BILL ANALYSIS |
C.S.H.B. 685 |
By: Márquez |
County Affairs |
Committee Report (Substituted) |
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
For an emergency services district located wholly in one county, such as certain districts in El Paso County, the commissioners court of the county appoints a board of emergency services commissioners to serve as the district's governing body. Interested parties contend that a county lacks sufficient oversight over certain decisions made by such emergency commissioners and that there is little a commissioners court can do about a district's mismanagement for a district operating in a questionable manner. These same parties contend that a commissioners court is unfairly blamed for the poor performance of district appointees and that providing a county with improved oversight will remedy these issues. C.S.H.B. 685 seeks to bring transparency to the operations of certain emergency services districts and to increase the accountability of such districts.
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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.
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ANALYSIS
C.S.H.B. 685 amends the Health and Safety Code to establish provisions relating to commissioners court oversight of an emergency services district that is located wholly in a county that borders the United Mexican States, that has a population of more than 800,000, and for which the commissioners court appoints a board of emergency services commissioners. The bill specifies that its provisions control over a provision of other law to the extent of a conflict.
C.S.H.B. 685 authorizes a commissioners court to adopt a resolution to delegate to a board a duty assigned to the commissioners court under the bill's provisions that relates to that district or a resolution to waive a requirement under such provisions that the commissioners court approve an action of a district. The bill authorizes an adopted resolution to apply to more than one board or district and authorizes a commissioners court by resolution to terminate the delegation of a duty or the waiver of an approval requirement.
C.S.H.B. 685 authorizes a commissioners court to establish policies and procedures a board must comply with when providing services through and using public funds for a volunteer fire department or emergency service provider or when constructing, purchasing, acquiring, contracting for, leasing, adding to, maintaining, operating, developing, regulating, selling, exchanging, or conveying real or personal property, a property right, equipment, goods, services, a facility, or a system to maintain a building or other facility or to provide a service to or required by the district. The bill sets out provisions relating to such policies and procedures. The bill specifies that these provisions regarding powers relating to district property, facilities, and equipment do not authorize a commissioners court or a board to use real or personal property, a property right, equipment, a facility, or a system to provide a telecommunications service, advanced communications service, information service, or a video service.
C.S.H.B. 685, effective January 1, 2014, requires a commissioners court to establish a schedule for a district to prepare an annual budget, tax rate calculations and notices, and a recommended tax rate and to submit the budget, calculations, notices, and recommendation to the commissioners court for final approval. The bill requires the schedule to take into account certain requirements applicable to adopting a district tax rate and to provide the commissioners court a reasonable amount of time to review the required submissions. The bill requires a board to prepare an annual budget and submit the budget to the commissioners court for final approval according to the established schedule and to submit to the commissioners court and the county auditor tax rate calculations and notices and a recommended tax rate according to the established schedule. The bill specifies that a commissioners court is considered to have approved a submitted budget if the commissioners court does not approve or deny the budget before the 31st day after the date the budget is submitted. The bill specifies that a commissioners court is considered to have approved a recommended tax rate, and makes such tax rate the rate for the year in which the rate is recommended, if the commissioners court does not approve or deny the tax rate before the 31st day after the date the tax rate is submitted.
C.S.H.B. 685 requires a board to encourage and promote participation by all sectors of the business community, including small businesses and businesses owned by members of a minority group or by women, in the process by which the district enters into contracts. The bill requires the board to develop a plan for the district to identify and remove barriers that do not have a definite or objective relationship to quality or competence and that unfairly discriminate against such businesses. The bill specifies that such barriers may include contracting procedures and contract specifications or conditions.
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EFFECTIVE DATE
Except as otherwise provided, September 1, 2013.
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COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE
While C.S.H.B. 685 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following comparison is organized and highlighted in a manner that indicates the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.
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