The Legislative Budget Board, in cooperation with the Texas Water Development Board (TPWD) and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has determined that:

The bill creates Harris County Municipal Utility District No. 495 (District) with the powers and duties of a municipal utility district under Water Code Chapters 49 and 54.

The purpose of the District includes providing works and projects under powers conferred by Article XVI, Section 59 and Article III, Section 52 of the Texas Constitution to benefit the property within the District. The District is subject to confirmation election by the voters.  The District is subject to consent of all municipalities in whose corporate limits or extraterritorial jurisdiction the district is located. 

The bill does not name five temporary directors. The majority owners of the assessed land value inside the District may submit a petition requesting the TCEQ appoint the five temporary directors listed in the petition.

The bill becomes effective upon two-thirds vote of the members or on September 1, 2009.

1)     Population - The proposed Harris County Municipal Utility District No. 495 is located in a county that is expected to grow in the future and although the proposed area is currently undeveloped, development is anticipated.

The 2007 State Water Plan projects Harris County to grow from its 2000 population of 3,400,578 people to 3,951,682 in 2010 and to 4,502,786 in 2020.  The county other population of Harris County was 76,009 in 2000 and is projected to be 65,312 in 2010 and 51,260 in 2020.

2)     Location - The proposed district is located in western Harris County near the intersection of Katy-Hockley Cut Off Road and Stockdick School Road, just north of the city of Katy.  The district does not appear to overlap any known CCN boundaries.

3) Comments on Powers/Duties Different from Similar Types of Districts - The District will have the authority for road projects. The District will have the power of eminent domain, but it is limited to within the District boundaries for road projects and recreational facilities.  The bill gives the District the ability to levy a contract tax.

4) Overlapping Services - The boundaries form an acceptable closure. The bill provides insufficient mapping information to complete an overlapping services check because it does not provide an area map containing at least two reference points (major road names, road intersections) and the proposed district’s geographic location mapped within Harris County. The District may overlap with existing service providers as follows: Coastal Water Authority, Harris County Flood Control District, Port of Houston Authority, West Harris County Regional Water Authority, Certificate of Convenience and Necessity (CCN) Nos. 13061 and 20964 for South Central Water Company.

5) TCEQ Supervision - As with general law districts, the TCEQ will have general supervisory authority, including bond review authority and review of financial reports.

6) Water Use - Within Harris County, about 35 percent of the total water used was groundwater in 2004.  Of the total groundwater used, 87 percent was for municipal purposes.  Groundwater within Harris County is pumped from the Gulf Coast Aquifer.  Water management strategies in Harris County include drilling new groundwater wells, indirect reuse, municipal conservation, and securing new contracts from existing sources.