BILL ANALYSIS

S.B. 593

By: Rodríguez

Urban Affairs

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Interested parties note some of the governance requirements for certain municipal housing authorities are unnecessarily difficult to satisfy. S.B. 593 seeks to address this issue by reforming the governance requirements of certain municipal housing authorities. 

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.

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.

ANALYSIS

S.B. 593 amends the Local Government Code to specify that a recipient of housing assistance administered through a project-based rental assistance program may be a commissioner of a municipal housing authority. The bill requires a municipality that has a population over 600,000, is located adjacent to the international border of Texas, and has a municipal housing authority composed of five commissioners to appoint at least one commissioner to the authority who is a tenant of a public housing project over which the authority has jurisdiction or who is a recipient of housing assistance administered through the authority's housing choice voucher program or project-based rental assistance program. The bill makes the prohibitions against certain commissioners participating in a vote or discussion concerning the termination of the commissioner's rights to housing assistance administered through a housing choice voucher program or termination of the rights of certain relatives of the commissioner to receive such housing assistance applicable with regard to housing assistance administered through a project‑based rental assistance program. The bill makes statutory provisions relating to the continued service of a commissioner after the commissioner ceases to receive housing assistance administered through a housing choice voucher program applicable with regard to housing assistance administered through a project-based rental assistance program.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2017.