BILL ANALYSIS |
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C.S.S.B. 1812 |
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By: Kolkhorst |
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Land & Resource Management |
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Committee Report (Substituted) |
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BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
Interested parties note that previous legislation required certain public and private entities with eminent domain authority to register with the comptroller of public accounts by a specified deadline in order to retain such authority. The one-time requirement, which did not apply to any entity created or that acquired the power of eminent domain after that registration deadline, captured a snapshot of such entities in Texas at a particular point in time. The parties assert, however, that without requirements for continuous registration the state has only a limited view of the extent to which such local powers of eminent domain apply. C.S.S.B. 1812 seeks to address this limitation.
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CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.
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RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that rulemaking authority is expressly granted to the comptroller of public accounts in SECTION 1 of this bill.
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ANALYSIS
C.S.S.B. 1812 amends the
Government Code to require the comptroller of public accounts to create and
make accessible on a website maintained by the comptroller, not later than
C.S.S.B. 1812 authorizes the comptroller to consult with the appropriate officer of, or other person representing, each entity to obtain the information necessary to maintain the eminent domain database. The bill authorizes the comptroller, to the extent information required in the eminent domain database is otherwise collected or maintained by a state agency or political subdivision, to request that information and any update to the information as necessary for inclusion in the eminent domain database and requires the agency or political subdivision to provide the information and updates. The bill requires the comptroller, at least annually, to update information in the eminent domain database for each entity, as appropriate. The bill requires the comptroller, to the extent possible, to present information in the eminent domain database in a manner that is searchable and intuitive to users and authorizes the comptroller to enhance and organize the presentation of the information through the use of graphical representations as the comptroller considers appropriate. The bill prohibits the comptroller from charging a fee to the public to access the eminent domain database.
C.S.S.B. 1812 requires a public or private entity, including common carriers, authorized by the state by a general or special law to exercise the power of eminent domain, not later than February 1 of each year, to submit to the comptroller a report containing records and other information specified by the bill's provisions for the purpose of providing the comptroller with information to maintain the eminent domain database. The bill requires the entity to submit the report in a form and in the manner prescribed by the comptroller. The bill, in a temporary provision set to expire December 1, 2016, requires an applicable entity created before and in existence for at least 180 days on September 1, 2015, to submit the entity's initial report not later than February 1, 2016, and requires an applicable entity created before and in existence for less than 180 days on September 1, 2015, to submit the entity's initial report not later than the later of the 180th day after the date of the entity's creation or February 1, 2016. The bill specifies that an applicable entity created on or after September 1, 2015, is not required to submit the entity's initial report before the 180th day after the date of the entity's creation. The bill specifies that, for purposes of the bill's provisions, an entity is considered to have been created on the earliest date on which the entity existed if the entity was authorized to exercise the power of eminent domain on that date or the earliest date on which the entity was authorized to exercise the power of eminent domain if the entity did not have that authority on the earliest date on which the entity existed. The bill requires an applicable entity, in addition to submitting the required annual report, to report to the comptroller any changes to the eminent domain authority information reported by the entity not later than the 90th day after the date on which the change occurred.
C.S.S.B. 1812 requires the comptroller to provide certain written notice to an entity that does not timely submit a report required under the bill's provisions, requires an entity that is provided such notice to report the required information not later than the 30th day after the date the notice is provided, and makes an entity that does not report the required information by that date liable to the state for a civil penalty of $1,000. The bill requires the comptroller to provide certain written notice to an entity that does not report the required information by the 30th day after the date the comptroller provides the initial notice of noncompliance and requires an entity that is provided this second notice to report the required information by the 30th day after the date the second notice is provided. The bill makes an entity that is provided this second notice and does not report the required information by the prescribed deadline liable to the state for an additional civil penalty of $1,000, requires the comptroller to reflect the entity's noncompliance in the eminent domain database by including the entity on a separately maintained list of noncomplying entities and in any other manner determined appropriate by the comptroller until the entity reports all required information, and requires the comptroller to provide written notice to the entity that the entity's noncompliance will be reflected in the database until the entity reports the required information. The bill authorizes the attorney general to sue to collect a civil penalty assessed under the bill's provisions.
C.S.S.B. 1812 establishes that the reporting, failure to report, or late submission of a report by an entity under the bill's provisions does not affect the entity's authority to exercise the power of eminent domain. The bill authorizes the comptroller to adopt rules and establish policies and procedures to implement the bill's provisions.
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EFFECTIVE DATE
On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2015.
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COMPARISON OF SENATE ENGROSSED AND SUBSTITUTE
While C.S.S.B. 1812 may differ from the engrossed in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following comparison is organized and formatted in a manner that indicates the substantial differences between the engrossed and committee substitute versions of the bill. |
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