By: Turner H.B. No. 3181
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the creation, administration, powers, duties,
operation, and financing of the Central Harris County Regional
Water Authority; granting the power of eminent domain; granting the
authority to issue bonds or notes; providing a civil penalty.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
ARTICLE 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS
SECTION 1.01. CREATION.
(a) A regional water authority, to be known as the Central
Harris County Regional Water Authority, is created in Harris
County. The authority is a political subdivision of this state, a
governmental agency, and a body politic and corporate.
(b) The authority is created under and is essential to
accomplish the purposes of Section 59, Article XVI, Texas
Constitution, including the acquisition and provision of surface
water and groundwater for residential, commercial, industrial,
agricultural, and other uses, the reduction of groundwater
withdrawals, the conservation, preservation, protection, recharge,
and prevention of waste of groundwater, and of groundwater
reservoirs or their subdivisions, the control of subsidence caused
by withdrawal of water from those groundwater reservoirs or their
subdivisions, and other public purposes stated in this Act.
(c) The authority is created without the necessity of
holding a confirmation election.
SECTION 1.02. DEFINITIONS. In this Act:
(1) "Authority" means the Central Harris County
Regional Water Authority.
(2) "Board" means the board of directors of the
authority.
(3) "Commission" means the Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality, or its successor.
(4) "Director" means a member of the board.
(5) "District" means any district created under
Sections 52(b)(1) and (2), Article III, or Section 59, Article XVI,
Texas Constitution, regardless of the manner of creation, other
than:
(A) a navigation district or port authority; or
(B) a district governed by Chapter 36, Water
Code.
(6) "Groundwater reduction plan" means a plan adopted
or implemented to supply water, reduce reliance on groundwater,
regulate groundwater pumping and usage, or require and allocate
water usage among persons in order to comply with or exceed
requirements imposed by the subsidence district, including any
applicable groundwater reduction requirements.
(7) "Local government" means a municipality, county,
district, or other political subdivision of this state or a
combination of two or more of those entities.
(8) "Member district" means Harris County Municipal
Utility District No. 33, Harris County Municipal Utility District
No. 150, Harris County Municipal Utility District No. 200, Harris
County Municipal Utility District No. 205, Harris County Municipal
Utility District No. 215, Harris County Municipal Utility District
No. 217, Harris County Municipal Utility District No. 304, Harris
County Utility District No. 399, Harris County Utility District No.
16, Fallbrook Utility District and Rankin Road West Municipal
Utility District, each being a conservation and reclamation
district created pursuant to Section 59, Article XVI, Texas
Constitution.
(9) "Person" includes an individual, corporation,
organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency,
district, local government, business trust, estate, trust,
partnership, association, or any other legal entity.
(10) "Subsidence" has the meaning assigned by Section
151.002, Water Code.
(11) "Subsidence district" means the Harris-Galveston
Coastal Subsidence District.
(12) "System" means a network of pipelines, conduits,
valves, canals, pumping stations, force mains, treatment plants,
and any other construction, device, or related appurtenance used to
treat or transport water.
(13) "Water" includes:
(A) groundwater, percolating or otherwise;
(B) any surface water, natural or artificial,
navigable or nonnavigable; and
(C) industrial and municipal wastewater.
(14) "Well" includes a facility or device owned or
partially owned by a member district and used to withdraw
groundwater from a groundwater source inside or outside the
boundaries of the authority for the purpose of supplying water to
territory inside the boundaries of the authority.
SECTION 1.03. BOUNDARIES.
The boundaries of the authority include all of the land
that is, on the effective date of this Act, within the boundaries of
each of the member districts, regardless of whether the territory
contains noncontiguous parcels of land or whether the territory is
located within the boundaries of any other governmental entity or
political subdivision of the state, together with any territory
that is annexed into the boundaries of the authority pursuant to
Section 1.05 of this Act.
SECTION 1.04. EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN TERRITORY.
(a) On the mutual agreement between the board and the
governing body of a member district, all of the land within that
member district may be excluded from the authority.
(b) If a member district is excluded from the authority's
boundaries under this section, the authority:
(1) is not required to provide water or any other
service to the district; and
(2) is not required to include the district in any
groundwater reduction plan adopted or implemented by the authority,
and may remove the district from any groundwater reduction plan
adopted by the authority that includes such district.
(c) If a member district excluded from the authority's
boundaries under this section petitions the authority to be annexed
under Section 1.05 of this Act, the authority may annex the
district. The authority may require, as a condition of annexation,
terms and conditions the Board considers appropriate. The
authority may require the district to pay the authority the fees,
user fees, charges, and special assessments, with interest, that,
as determined by the authority, the district would have been
charged by the authority if the district had not been excluded from
the authority under this section.
SECTION 1.05. ANNEXATION.
