BILL ANALYSIS
Committee Report (Substituted)
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
Since 1969, The State of Texas has subjected itself and local governments to certain liabilities under the Texas Tort Claims Act. If an injury is caused by a negligent governmental employee acting within the scope of their official duties and using governmental property, a state or municipal governmental entity may be found liable up to an amount of $250,000 per person, $500,000 per occurrence for personal injuries and $100,000 for injury or destruction of property. A local governmental entity or emergency services provider may be found liable up to an amount of $100,000 per person, $300,000 per occurrence for personal injuries and $100,000 for injury or destruction of property. Legislators have set these liability limits at a level they feel is high enough to provide meaningful compensation to injured citizens, but not so high as to threaten governmental entities and taxpayers with bankruptcy from excessive verdicts.
C.S.H.B. 1587 affirms that the legal liability of the Downtown Midland Management District is limited to the liability the Legislature imposed on governmental entities when it passed the Texas Tort Claims Act. A number of recent legal rulings have raised the possibility that the Texas Supreme Court will rule that certain simple language in the District's enabling legislation (stating that the District may "sue and be sued") should be interpreted as a waiver of all governmental immunity. C.S.H.B. 1587 will affirm the Legislature's true intent: to give the District the basic governmental immunity of the Texas Tort Claims Act.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.
ANALYSIS
Amends the Downtown Midland Management Districts enabling legislation to affirm that the legal liability to the Downtown Midland Management District is limited to the liability the Legislature imposed on governmental entities in the Texas Tort Claims Act, Chapter 101, Civil Practices and Remedies Code.
The bill gives immunity from liability to the district, a director, or a district employee for damages arising out of the performance of a governmental function except as provided by the Texas Tort Claims Act. It also validates governmental acts and proceedings of the district since the creation of the district except if litigation, filed before the effective date of this act, results in the matter being held invalid or has been held invalid by a final court judgment.
EFFECTIVE DATE
This Act takes effect September 1, 2005 or immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE
C.S.H.B. 1587 modifies the original version of the bill by adding language in Section 1 to clarify that the Texas Tort Claims Act applies to the Downtown Midland Management District. The substitute removes language stating that any agreement entered into by the district is not a joint enterprise for liability purposes.