H.B. No. 1555

AN ACT

relating to the Upper Guadalupe River Authority, following the recommendations of the Sunset Advisory Commission; altering terms of the board of directors; specifying grounds for the removal of a member of the board of directors.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 1A(a), Chapter 5, page 1062, Special Laws, Acts of the 46th Legislature, Regular Session, 1939, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 1A. (a) The District is subject to review under Chapter 325, Government Code (Texas Sunset Act), but may not be abolished under that chapter. The review shall be conducted under Section 325.025, Government Code, as if the District were a state agency scheduled to be abolished September 1, 2035 [2023], and every 12th year after that year.

SECTION 2. Section 8, Chapter 5, page 1062, Special Laws, Acts of the 46th Legislature, Regular Session, 1939, is amended to read as follows:

Section 8. The [It shall not be necessary for the Board of Directors to call or hold a hearing on the adoption of a plan of taxation, but the] ad valorem plan of taxation shall be used by the District.

SECTION 3. Section 9, Chapter 5, page 1062, Special Laws, Acts of the 46th Legislature, Regular Session, 1939, is amended by amending Subsections (b), (c), and (d) and adding Subsection (f) to read as follows:

(b) Directors are appointed by the Governor. The Governor shall designate a Director as the president of the Board to serve in that capacity at the pleasure of the Governor. Directors are appointed for staggered terms of four [six (6)] years with either four or five [three] Directors' terms expiring on February 1 of each odd-numbered year. The Governor shall fill a vacancy on the Board by appointment for the unexpired term.

(c) The Board of Directors shall elect from its number a [president, a] vice president and a secretary of the Board of Directors and of the District, and such other officers as in the judgment of the Board are necessary. The president, as designated by the Governor, shall be chief executive officer of the District and the presiding officer of the Board, and shall have the same right to vote as any other Director. The vice president shall perform all duties and exercise all power conferred by this Act or the general law upon the president when the president is absent or fails or declines to act. The secretary shall keep and sign the minutes of the meetings of the Board of Directors; and in the secretary's [his] absence at any board meeting, a secretary pro tem shall be named for that meeting who may exercise all the duties and powers of the secretary for such meeting, sign the minutes thereof, and attest all orders passed or other action taken at such meeting. The secretary shall be the custodian of all minutes and records of the District.

(d) The Board shall appoint a general manager of the District and all necessary engineers, attorneys, auditors, and other employees.

(f) The Board shall develop and implement policies that clearly separate the policy-making responsibilities of the Board and the management responsibilities of the general manager and the staff of the District.

SECTION 4. Chapter 5, page 1062, Special Laws, Acts of the 46th Legislature, Regular Session, 1939, is amended by adding Sections 9A, 9B, 9C, and 9D to read as follows:

Sec. 9A. (a) It is a ground for removal from the Board that a Director:

(1) does not have at the time of taking office the qualifications required by Section 9(a) of this Act;

(2) does not maintain during service on the Board the qualifications required by Section 9(a) of this Act;

(3) is ineligible for directorship under Chapter 171, Local Government Code;

(4) cannot, because of illness or disability, discharge the Director's duties for a substantial part of the Director's term; or

(5) is absent from more than half of the regularly scheduled Board meetings that the Director is eligible to attend during a calendar year without an excuse approved by a majority vote of the Board.

(b) The validity of an action of the Board is not affected by the fact that it is taken when a ground for removal of a Director exists.

(c) If the general manager has knowledge that a potential ground for removal exists, the general manager shall notify the President of the Board of the potential ground. The President shall then notify the Governor and the Attorney General that a potential ground for removal exists. If the potential ground for removal involves the President, the general manager shall notify the next highest ranking Director, who shall then notify the Governor and the Attorney General that a potential ground for removal exists.

Sec. 9B. (a) A person who is appointed to and qualifies for office as a Director may not vote, deliberate, or be counted as a Director in attendance at a meeting of the Board until the person completes a training program that complies with this section.

(b) The training program must provide the person with information regarding:

(1) the law governing District operations;

(2) the programs, functions, rules, and budget of the District;

(3) the scope of and limitations on the rulemaking authority of the Board;

(4) the results of the most recent formal audit of the District;

(5) the requirements of:

(A) laws relating to open meetings, public information, administrative procedure, and disclosing conflicts of interest; and

(B) other laws applicable to members of the governing body of a river authority in performing their duties; and

(6) any applicable ethics policies adopted by the District or the Texas Ethics Commission.

(c) A person appointed to the Board is entitled to reimbursement for the travel expenses incurred in attending the training program regardless of whether the attendance at the program occurs before or after the person qualifies for office.

(d) The general manager of the District shall create a training manual that includes the information required by Subsection (b) of this section. The general manager shall distribute a copy of the training manual annually to each Director. Each Director shall sign and submit to the general manager a statement acknowledging that the Director received and has reviewed the training manual.

Sec. 9C. (a) The District shall maintain a system to promptly and efficiently act on complaints filed with the District. The District shall maintain information about parties to the complaint, the subject matter of the complaint, a summary of the results of the review or investigation of the complaint, and its disposition.

(b) The District shall make information available describing its procedures for complaint investigation and resolution.

(c) The District shall periodically notify the complaint parties of the status of the complaint until final disposition, unless the notice would jeopardize an investigation.

Sec. 9D. The Board shall develop and implement policies that provide the public with a reasonable opportunity to appear before the Board and to speak on any issue under the jurisdiction of the District.

SECTION 5. Section 7, Chapter 5, page 1062, Special Laws, Acts of the 46th Legislature, Regular Session, 1939, is repealed.

SECTION 6. At the first meeting of the board of the Upper Guadalupe River Authority that follows the effective date of this Act, the six directors of the Upper Guadalupe River Authority whose terms do not expire on February 1, 2025, shall draw lots to determine which director will serve a term that expires on February 1, 2025, and which five directors will serve terms that expire on February 1, 2027. The three directors with terms expiring on February 1, 2025, will serve terms that expire on that date.

SECTION 7. Notwithstanding Section 9B, Chapter 5, page 1062, Special Laws, Acts of the 46th Legislature, Regular Session, 1939, as added by this Act, a person serving on the board of directors of the Upper Guadalupe River Authority may vote, deliberate, and be counted as a director in attendance at a meeting of the board until December 1, 2023.

SECTION 8. (a) The legal notice of the intention to introduce this Act, setting forth the general substance of this Act, has been published as provided by law, and the notice and a copy of this Act have been furnished to all persons, agencies, officials, or entities to which they are required to be furnished under Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution, and Chapter 313, Government Code.

(b) The governor, one of the required recipients, has submitted the notice and Act to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

(c) The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has filed its recommendations relating to this Act with the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of representatives within the required time.

(d) All requirements of the constitution and laws of this state and the rules and procedures of the legislature with respect to the notice, introduction, and passage of this Act are fulfilled and accomplished.

SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.

______________________________ ______________________________

President of the Senate Speaker of the House

I certify that H.B. No. 1555 was passed by the House on April 26, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 146, Nays 3, 1 present, not voting.

______________________________ Chief Clerk of the House

I certify that H.B. No. 1555 was passed by the Senate on May 10, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0.

______________________________ Secretary of the Senate APPROVED: _____________________

Date

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Governor