H.B. No. 2931
AN ACT
relating to the administration and finances of counties and certain
other entities.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 41.008, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 41.008. RECORD [REGISTER]. (a) Each district or
county attorney shall keep a record of [register of all his official
acts and reports,] all actions or demands prosecuted or defended by
the person [him] as district or county attorney, and all
proceedings held in relation to the attorney's [his] official acts.
(b) The record required by Subsection (a) may be in a paper
format, an electronic format, or both. A computer record of
actions, demands, and proceedings satisfies the requirements of
Subsection (a). [A district or county attorney shall keep the
register in proper books obtained by him for that purpose at his own
expense.]
(c) The record [register] shall be available at all times
for inspection by any person appointed to examine it by the governor
or by the commissioners court of a county.
(d) Each district and county attorney shall deliver any
portion of the record under the attorney's control to the attorney's
[the books that comprise the register to his] successor in office.
SECTION 2. Section 791.003(4), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(4) "Local government" means a:
(A) county, municipality, special district, or
other political subdivision of this state or another state; [or]
(B) local government corporation created under
Subchapter D, Chapter 431, Transportation Code;
(C) political subdivision corporation created
under Chapter 304, Local Government Code; or
(D) combination of two or more [of those]
entities described by Paragraph (A), (B), or (C).
SECTION 3. Section 791.013, Government Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a) and (b) and adding Subsection (d) to read
as follows:
(a) To supervise the performance of an interlocal contract,
the [The] parties to the [an interlocal] contract may:
(1) create an administrative agency;
(2) [or] designate an existing local government; or
(3) contract with an organization that qualifies for
exemption from federal income tax under Section 501(c), Internal
Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, that provides services on behalf
of political subdivisions or combinations of political
subdivisions and derives more than 50 percent of its gross revenues
from grants, funding, or other income from political subdivisions
or combinations of subdivisions [to supervise the performance of
the contract].
(b) The agency, [or] designated local government, or
organization described by Subsection (a)(3) may employ personnel,
perform administrative activities, and provide administrative
services necessary to perform the interlocal contract.
(d) An administrative agency created under this section may
acquire, apply for, register, secure, hold, protect, and renew
under the laws of this state, another state, the United States, or
any other nation:
(1) a patent for the invention or discovery of:
(A) any new and useful process, machine,
manufacture, composition of matter, art, or method;
(B) any new use of a known process, machine,
manufacture, composition of matter, art, or method; or
(C) any new and useful improvement on a known
process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, art, or
method;
(2) a copyright of an original work of authorship
fixed in any tangible medium of expression, now known or later
developed, from which the work may be perceived, reproduced, or
otherwise communicated, either directly or with the aid of a
machine or device;
(3) a trademark, service mark, collective mark, or
certification mark for a word, name, symbol, device, or slogan that
the agency uses to identify and distinguish the agency's goods and
services from other goods and services; and
(4) other evidence of protection of exclusivity issued
for intellectual property.
SECTION 4. Sections 81.003(b) and (c), Local Government
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(b) The court shall require the clerk to record [in suitable
books] the proceedings of each term of the court. This record may
be in a paper or electronic format. After each term [the county
judge or the presiding member of the court shall read and sign and]
the clerk shall attest to the accuracy of this record.
(c) The clerk shall record the court's authorized
proceedings between terms. This record may be in a paper or
electronic format. The clerk shall attest to the accuracy of the
[On the first day of the first term after these proceedings, the
county judge or the presiding member of the court shall read and
sign this] record.
SECTION 5. Subchapter A, Chapter 111, Local Government
Code, is amended by adding Section 111.014 to read as follows:
Sec. 111.014. RESERVE ITEM. Notwithstanding any other
provision of this subchapter, a county may establish in the budget a
reserve or contingency item. The item must be included in the
itemized budget under Section 111.004(a) in the same manner as a
project for which an appropriation is established in the budget.