(a) Except to the extent the authority agrees in writing, a
municipality's annexation of territory within the authority has no
effect on:
(1) the authority's powers inside or outside the
annexed territory;
(2) the authority's boundaries or contracts; and
(3) the authority's ability to assess fees, user fees,
rates, charges, or special assessments inside or
outside the territory annexed by the
municipality.
(b) Territory may be annexed to the authority, regardless of
whether the territory is contiguous to the authority, as provided
by Chapter 49, Water Code.
(c) In addition to the authority granted by Subsection (b)
of this section, regardless of whether the territory is contiguous
to the authority, the authority may annex all of the territory
located within a district if the district files with the authority a
petition requesting the annexation signed by a majority of the
governing body of the district. The petition must include an
accurate legal description of the boundaries of the district. If
the authority has bonds, notes, or other obligations outstanding,
the authority shall require the petitioning district to be
obligated to pay its share of the principal of and interest on the
outstanding bonds, notes, or other obligations, and related costs.
In addition, the authority may require the petitioning district to
pay a portion of the expenses incurred by the member districts in
connection with the organization, creation, and administration of
the authority. The board may grant the petition and order the
district annexed to the authority if:
(1) it is feasible, practicable, and to the advantage
of the authority; and
(2) the authority's system and other improvements are
sufficient or will be sufficient to supply surface water and
groundwater to the added territory, if required pursuant to any
groundwater reduction plan adopted and implemented by the
authority, without harming the territory already included in the
authority.
(d) Any territory that a member district annexes after the
effective date of this Act, becomes territory of the authority,
only on the adoption of an order or resolution by the board
consenting to the inclusion of the additional territory within the
authority. The authority by rule may require all member districts
to send to the authority written notice of the effective date of an
annexation and require the member districts to send to the
authority copies of any necessary documents describing the annexed
land and describing the member district's boundaries and actual and
projected water usage requirements as they exist after inclusion of
the annexed land.
(e) The annexation to the authority of territory under this
section does not affect the validity of the authority's bonds
issued before or after the annexation.
(f) A municipality that annexes territory of the authority
for limited purposes under Subchapter F, Chapter 43, Local
Government Code, does not have the right to:
(1) receive notices from the authority under section
4.03(c) of this Act;
(2) participate in the appointment of directors under
article 2 of this Act; or
(3) receive information about or have the opportunity
to fund its share of capital costs in the manner provided by the
authority under section 4.04.
SECTION 1.06. DIRECTOR PRECINCTS.
(a) The authority is divided into three single-member
director precincts as follows:
(1) Director Precinct No. 1 includes the territory
that is contained in the following member districts: Harris County
Municipal Utility District No. 33, Fallbrook Utility District,
Rankin Road West Municipal Utility District and Harris County
Municipal Utility District No. No. 215.
(2) Director Precinct No. 2 includes the territory
that is contained in the following member districts: Harris County
Municipal Utility District No. 150, Harris County Municipal
District No. 217, and Harris County Municipal Utility District No.
304.
(3) Director Precinct No. 3 includes the territory
that is contained in the following member districts: Harris County
Municipal Utility District No. 200, Harris County Municipal Utility
District No. 205, Harris County Municipal Utility District No. 399
and Harris County Utility District No. 16.
(b) The board may redraw the single-member director
precincts in a manner that is reasonable and equitable:
(1) after any change in the boundaries of the
authority; or
(2) by a resolution redrawing the director precincts
adopted by a majority of the board based on changed circumstances.
SECTION 1.07. APPLICABILITY OF OTHER LAW.
(a) This Act prevails over any inconsistent provision of
general law.
(b) This Act does not prevail over or preempt a provision of
Chapter 151, Water Code, or Chapter 36, Water Code, that is being
implemented by the subsidence district.
SECTION 1.08. FINDING OF BENEFIT.
All the land, property, and persons included within the
boundaries of the authority will be directly benefited by the
works, projects, improvements, and services to be provided by the
authority under powers conferred by Section 59, Article XVI, Texas
Constitution, and this Act. The authority is created to serve a
public use and benefit. The creation of the authority will serve to
promote the health, safety, and general welfare of persons within
the authority, and the general public. Any fees, user fees, rates,
charges, or special assessments levied by the authority under this
Act are necessary to pay for the costs of accomplishing the purposes
of the authority as set forth in Section 59, Article XVI, Texas
Constitution, and this Act, including:
(1) the reduction of groundwater withdrawals;
(2) the facilitation of compliance with subsidence
district requirements; and
(3) the provision of services, facilities, and
systems.
SECTION 1.09. LIBERAL CONSTRUCTION OF THIS ACT.
This Act shall be liberally construed in conformity with the
purposes stated in this Act.
ARTICLE 2. DIRECTORS
SECTION 2.01. BOARD OF DIRECTORS.
(a) The authority is governed by a board of five directors.
(b) The directors serve staggered four-year terms.
(c) Each director must qualify to serve as director in the
manner provided by Section 49.055, Water Code.
(d) To be eligible to serve as a director of the authority or
to be listed on a ballot as a candidate for director of the
authority under section 2.02 of this Act, an individual must:
(1) be at least 18 years of age;
(2) be a resident of this state;
(3) own land or be a qualified voter within the
authority; and
(4) have served as a director of one or more districts
for a total of two years or more.
(e) To be eligible to serve as a director representing a
director precinct or to be listed on a ballot as a candidate for
director representing a director precinct under section 2.02 of
this Act, in addition to the requirements set forth in subsection
(d) of this section, an individual must own land or be a qualified
voter within the director precinct.
(f) A director serves until the director's successor has
qualified.
(g) The common law doctrine of incompatibility does not
disqualify an official or employee of a municipality from serving
as a director of the authority. Notwithstanding any other law, a
director may participate in all votes and decisions pertaining to
the business of the authority. A director who is also an officer or
employee of a public entity may not participate in the discussion of
or vote on a matter regarding a contract with that public entity.
SECTION 2.02. METHOD OF APPOINTMENT OF DIRECTORS.
(a) One director is appointed from each of the three
director precincts and two directors are appointed at-large. Two
directors from director precincts and one director at-large shall
be appointed in the first even-numbered year after the authority is
created, and one director from a director precinct and one director
at-large shall be appointed in the next even-numbered year after
the authority is created. Each subsequent even-numbered year, the
appropriate number of directors shall be appointed.
(b) In the appropriate even-numbered year, the governing
bodies of the member districts located within a director precinct
jointly shall appoint one director to represent the precinct by a
vote conducted as provided by this section. Each even-numbered
year, the governing bodies of each member district shall appoint
one director for an at-large position by a vote conducted as
provided by this section.
(c) If a member district is located within two or more
director precincts, the member district is considered, for purposes
of this article, to be located only within the director precinct in
which the greatest amount of territory of the member district is
located.
(d) For the appointment of a director for a director
precinct, the board shall determine the number of votes each member
district may cast. The number of votes for a governing body of a
member district within the precinct is equal to the number computed
by dividing the total number of units of water, as determined by the
board, used within the member district during the calendar year
preceding the year in which the selection of the director is done,
by the total number of units of water used by all member districts
in the precinct, multiplying that quotient by 100, and rounding
that result to the nearest one-tenth. The board shall provide the
presiding officer of each governing body of a member district
within each director precinct written notice of the number of votes
computed for that governing body to cast.
(e) For the appointment of a director for an at-large
position, the board shall determine the number of votes each member
district may cast. The number of votes for a governing body of a
member district is equal to the number computed by dividing the
total number of units of water, as determined by the board, used
within the member district during the calendar year preceding the
year in which the selection of the director is done by the total
number of units of water used by all member districts in the
authority, multiplying that quotient by 100 and rounding that
result to the nearest one-tenth. The board shall provide the
presiding officer of each governing body of a member district
written notice of the number of votes computed for that governing
body to cast.
(f) For purposes of subsections (d) and (e) of this section,
the board shall determine the amount of water usage of all member
districts within each director precinct.
(g) In the appropriate even-numbered year, the governing
body of each member district in a director precinct by resolution
may nominate one candidate for the position of director for that
director precinct. Each member district shall submit the name of
its candidate, if any, to the presiding officer of the authority by
February 15 of that year. If by February 15 of that year only one
candidate's name is submitted for the position of director for a
director precinct, the board may declare the unopposed candidate
elected and may cancel the director appointment procedures
generally required by this section for that position. If more than
one candidate's name is submitted for the position of director for a
director precinct, before March 15 of that year, the board shall
prepare, for the director precinct or precincts from which a
director is being appointed, a ballot listing all of the candidates
for that director precinct and shall provide a copy of the
appropriate ballot to the presiding officer of the governing body
of each member district located within the director precinct or
precincts from which a director is being appointed.
(h) The governing body of each member district by resolution
may nominate one candidate for the at-large director position.
Each member district shall submit the name of its candidate, if any,
to the presiding officer of the authority by February 15 of each
even-numbered year. If by February 15 of that year only one
candidate's name is submitted for the position of director for the
at-large director position, the board may declare the unopposed
candidate elected and may cancel the director appointment
procedures generally required by this section for that position.
If more than one candidate's name is submitted for the position of
director for the at-large director position, before March 15 of
that year, the board shall prepare a ballot listing all of the
candidates for the at-large director position and shall provide a
copy of the ballot to the presiding officer of the governing body of
each member district.
(i) An individual may not be listed as a candidate on more
than one ballot. If a candidate is nominated for more than one
director position, the candidate must choose to be on the ballot for
only one director position.
