| |
|
|
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
|
|
|
AN ACT
|
|
|
relating to certain procedures associated with voter approval of |
|
|
municipal annexation. |
|
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 43, Local Government Code, |
|
|
is amended by adding Section 43.004 to read as follows: |
|
|
Sec. 43.004. PETITION FOR ELECTION ON CONSIDERATION AS TIER |
|
|
2 COUNTY. (a) The registered voters of a tier 1 county may file a |
|
|
petition with the commissioners court of the county requesting an |
|
|
election in the county to determine whether the county should be |
|
|
considered a tier 2 county for the purposes of this chapter. The |
|
|
petition must contain the signatures of at least seven percent of |
|
|
the registered voters of the county. |
|
|
(b) The commissioners court of a county that receives a |
|
|
petition for an election under Subsection (a) shall: |
|
|
(1) verify the signatures on the petition; and |
|
|
(2) if the county verifies that the petition satisfies |
|
|
the signature requirement under Subsection (a): |
|
|
(A) order the election; and |
|
|
(B) provide notice of the verified petition as |
|
|
soon as practicable to the governing body of each municipality: |
|
|
(i) located wholly or partly in the county; |
|
|
or |
|
|
(ii) with extraterritorial jurisdiction in |
|
|
the county. |
|
|
(c) If a majority of the votes cast at an election held under |
|
|
Subsection (b) favor the proposition, the county is considered a |
|
|
tier 2 county for the purposes of this chapter. |
|
|
SECTION 2. Section 43.0686(b), Local Government Code, is |
|
|
amended to read as follows: |
|
|
(b) If the municipality does not obtain the number of |
|
|
signatures on the petition required to annex the area, the |
|
|
municipality may not annex any part of the area and may not adopt |
|
|
another resolution under Section 43.0682 to annex any part of the |
|
|
area until the fifth [first] anniversary of the date the petition |
|
|
period ended. |
|
|
SECTION 3. Section 43.0697(b), Local Government Code, is |
|
|
amended to read as follows: |
|
|
(b) If at the election held under this subchapter a majority |
|
|
of qualified voters do not approve the proposed annexation, or if |
|
|
the municipality is required to petition owners of land in the area |
|
|
under Section 43.0695 and does not obtain the required number of |
|
|
signatures, the municipality may not annex any part of the area and |
|
|
may not adopt another resolution under Section 43.0692 to annex any |
|
|
part of the area until the fifth [first] anniversary of the date of |
|
|
the adoption of the resolution. |
|
|
SECTION 4. Section 43.001(3), Local Government Code, is |
|
|
amended to read as follows: |
|
|
(3) "Tier 2 county" means a county that[:
|
|
|
[(A)] is not a tier 1 county[; or
|
|
|
[(B)
is a tier 1 county in which a majority of the
|
|
|
registered voters of the county have approved being a tier 2 county
|
|
|
at an election ordered by the commissioners court on the request by
|
|
|
petition of a number of registered voters of the county equal to or
|
|
|
greater than 10 percent of the registered voters of the county]. |
|
|
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
|
|
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
|
|
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
|
|
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
|
|
Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |