82R976 NC-F

By: Turner H.B. No. 364

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to condominiums in certain municipalities, including the

exercise of eminent domain authority by those municipalities with

respect to certain condominiums.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 2206.001(b), Government Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(b) A governmental or private entity may not take private

property through the use of eminent domain if the taking:

(1) confers a private benefit on a particular private

party through the use of the property;

(2) is for a public use that is merely a pretext to

confer a private benefit on a particular private party; or

(3) is for economic development purposes, unless the

economic development is a secondary purpose resulting from:

(A) municipal community development or municipal

urban renewal activities to eliminate an existing affirmative harm

on society from slum or blighted areas under:

(i) [(A)] Chapter 373 or 374, Local

Government Code, other than an activity described by Section

373.002(b)(5), Local Government Code; or

(ii) [(B)] Section 311.005(a)(1)(I), Tax

Code; or

(B) the elimination of urban blight under

Subchapter I, Chapter 214, Local Government Code.

SECTION 2. The heading to Section 82.118, Property Code, is

amended to read as follows:

Sec. 82.118. SERVICE OF PROCESS ON UNIT OWNERS IN CERTAIN

MUNICIPALITIES; CHANGE OF ADDRESS REQUIRED.

SECTION 3. Section 82.118, Property Code, is amended by

adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:

(c) Not later than the 90th day after the date a unit owner

changes the unit owner's mailing address, the owner must provide

written notice of the owner's new address to the appraisal district

in which the condominium is located.

SECTION 4. Section 82.153(a), Property Code, is amended to

read as follows:

(a) A condominium information statement must contain or

accurately disclose:

(1) the name and principal address of the declarant

and of the condominium;

(2) a general description of the condominium that

includes the types of units and the maximum number of units;

(3) the minimum and maximum number of additional

units, if any, that may be included in the condominium;

(4) a brief narrative description of any development

rights reserved by a declarant and of any conditions relating to or

limitations upon the exercise of development rights;

(5) copies of the declaration, articles of

incorporation of the association, the bylaws, any rules of the

association, and amendments to any of them, and copies of leases and

contracts, other than loan documents, that are required by the

declarant to be signed by purchasers at closing;

(6) a projected or pro forma budget for the

association that complies with Subsection (b) for the first fiscal

year of the association following the date of the first conveyance

to a purchaser, identification of the person who prepared the

budget, and a statement of the budget's assumptions concerning

occupancy and inflation factors;

(7) a general description of each lien, lease, or

encumbrance on or affecting the title to the condominium after

conveyance by the declarant;

(8) a copy of each written warranty provided by the

declarant;

(9) a description of any unsatisfied judgments against

the association and any pending suits to which the association is a

party or which are material to the land title and construction of

the condominium of which a declarant has actual knowledge;

(10) a general description of the insurance coverage

provided for the benefit of unit owners;

(11) current or expected fees or charges to be paid by

unit owners for the use of the common elements and other facilities

related to the condominium; and

(12) for a condominium located wholly or partly in a

municipality with a population of more than 1.9 million a statement

that a unit owner:

(A) as an alternative to personal service, may be

served with process by the municipality or the municipality's agent

for a judicial or administrative proceeding initiated by the

municipality and directly related to the unit owner's property

interest in the condominium by serving the unit owner at the unit

owner's last known address, according to the records of the

appraisal district in which the condominium is located, by any

means permitted by Rule 21a, Texas Rules of Civil Procedure;

(B) shall [promptly] notify the appraisal

district in writing of a change in the unit owner's mailing address

not later than the 90th day after the date the unit owner changes

the address; and

(C) may not offer proof in the judicial or

administrative proceeding, or in a subsequent related proceeding,

that otherwise proper service by mail of the notice was not received

not later than three days after the date the notice was deposited in

a post office or official depository under the care and custody of

the United States Postal Service.

SECTION 5. Chapter 214, Local Government Code, is amended

by adding Subchapter I to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER I. EMINENT DOMAIN AUTHORITY OF CERTAIN MUNICIPALITIES

TO TAKE ABANDONED CONDOMINIUMS

Sec. 214.301. APPLICABILITY. This subchapter applies only

to a municipality with a population of more than 1.9 million.

Sec. 214.302. DEFINITION. In this subchapter,

"condominium" means a condominium as defined by Section 81.002 or

82.003, Property Code.

Sec. 214.303. EMINENT DOMAIN AUTHORITY. A municipality may

take a condominium through the use of eminent domain if:

(1) all lawful occupation of or construction activity

for the condominium has ceased, or reasonably appears to have

ceased, for more than 365 consecutive days; and

(2) the taking is for the elimination of urban blight

on the particular parcel of property where the condominium is

located.

SECTION 6. The change in law made by this Act applies only

to a condemnation proceeding in which the condemnation petition is

filed on or after the effective date of this Act and to any property

condemned through the proceeding. A condemnation proceeding in

which the condemnation petition is filed before the effective date

of this Act and any property condemned through the proceeding are

governed by the law in effect immediately before the effective date

of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.

SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.