SECTION 6. Subchapter B, Chapter 111, Local Government
Code, is amended by adding Section 111.045 to read as follows:
Sec. 111.045. RESERVE ITEM. Notwithstanding any other
provision of this subchapter, a county may establish in the budget a
reserve or contingency item. The item must be included in the
itemized budget under Section 111.034(a) in the same manner as a
project for which an appropriation is established in the budget.
SECTION 7. Subchapter C, Chapter 111, Local Government
Code, is amended by adding Section 111.075 to read as follows:
Sec. 111.075. RESERVE ITEM. Notwithstanding any other
provision of this subchapter, a county may establish in the budget a
reserve or contingency item. The item must be included in the
itemized budget under Section 111.063(a) in the same manner as a
project for which an appropriation is established in the budget.
SECTION 8. Chapter 180, Local Government Code, is amended
by adding Section 180.005 to read as follows:
Sec. 180.005. APPOINTMENTS TO LOCAL GOVERNING BODIES. (a)
In this section, "local government" means a county, municipality,
or other political subdivision of this state.
(b) An appointment to the governing body of a local
government shall be made as required by the law applicable to that
local government and may be made with the intent to ensure that the
governing body is representative of the constituency served by the
governing body.
(c) A local government that chooses to implement Subsection
(b) shall adopt procedures for the implementation.
SECTION 9. Subchapter A, Chapter 232, Local Government
Code, is amended by adding Section 232.0021 to read as follows:
Sec. 232.0021. PLAT APPLICATION FEE. (a) The
commissioners court may impose an application fee to cover the cost
of the county's review of a subdivision plat and inspection of
street, road, and drainage improvements described by the plat.
(b) The fee may vary based on the number of proposed lots in
the subdivision, the acreage described by the plat, the type or
extent of proposed street and drainage improvements, or any other
reasonable criteria as determined by the commissioners court.
(c) The owner of the tract to be subdivided must pay the fee
at the time directed by the county before the county conducts a
review of the plat.
(d) The fee is subject to refund under Section 232.0025(i).
SECTION 10. Section 270.007(i), Local Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(i) A county may not develop a computer application or
software system for the sole purpose of selling, licensing, or
marketing the software application or software system.
SECTION 11. Chapter 270, Local Government Code, is amended
by adding Section 270.009 to read as follows:
Sec. 270.009. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OF COUNTY. A county
may acquire, apply for, register, secure, hold, protect, and renew
under the laws of this state, another state, the United States, or
any other nation:
(1) a patent for the invention or discovery of:
(A) any new and useful process, machine,
manufacture, composition of matter, art, or method;
(B) any new use of a known process, machine,
manufacture, composition of matter, art, or method; or
(C) any new and useful improvement on a known
process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, art, or
method;
(2) a copyright of an original work of authorship
fixed in any tangible medium of expression, now known or later
developed, from which the work may be perceived, reproduced, or
otherwise communicated, either directly or with the aid of a
machine or device;
(3) a trademark, service mark, collective mark, or
certification mark for a word, name, symbol, device, or slogan that
the county uses to identify and distinguish the county's goods and
services from other goods and services; and
(4) other evidence of protection of exclusivity issued
for intellectual property.
SECTION 12. Sections 114.042, 114.045, 151.902, and
270.007(g), Local Government Code, are repealed.
SECTION 13. (a) Section 180.005, Local Government Code, as
added by this Act, applies only to an appointment made on or after
the effective date of this Act.
(b) Section 232.0021, Local Government Code, as added by
this Act, applies only to a plat filed on or after the effective
date of this Act.
SECTION 14. This Act takes effect September 1, 2003.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2931 was passed by the House on May
10, 2003, by a non-record vote; and that the House concurred in
Senate amendments to H.B. No. 2931 on May 30, 2003, by a non-record
vote.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2931 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on May 28, 2003, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays
0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________
Date
__________________
Governor