(j) The governing body of each member district shall
determine its votes for director by resolution and submit them to
the presiding officer of the authority before May 1 of each
even-numbered year. In casting its votes for director, the
governing body of each member district may vote for only one
candidate on the ballot for the director precinct in which the
member district is located and for one candidate on the at-large
position ballot. For each director precinct from which a director
is being appointed, the board shall count the votes, declare
elected the candidate who received the greatest number of votes
from member districts located within that director precinct, and
submit the results before May 15 of that year to the governing body
of each member district within that director precinct. For the
at-large position, the board shall count the votes, declare elected
the candidate who received the greatest number of votes, and submit
the results before May 15 of that year to the governing body of each
member district.
(k) The board may adopt rules regarding:
(1) the manner and timing of determinations and
calculations required by this section;
(2) the reporting of water usage to the authority by
member districts; and
(3) the conduct and process of the appointment of
directors.
SECTION 2.03. VACANCY IN OFFICE OF DIRECTOR.
A vacancy in the office of director for a director precinct
shall be filled by appointment by the governing bodies of the member
districts that are located within the director precinct for which
the vacancy occurred. A vacancy in the office of director for an
at-large position shall be filled by appointment by the governing
bodies of all of the member districts. The appointment process
shall follow the procedures of section 2.02 of this Act. The board
may establish dates different from those specified by sections
2.02(g) and (h) of this Act, but the date for the board's submission
of the voting results to each member district may not be later than
the 120th day after the date the vacancy occurs.
SECTION 2.04. INITIAL DIRECTORS.
(a) The initial board consists of:
Name of Director: Representing Director Precinct:
Margaret Cox (Precinct 1)
Judge Caston (Precinct 2)
Babara Hays (Precinct 3)
Julian Boddy (At Large)
James A. Johnson (At Large)
(b) At the first meeting of the initial board, or as soon as
practicable after that meeting, the directors shall draw lots to
determine:
(1) their terms so that:
(a) three directors, including one at-large position,
serve until the first appointment of directors under section 2.02
of this Act; and
(b) two directors, including one at-large position,
serve until the second appointment of directors under section 2.02
of this Act; and
(2) which two director precincts appoint a director in
the first even-numbered year in which directors are appointed under
section 2.02 of this Act.
ARTICLE 3. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
SECTION 3.01. MEETINGS AND ACTIONS OF BOARD.
(a) The board may meet as many times each year as the board
considers appropriate.
(b) Directors of the authority are public officials and are
entitled to governmental immunity for their actions in their
capacity as directors and officers of the authority.
(c) Directors of the authority may receive fees of office
and reimbursement of expenses as provided by Section 49.060, Water
Code.
SECTION 3.02. GENERAL MANAGER.
(a) The board may employ a general manager of the authority
or contract with a person to perform the duties of a general
manager. The board may delegate to the general manager full
authority to manage and operate the affairs of the authority
subject only to orders of the board.
(b) The board may delegate to the general manager the
authority to employ all persons necessary for the proper handling
of the business and operation of the authority and to determine the
compensation to be paid to all employees, other than the general
manager.
ARTICLE 4. POWERS AND DUTIES
SECTION 4.01. GENERAL POWERS AND DUTIES.
(a) The authority has all of the rights, powers, privileges,
authority, functions, and duties necessary and convenient to
accomplish the purposes of this Act, including those provided by
Chapter 49, Water Code.
(b) The authority may:
(1) provide for the conservation, preservation,
protection, recharge, and prevention of waste of groundwater, and
for the reduction of groundwater withdrawals as necessary to
develop, implement, or enforce a groundwater reduction plan, in a
manner consistent with the purposes of Section 59, Article XVI,
Texas Constitution, and facilitate compliance with subsidence
district rules, orders, regulations, or requirements;
(2) acquire or develop surface water and groundwater
supplies from sources inside or outside the boundaries of the
authority, conserve, store, transport, treat, purify, distribute,
sell, and deliver water to or among persons, corporations,
municipalities, municipal corporations, political subdivisions of
the state, and others, inside and outside the boundaries of the
authority, and allocate water among persons participating in the
authority's groundwater reduction plan whether they are located
inside or outside the authority's boundaries;
(3) enter into contracts with persons inside or
outside the authority on terms and conditions the board considers
desirable, fair, and advantageous for the performance of its
rights, powers, and authority under this Act;
(4) coordinate water services provided inside,
outside, or into the authority; and
(5) administer and enforce the provisions of this Act.
(c) The authority's rights, powers, privileges, authority,
functions, and duties are subject to the continuing right of
supervision of the state, to be exercised by and through the
commission.
(d) Sections 49.451-49.455, Water Code, do not apply to the
authority.
SECTION 4.02. AUTHORITY RULES.
The authority may adopt and enforce rules reasonably required
to implement this Act, including rules governing procedures before
the board and rules regarding implementation, enforcement, and any
other matters related to the authority's water supply or
groundwater reduction plan.
SECTION 4.03. FEES, USER FEES, RATES, AND CHARGES.
(a) The authority may establish fees, user fees, rates, and
charges and classifications of fee and ratepayers, as necessary to
enable the authority to fulfill the authority's purposes and
regulatory functions provided by this Act. The authority may
impose fees, user fees, rates, and charges on any person within the
authority.
