87R11728 TYPED
 
  By: Meyer H.B. No. 2438
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to municipalities and counties that adopt budgets that
  defund law enforcement agencies.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Chapter 140, Local Government Code, is amended
  by adding Section 140.013 to read as follows:
         Sec. 140.013.  DEFUNDING LOCAL GOVERNMENT. (a) A defunding
  local government is a municipality or county:
               (1)  that adopts a budget for a fiscal year that, in
  comparison to the local government's preceding fiscal year,
  reduces:
                     (A)  the appropriation to the local government's
  law enforcement agency;
                     (B)  the number of peace officers the local
  government's law enforcement agency is authorized to employ;
                     (C)  funding for peace officer overtime
  compensation for the local government's law enforcement agency; or
                     (D)  funding for the recruitment and training of
  new peace officers to fill each vacant peace officer position in the
  local government's law enforcement agency; and
               (2)  for which the criminal justice division of the
  governor's office issues a written determination finding that the
  local government has taken an action described by Subdivision (1).
         (a-1)  In making a determination of whether a local
  government is a defunding local government according to the budget
  adopted for the first fiscal year beginning on or after September 1,
  2021, the criminal justice division of the governor's office shall
  compare the funding and personnel in that budget to the funding and
  personnel in the budget of the preceding fiscal year or the second
  preceding fiscal year, whichever is greater. This subsection
  expires September 1, 2023.
         (b)  A local government is considered to be a defunding local
  government until the criminal justice division of the governor's
  office issues a written determination finding that the local
  government has reversed the reductions, adjusted for inflation,
  described in Subsection (a)(1).
         (c)  The criminal justice division of the governor's office
  shall:
               (1)  compute the inflation rate used to make
  determinations under Subsection (b) each state fiscal year using a
  price index that accurately reports changes in the purchasing power
  of the dollar for local governments in this state; and
               (2)  publish the inflation rate in the Texas Register.
         SECTION 2.  Chapter 26, Tax Code, is amended by adding
  Section 26.0501 to read as follows:
         Sec. 26.0501.  LIMITATION ON TAX RATE OF DEFUNDING TAXING
  UNIT. (a) For purposes of this section, a "defunding taxing unit"
  means a county or municipality that is a defunding local government
  under Section 140.013, Local Government Code.
         (b)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or
  other law, the governing body of a defunding taxing unit may not
  adopt a tax rate for the current tax year that exceeds the lesser of
  the defunding taxing unit's no-new-revenue tax rate or
  voter-approval tax rate for that tax year.
         (c)  For purposes of making the calculation required under
  Section 26.013, in a tax year in which a county or municipality is a
  defunding taxing unit, the difference between the taxing unit's
  actual tax rate and voter-approval tax rate is considered to be
  zero.
         (d)  A county or municipality is no longer considered to be a
  defunding taxing unit for purposes of this section in the first tax
  year for which the criminal justice division of the governor's
  office issues a written determination in accordance with Section
  140.013(b), Local Government Code, finding that the county or
  municipality has reversed the reductions described by Section
  140.013(a)(1), Local Government Code.
         SECTION 3.  Section 140.013, Local Government Code, as added
  by this Act, applies only to the adoption of a budget by a
  municipality or county for a fiscal year that begins on or after the
  effective date of this Act.
         SECTION 4.  Section 26.0501, Tax Code, as added by this Act,
  applies beginning with the 2021 tax year.
         SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.