     the political subdivision is large enough to accommodate the
2-10     expected number of persons;  [or]
2-11                 (5)  a meeting place in the county in a building owned
2-12     by the county if:
2-13                       (A)  the place where the commissioners court
2-14     regularly holds its meetings is not large enough to accommodate the
2-15     number of persons expected to attend the meeting; and
2-16                       (B)  the meeting place in the building owned by
2-17     the county is large enough to accommodate the expected number of
2-18     persons; or
2-19                 (6)  a meeting place located in a municipality in the
2-20     county other than the county seat if:
2-21                       (A)  the commissioners court agrees to meet in
2-22     the municipality; and
2-23                       (B)  the meeting place is in a building providing
2-24     public access that can accommodate the number of persons expected
2-25     to attend the meeting.
2-26           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
2-27     a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
 3-1     provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this
 3-2     Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
 3-3     Act takes effect September 1, 2001.