(b) The authority may charge the owner of a well located
within the authority's boundaries a fee or user fee according to the
amount of water pumped from the well.
(c) The board shall make reasonable efforts to send member
districts written notice of the date, time, and location of the
meeting at which the board intends to adopt a proposed charge under
subsection (b) of this section, and the amount of the proposed
charge. The board's failure to comply with this subsection does not
invalidate a charge adopted by the board under subsection (b) of
this section.
(d) The board shall exempt from the charge under subsection
(b) of this section classes of wells that are not subject to any
groundwater reduction requirement imposed by the subsidence
district. If any of those classes of wells become subject to a
groundwater reduction requirement imposed by the subsidence
district, the authority may impose the charge under subsection (b)
of this section on those classes. The board by rule may exempt any
other classes of wells from the charge under subsection (b) of this
section. The board may not apply the charge under subsection (b) of
this section to a well:
(1) with a casing diameter of less than five inches
that solely serves a single-family dwelling; or
(2) regulated under Chapter 27, Water Code.
(e) The authority may establish fees, user fees, rates, and
charges that are sufficient to:
(1) achieve water conservation;
(2) prevent waste of water;
(3) serve as a disincentive to pumping groundwater;
(4) develop, implement, or enforce a groundwater
reduction plan;
(5) accomplish the purposes of this Act, including
making available alternative water supplies;
(6) enable the authority to meet operation and
maintenance expenses;
(7) pay the principal of and interest on notes, bonds,
and other obligations issued in connection with the exercise of the
authority's general powers and duties; and
(8) satisfy all rate covenants relating to the
issuance of notes, bonds, and other obligations.
(f) The authority may charge rates established by the
authority for water purchased from the authority.
(g) The authority may impose fees, user fees, or charges for
the importation of water into the authority's boundaries from a
source located outside the authority's boundaries.
SECTION 4.04. PURCHASE OF WATER FROM ANOTHER ENTITY.
If the authority purchases water from another entity for
resale to local governments, the authority shall use its best
efforts in negotiating with the entity to determine the amount of
capital costs included in any rates or charges paid by the
authority. The authority shall determine the amount of expected
capital costs of its own system. The authority shall provide each
member district within its boundaries information regarding the
share of the capital costs to be paid by the member district, as
determined by the authority, and shall provide each member district
the opportunity, in a manner and by a procedure determined by the
authority, to fund its share of the capital costs with proceeds from
the sale of bonds or fees and charges collected by the member
districts. A member district may use any lawful source of revenue,
including bond funds, to make payment for any sums due to the
authority.
SECTION 4.05. ASSESSMENTS.
(a) The board may undertake improvement projects and
services that confer a special benefit on all or a definable part of
the authority. The board may impose special assessments on
property in that area, including property of a local government,
based on the benefit conferred by the improvement project or
services, to pay all or part of the cost of the project and
services. The board may provide improvements and services to an
area outside the boundaries of the authority if the board
determines that there is a benefit to the authority. The authority
may finance with special assessments any improvement project or
service authorized by this Act or any other applicable law.
(b) Services or improvement projects may be financed with
special assessments under this Act only after the board holds a
public hearing on the advisability of the improvements and services
and the proposed assessments.
(c) The board shall publish notice of the hearing in a
newspaper or newspapers with general circulation in Harris County.
The publication must be made not later than the 30th day before the
date of the hearing.
(d) Notice provided under this section must include:
(1) the time and place of the hearing;
(2) the general nature of the proposed improvement
project or services;
(3) the estimated cost of the improvement, including
interest during construction and associated financing costs; and
(4) the proposed method of assessment.
(e) Written notice containing the information required by
Subsection (d) of this section shall be mailed by certified mail,
return receipt requested, not later than the 30th day before the
date of the hearing. The notice shall be mailed to each member
district. The subsidence district shall provide to the authority a
list of member districts that hold a permit for a well issued by the
subsidence district.
(f) The board may establish rules regarding procedures for a
hearing. A hearing on the services or improvement project, whether
conducted by the board or a hearings examiner, may be adjourned from
time to time. At the conclusion of a hearing conducted by the
board, the board shall make written findings and conclusions
relating to the advisability of the improvement project or
services, the nature of the improvement project or services, the
estimated cost, and the area benefited. If the board appoints a
hearings examiner to conduct the hearing, after conclusion of the
hearing, the hearings examiner shall file with the board a written
report of the examiner's findings and conclusions.
(g) At a hearing on proposed assessments, on adjournment of
the hearing, or after consideration of the hearings examiner's
report, the board shall hear and rule on all objections to each
proposed assessment. The board may amend proposed assessments for
any property. After the board hears and takes action on those
objections, the board, by order:
(1) shall impose the assessments as special
assessments on the property;
(2) shall specify the method of payment of the
assessments; and
(3) may provide that those assessments, including
interest, be paid in periodic installments.
