85R2184 TJB-D
 
  By: Kolkhorst S.B. No. 553
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the notice of intention to issue certificates of
  obligation.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 271.049, Local Government Code, is
  amended by amending Subsections (a), (b), and (d) and adding
  Subsections (e), (f), and (g) to read as follows:
         (a)  Regardless of the sources of payment of certificates,
  certificates may not be issued unless the issuer publishes notice
  of its intention to issue the certificates.  The notice must be
  published:
               (1)  once a week for two consecutive weeks in a
  newspaper, as defined by Subchapter C, Chapter 2051, Government
  Code, that is of general circulation in the area of the issuer, with
  the date of the first publication to be before the 30th day before
  the date tentatively set for the passage of the order or ordinance
  authorizing the issuance of the certificates; and
               (2)  continuously on the issuer's Internet website, or
  on a website as authorized by Subsection (f)(2), for at least 30
  days before the date tentatively set for the passage of the order or
  ordinance authorizing the issuance of the certificates and until
  the first day after the date the issuer adopts the order or
  ordinance.
         (b)  The notice must state:
               (1)  the time and place tentatively set for the passage
  of the order or ordinance authorizing the issuance of the
  certificates;
               (2)  the [maximum amount and] purpose of the
  certificates to be authorized; [and]
               (3)  the manner in which the certificates will be paid
  for, whether by taxes, revenues, or a combination of the two;
               (4)  as of the date the issuer adopts the order or
  ordinance, the principal of all outstanding debt obligations of the
  issuer;
               (5)  as of the date the issuer adopts the order or
  ordinance, the estimated remaining interest of all outstanding debt
  obligations of the issuer;
               (6)  as of the date the issuer adopts the order or
  ordinance, the estimated combined principal and interest required
  to pay all outstanding debt obligations of the issuer on time and in
  full;
               (7)  the maximum principal of the certificates to be
  authorized; and
               (8)  the process by which a petition may be submitted
  requesting an election on the issuance of the certificates, in the
  following form:
         "Five percent of the qualified voters of (name of issuer) may
  petition to require an election to be held authorizing the issuance
  of certificates of obligation by delivering a signed petition to
  the (insert "secretary or clerk" if the issuer is a municipality, or
  "county clerk" if the issuer is a county) of (name of issuer)  
  before the date the governing body has set for the authorization of
  the certificates of obligation. Information about the requirements
  of the petition may be obtained from the (insert "secretary or
  clerk" if the issuer is a municipality, or "county clerk" if the
  issuer is a county) of (name of issuer)."[.]
         (d)  This section does not apply to certificates issued for
  the purposes described by Sections 271.056(1)-(3)
  [271.056(1)-(4)].
         (e)  Except as provided by Subsection (f), an issuer shall
  maintain or cause to be maintained an Internet website to comply
  with this section.
         (f)  This subsection does not apply to a county or
  municipality with a population of more than 2,000. If an issuer did
  not maintain an Internet website or cause a website to be maintained
  on January 1, 2017, the issuer shall post the information required
  by Subsection (b) on:
               (1)  the issuer's website, if the issuer chooses to
  maintain the website or cause the website to be maintained; or
               (2)  a website in which the issuer controls the content
  of the posting, including a social media site, provided that the
  information is easily found by searching the name of the issuer on
  the Internet.
         (g)  In this section, "debt obligation" means an issued
  public security, as defined by Section 1201.002, Government Code,
  secured by property taxes.
         SECTION 2.  The changes in law made by this Act to Section
  271.049, Local Government Code, apply only to a certificate of
  obligation for which the first notice of intention to issue the
  certificate is made on or after the effective date of this Act. A
  certificate of obligation for which the first notice of intention
  to issue the certificate is made before the effective date of this
  Act is governed by the law in effect when the notice of intention is
  made, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
         SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.