By: Birdwell  S.B. No. 407
         (In the Senate - Filed January 22, 2019; February 14, 2019,
  read first time and referred to Committee on Water & Rural Affairs;
  March 27, 2019, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
  Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 6, Nays 0; March 27, 2019,
  sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
 
  COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 407 By:  Johnson
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
 
  relating to the presiding officers of the boards of directors of
  river authorities.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Title 5, Water Code, is amended by designating
  Chapter 152 as Subtitle A and adding a subtitle heading to read as
  follows:
  SUBTITLE A. RIVER AUTHORITIES
         SECTION 2.  Subtitle A, Title 5, Water Code, as added by this
  Act, is amended by adding Chapter 150 to read as follows:
  CHAPTER 150. PROVISIONS GENERALLY APPLICABLE TO RIVER AUTHORITIES
         Sec. 150.0001.  DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
               (1)  "Board" means the board of directors of a river
  authority.
               (2)  "River authority" means the San Antonio River
  Authority and a district:
                     (A)  created by the legislature under the
  authority of Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution, as a
  regional water management entity to provide water development and
  planning services and other services to a river basin or portion of
  a river basin;
                     (B)  that contains one or more counties within its
  boundaries; and
                     (C)  governed by a board of directors appointed or
  designated wholly or partly by the governor.
         Sec. 150.0002.  PRESIDING OFFICER. (a)  This section does
  not apply to a district with an entirely elected board or the Upper
  Neches River Municipal Water Authority.
         (b)  The governor shall designate a member of the board of a
  river authority as the presiding officer of the board to serve in
  that capacity at the pleasure of the governor.
         SECTION 3.  (a)  In this section, "river authority" has the
  meaning assigned by Section 150.0001, Water Code, as added by this
  Act.
         (b)  For each river authority for which the governor was not
  required to designate a presiding officer of the board of directors
  for that river authority before the effective date of this Act and
  for which the governor is required to designate a presiding officer
  under Section 150.0002, Water Code, as added by this Act, the
  governor shall designate a presiding officer of the board of
  directors of the river authority not later than January 31, 2020.
         SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.
 
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