(h) Periodic installments must be in amounts sufficient to
meet annual costs for services and improvements as provided by
Subsection (j) of this section and continue for the number of years
required to retire the indebtedness or pay for the services to be
rendered. The board may provide interest charges or penalties for
failure to make timely payment and may impose an amount to cover
delinquencies and expenses of collection.
(i) If assessments are imposed for more than one service or
improvement project, the board may provide that assessments
collected for one service or improvement project may be borrowed to
be used for another service or improvement project. The board shall
establish a procedure for the distribution or use of any
assessments in excess of those necessary to finance the services or
improvement project for which those assessments were collected.
(j) The board shall apportion the cost of an improvement
project or services to be assessed against the property in the
authority according to the special benefits that accrue to the
property because of the improvement project or services. The board
may assess the cost only according to the number of gallons of
groundwater pumped from wells within the authority that are subject
to a groundwater reduction requirement imposed by the subsidence
district. The board may not assess the cost according to
groundwater pumped from:
(1) a well with a casing diameter of less than five
inches that solely serves a single-family dwelling; or
(2) a well that is regulated by Chapter 27, Water Code.
(k) The area of the authority to be assessed according to
the findings of the board may be the entire authority or any part of
the authority and may be less than the area proposed in the notice
of the hearing.
(l) The area to be assessed may not include property that is
not within the authority boundaries at the time of the hearing
unless there is an additional hearing, following the required
notice.
(m) Notwithstanding Subsection (l), the owner of land
annexed to the authority after the authority has imposed
assessments may waive the right to notice and an assessment hearing
and may agree to the imposition and payment of assessments at an
agreed rate for land annexed to the authority. A member district
may waive the right to notice and an assessment hearing for land
within its boundaries annexed to the authority and may agree to the
imposition and payment of assessments at an agreed rate for the
annexed land.
(n) The board shall have prepared an assessment roll showing
the assessments against each property and the board's basis for the
assessment. The assessment roll shall be:
(1) filed with the secretary of the board or other
officer who performs the function of secretary; and
(2) open for public inspection.
(o) After notice and hearing in the manner required for an
original assessment, the board may make supplemental assessments to
correct omissions or mistakes in the assessment:
(1) relating to the total cost of the improvement
project or services; or
(2) covering delinquencies or costs of collection.
SECTION 4.06. INTEREST AND PENALTIES.
The board may require the payment of interest on any late or
unpaid fees, user fees, rates, charges, and special assessments due
the authority, but the interest rate may not exceed the interest
rate permitted by Section 2251.025, Government Code. The board may
also impose penalties for the failure to make a complete or timely
payment to the authority. In addition, the board may exclude a
person or member district, or any territory or well owned or
controlled by a person or member district, from the authority's
groundwater reduction plan for failure to make a complete or timely
payment to the authority.
SECTION 4.07. CIVIL PENALTY; INJUNCTION.
(a) A person who violates a rule or order of the authority is
subject to a civil penalty of not more than $5,000, as determined by
the board, for each violation or each day of a continuing violation.
The person shall pay the penalty to the authority.
(b) The authority may bring an action to recover the penalty
in a district court in the county where the violation occurred.
(c) The authority may bring an action for injunctive relief
in a district court in the county where a violation of an authority
rule or order occurs or is threatened to occur. The court may grant
to the authority, without bond or other undertaking, a prohibitory
or mandatory injunction that the facts warrant, including a
temporary restraining order, temporary injunction, or permanent
injunction.
(d) The authority may bring an action for a civil penalty
and injunctive relief in the same proceeding.
SECTION 4.08. WATER SUPPLY OR DROUGHT CONTINGENCY PLANS.
The authority by rule may develop, prepare, revise, adopt,
implement, enforce, and manage comprehensive water supply or
drought contingency plans for the authority, or any portion of the
authority.
SECTION 4.09. GROUNDWATER REDUCTION PLAN.
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, irrespective of whether
the authority enters into contracts with local governments located
within its boundaries, and irrespective of whether the authority
holds any well permit issued by the subsidence district under
Chapter 151, Water Code, the authority by rule may, in whole or in
part, develop, prepare, revise, adopt, implement, enforce, manage,
or participate in a groundwater reduction plan that is applicable
only to the authority or a groundwater reduction plan that is
applicable to the authority and one or more persons outside the
authority. The authority may require that any groundwater
reduction plan that the authority, in whole or in part, develops,
prepares, revises, adopts, implements, enforces, or manages or in
which the authority participates be the exclusive groundwater
reduction plan that is binding and mandatory on some or all of the
territory, persons, member districts, or wells located within the
authority. A groundwater reduction plan may:
(1) specify the measures to be taken to reduce
groundwater withdrawals;
(2) identify alternative sources of water to be
provided to those affected;
(3) identify the rates, terms, and conditions under
which alternative sources of water will be provided, which may be
changed from time to time as considered necessary by the authority;
(4) specify the dates and extent to which persons
within the authority's boundaries or member districts shall reduce
or cease reliance on groundwater and accept water from alternative
sources;
(5) include other terms and measures that are
consistent with the powers and duties of the authority;
(6) exceed the minimum requirements imposed by the
subsidence district, including any applicable groundwater
reduction requirements; and
(7) be amended from time to time at the discretion of
the authority.
