BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 5409

By: Paul

Natural Resources

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Last session, the legislature passed S.B. 1160, which created the Gulf Coast Protection District. The bill required the district's board of directors to include one director from each of the counties within the district's territory, but did not allow the board of directors to expand as the district's territory increased. C.S.H.B. 5409 seeks to provide for the expansion of the district's board of directors if the territory of the district expands to incorporate a new county.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 5409 amends the Special District Local Laws Code to require the commissioners court of a county annexed to the Gulf Coast Protection District to appoint one district director and to require the governor, with the advice and consent of the senate, to appoint an additional director to ensure the board has an odd number of directors. A director appointed by a commissioners court must be a resident of the county the person is appointed to represent to qualify for office. The bill expands the territory for which the district's creation is necessary to establish an instrumentality for coast protection to include territory annexed to the district.

C.S.H.B. 5409 requires the district to do the following if implementation of an authorized project disrupts, wholly or partly, the operations of or requires the use of property owned by a port authority, navigation district, or drainage district:

·         consult with the authority or district, as applicable;

·         consider reasonable changes in the project to mitigate the effects of the project on the operations or property, including changes proposed by the authority or district, as applicable; and

·         consider reasonable changes in the implementation of the project requested by the authority or district, as applicable, to mitigate such effects.

C.S.H.B. 5409 establishes that the district retains all the rights, powers, privileges, authority, duties, and functions that it had before the bill's effective date. The bill provides for the validation and confirmation of certain district actions and proceedings taken before the bill's effective date, with the exception of any matter that on the bill's effective date has been held invalid by a final court judgment or is involved in litigation if the litigation ultimately results in the matter being held invalid by a final court judgment.

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2023.

COMPARISON OF INTRODUCED AND SUBSTITUTE

While C.S.H.B. 5409 may differ from the introduced in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.

The substitute includes the following provisions that did not appear in the introduced:

·         a requirement for a district director appointed by a county commissioners court to be a resident of the county the person is appointed to represent to qualify for office; and

·         requirements for the district to consider reasonable changes to an authorized district project that disrupts, wholly or partly, the operations of or requires the use of property owned by a port authority, navigation district, or drainage district, and to consult with the affected authority or district in considering the changes.