88R3146 LRM-D
 
  By: Metcalf H.B. No. 2912
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the election of the board of directors of the San
  Jacinto River Authority.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 6, Chapter 426, Acts of the 45th
  Legislature, Regular Session, 1937, is amended to read as follows:
         Sec. 6.  (a) The management and control of all the affairs
  of said District shall be vested in, and the powers, rights,
  privileges, and functions of the District shall be exercised by, a
  Board of Directors consisting of seven [six (6)] members, all of
  whom shall be freehold property taxpayers and legal voters of the
  State of Texas [and four (4) of whom shall be residents of a county
  wholly encompassed by the District].
         (b)  Members of the [such] Board of Directors shall be
  elected at large by voters in the District [appointed by the
  Governor for terms of six (6) years.  Provided, the present Board of
  six (6) directors of said District, appointed by the State Board of
  Water Engineers under authority of House Bill No. 1094, Chapter
  613, Acts of the Regular Session of the Forty-seventh Legislature,
  amending Section 6 of Chapter 426, Acts of the Regular Session of
  the Forty-fifth Legislature, as amended by House Bill No. 828,
  Chapter 480, Acts of the Regular Session of the Forty-seventh
  Legislature, for terms of two (2), four (4), and six (6) years,
  shall continue to serve as such until the expiration of the
  respective terms for which they were appointed.  Upon the
  expiration of the terms for which the present members of the Board
  of Directors were appointed, the successors of each and all of them
  shall be appointed by the Governor for a term of six (6) years].
         (c)  The Directors shall hold office after their election
  [appointment] and qualification until their successors shall be
  elected [appointed] and qualified.  [Should any vacancy occur in
  the Board of Directors, the same shall be filled in like manner by
  the Governor for the unexpired term.]  The Directors [appointed]
  shall, within thirty (30) days after their election [appointment],
  qualify by taking the official oath required of County
  Commissioners, and shall execute bond in the sum of Five Thousand
  Dollars ($5,000) payable to the District, the sufficiency of which
  bond shall be determined by the Governor, which bonds after being
  recorded in the official bond records of the county in which the
  District maintains its office shall be deposited with the
  depository selected and approved for the deposit of the funds of the
  District.
         (d)  The Board of Directors shall organize by electing one of
  its members President, one Vice-President, one Secretary, and one
  Treasurer.  Four (4) members, including the presiding officer,
  shall constitute a quorum to transact business.  The President
  shall preside at all meetings of the Board and shall be the chief
  executive officer of the District.  The Vice-President shall act as
  President in case of the absence or disability of the President.  
  The Secretary shall act as Secretary of the Board and shall be
  charged with the duty of keeping a record of all proceedings and all
  orders of the Board.  The Treasurer shall receive and receipt for
  all moneys received by the District and shall keep books and records
  of all moneys received and expended. In case of the absence or
  inability of the Secretary to act, a Secretary pro tem shall be
  selected by the Directors.
         (e)  The domicile of the District shall be in the City of
  Conroe, in the County of Montgomery, Texas, where the District
  shall maintain its principal office.  The Board of Directors shall
  have authority to fix the time, place and number of meetings of such
  Board by proper resolutions, regulations and bylaws passed by said
  Board.  Said Board shall cause to be kept complete and accurate
  accounts conforming to approved methods of bookkeeping. Said
  accounts and all contracts, documents, and records of the District
  shall be kept at said principal office, and same shall be open to
  public inspection at all reasonable times.
         SECTION 2.  Section 30.003(4), Water Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
               (4)  "River authority" means any district or authority
  created by the legislature which contains an area within its
  boundaries of one or more counties and which is governed by a board
  of directors appointed or designated in whole or in part by the
  governor, or by the Texas Water Development Board.  The term
  includes[, including without limitation] the San Antonio River
  Authority and the San Jacinto River Authority.
         SECTION 3.  (a)  The San Jacinto River Authority shall hold
  the first election to elect directors as described by Section 6,
  Chapter 426, Acts of the 45th Legislature, Regular Session, 1937,
  as amended by this Act, on the uniform election date in May 2024.
         (b)  The terms of the directors serving on the board of
  directors of the San Jacinto River Authority on the effective date
  of this Act expire on the date the directors elected under
  Subsection (a) of this section have qualified.
         (c)  At the first meeting of the board of directors of the San
  Jacinto River Authority that follows the election held under
  Subsection (a) of this section, the directors shall draw lots to
  determine which four directors serve a term of four years and which
  three directors serve a term of two years.
         SECTION 4.  (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 5.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.