(b) Fees, user fees, rates, charges, and special
assessments of the authority may be imposed under this Act for a
person's participation in and benefit derived from the authority's
groundwater reduction plan or a groundwater reduction plan in which
the authority participates.
SECTION 4.10. ACQUISITION, CONSTRUCTION, AND OPERATION OF
SYSTEMS.
(a) The authority may:
(1) acquire by purchase, gift, lease, contract, or any
other legal means a water treatment or supply system, or any other
works, plants, improvements, or facilities necessary or convenient
to accomplish the purposes of the authority, or any interest of the
authority, inside or outside the authority's boundaries;
(2) design, finance, operate, maintain, or construct a
water treatment or supply system, or any other works, plants,
improvements, or facilities necessary or convenient to accomplish
the purposes of the authority, and provide water services inside or
outside the authority's boundaries;
(3) lease or sell a water treatment or supply system or
any other works, plants, improvements, or facilities necessary or
convenient to accomplish the purposes of the authority, that the
authority constructs or acquires inside or outside the authority's
boundaries;
(4) contract with any person to operate or maintain a
water treatment or supply system the person owns; or
(5) acquire water rights under any law or permit.
(b) The competitive bidding laws provided by Chapter 49,
Water Code, apply to the authority.
(c) The authority may contract, according to terms and
conditions the board considers desirable, fair, and advantageous,
contract with a person outside the authority's boundaries:
(1) to allow the person to be included in a groundwater
reduction plan adopted or implemented, in whole or in part, by the
authority or in a groundwater reduction plan in which the authority
participates;
(2) to sell water to the person; or
(3) to sell the person available excess capacity or
additional capacity of the authority's water treatment or supply
system.
(d) The authority by rule may require that the plans and
specifications of water lines to be constructed within the
authority that are designed or intended to serve more than one
member district or more than one person owning or holding a well
permit issued by the subsidence district under Chapter 151, Water
Code, be approved by the authority before the commencement of
construction of the water lines.
SECTION 4.11. SALE OR REUSE OF WATER OR BY-PRODUCT.
The authority may store, sell, or reuse:
(1) water; or
(2) any by-product from the authority's operations.
SECTION 4.12. CONTRACTS.
(a) The authority may enter into a contract with a person
for the performance of a purpose or function of the authority,
including a contract to design, construct, finance, lease, own,
manage, operate, or maintain works, improvements, facilities,
plants, equipment, or appliances necessary to accomplish a purpose
or function of the authority. A contract may be of unlimited
duration.
(b) The authority may purchase, acquire, finance, or lease
an interest in a project used for a purpose or function of the
authority.
(c) The authority may contract for:
(1) the purchase, sale, or lease of water or water
rights;
(2) the performance of activities within the powers of
the authority through the purchase, construction, or installation
of works, improvements, facilities, plants, equipment, or
appliances; or
(3) the design, construction, ownership, management,
maintenance, or operation of any works, improvements, facilities,
plants, equipment, or appliances of the authority or another
person.
(d) The authority may purchase surplus property from this
state, the United States, or another public entity through a
negotiated contract without bids.
SECTION 4.13. COOPERATION WITH AND ASSISTANCE OF OTHER
GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES.
(a) In implementing this Act, the board may cooperate with
and request the assistance of the Texas Water Development Board,
the commission, the United States Geological Survey, the subsidence
district, other local governments, and other agencies of the United
States and this state.
(b) The subsidence district may enter into an interlocal
contract with the authority to carry out the authority's purposes
and may carry out the governmental functions and services specified
in the interlocal contract.
(c) The board shall endeavor to coordinate with the City of
Houston to develop a plan for a system to distribute surface water
in an economical and efficient manner to the authority.
(d) In an attempt to minimize costs associated with
preparing a groundwater reduction plan, the board shall consider
the usefulness of water supply studies and plans prepared by or on
behalf of the North Harris County Regional Water Authority, the
West Harris County Regional Water Authority, the City of Houston,
or other governmental entities to the extent such studies or plans
are available and applicable to the authority.
SECTION 4.14. GIFTS AND GRANTS.
The authority may accept a gift or grant from money collected
by the subsidence district under Chapter 151, Water Code, to fund
the construction, maintenance, or operation of a water treatment or
supply system.
SECTION 4.15. EXPENDITURES.
(a) The authority's money may be disbursed only by check,
draft, order, federal reserve wire system, or other instrument or
authorization.
