HBA-MSH H.B. 1288 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1288
By: Garcia
County Affairs
3/11/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Under current law, each county in Texas is divided into four commissioners
precincts, regardless of population.  Dallas County may be unable to
reflect the ethnic diversity of the county with only four commissioners.
House Joint Resolution 57 increases the number of commissioners precincts
from four to eight.   House Bill 1288 amends the number of commissioners
required for conducting county business in any county. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 1288 amends the Local Government Code to provide that a majority
of the full membership of a commissioners court is a quorum for conducting
county business except the levying of a county tax.  The bill authorizes a
county tax to be levied at any regularly scheduled meeting of the court
when at least twothirds of the full membership of the court is present.
The bill prohibits a county from levying a tax unless a majority of the
full membership of the court vote in favor of the levy.  The bill
authorizes a quorum of county commissioners to call a special term of the
court. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

The date on which the constitutional amendment relating to increasing the
number of county commissioners in Dallas County takes effect, if that
amendment is approved by the voters.