(b) Disbursements of the authority must be signed by at
least a majority of the directors. Notwithstanding any other law,
the board by resolution may allow the general manager, treasurer,
bookkeeper, or other employee of the authority to sign
disbursements, except as limited by Subsection (c) of this section.
(c) The board by resolution may allow disbursements to be
transferred by federal reserve wire system to accounts in the name
of the authority without the necessity of any directors signing the
disbursement. Disbursements of the authority's money by federal
reserve wire system to any accounts not in the name of the authority
must be signed by at least a majority of the directors.
SECTION 4.16. AD VALOREM TAXATION.
The authority may not impose an ad valorem tax.
SECTION 4.17. EMINENT DOMAIN.
(a) The authority may acquire by condemnation any land,
easements, or other property inside the authority's boundaries to
further authorized purposes, powers, or duties of the authority.
The authority may acquire by condemnation any land, easements, or
other property outside the authority's boundaries for the purposes
of pumping, storing, treating, or transporting water. When
exercising the power of eminent domain granted by this section, the
authority may elect to condemn either the fee simple title or a
lesser property interest.
(b) The authority shall exercise the right of eminent domain
in the manner provided by Chapter 21, Property Code. The authority
is not required to give bond for appeal or bond for costs in a
condemnation suit or other suit to which it is a party. The
authority is not required to deposit more than the amount of an
award in a suit.
(c) The authority may not use the power of eminent domain
for the condemnation of land for the purpose of acquiring rights to
underground water or for the purpose of acquiring water or water
rights.
(d) The authority may not use the power of eminent domain
for the condemnation of property that is:
(1) owned by the City of Houston or any
instrumentality of the City of Houston, including any local
government corporation created under Chapter 431, Transportation
Code, to aid or act on behalf of the City of Houston; or
(2) located within the municipal limits of the City of
Houston.
(e) Notwithstanding Subsection (d)(2) of this section, the
authority may use the power of eminent domain to acquire property
that is not owned by the City of Houston that is within the
municipal limits of the City of Houston if:
(1) the property is located in an area of the
municipality that is less than 1,000 feet wide at its narrowest
point; or
(2) the municipality grants permission for the
condemnation.
ARTICLE 5. BONDS AND NOTES
SECTION 5.01. REVENUE BONDS AND NOTES.
(a) The authority may issue bonds or notes payable solely
from revenue from any source, including:
(1) tolls, charges, rates, fees, user fees, and
special assessments the authority imposes or collects;
(2) the sale of water, water services, water rights or
capacity, water transmission rights or services, water pumping, or
any other service or product of the authority provided inside or
outside the boundaries of the authority;
(3) grants or gifts;
(4) the ownership or operation of all or a designated
part of the authority's works, improvements, facilities, plants, or
equipment; and
(5) contracts between the authority and any person.
(b) Notes issued by the authority may be first or
subordinate lien notes at the board's discretion.
(c) In connection with any bonds or notes of the authority,
the authority may exercise any power of an issuer under Chapter
1371, Government Code.
(d) The authority may conduct a public, private, or
negotiated sale of the bonds or notes.
(e) The authority may enter into one or more indentures of
trust to further secure its bonds or notes.
(f) The authority may issue bonds or notes in more than one
series as necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act. In
issuing bonds or notes secured by revenue of the authority, the
authority may reserve the right to issue additional bonds or notes
secured by the authority's revenue that are on a parity with or are
senior or subordinate to the bonds or notes issued earlier.
(g) A resolution of the board authorizing the bonds or notes
or a trust indenture securing the bonds or notes may specify
additional provisions that constitute a contract between the
authority and its bondholders or noteholders.
(h) Bonds and notes may be additionally secured by deed of
trust or mortgage on any or all of the authority's facilities.
(i) Sections 49.153, 49.154, and 49.181, Water Code, do not
apply to bonds or notes issued by the authority. Commission rules
regarding bonds or notes do not apply to bonds or notes issued by
the authority.
SECTION 5.02. REFUNDING BONDS.
The authority may issue refunding bonds and notes to refund
any of its bonds or notes in any manner provided by law.
ARTICLE 6. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
SECTION 6.01. FINDINGS RELATED TO PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS.
(a) The proper and legal notice of the intention to
introduce this Act, setting out the general substance of this Act,
has been published as provided by law, and the notice and a copy of
this Act have been furnished to all persons, agencies, officials,
or entities to which they are required to be furnished by the
constitution and other laws of this state, including the governor,
who has submitted the notice and this Act to the commission.
(b) The commission has filed its recommendations relating
to this Act with the governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker of
the House of Representatives within the required time.
(c) All requirements of the constitution and laws of this
state and the rules and procedures of the legislature with respect
to notice, introduction, and passage of this Act are fulfilled and
accomplished.
SECTION 6.02. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This Act takes effect 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. If this Act does not
receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes
effect _____________, 2005.