HBA-CMT H.B. 325 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 325 By: Oliveira County Affairs 2/11/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Economically distressed counties face challenges in finding ways to increase the standard of living for their residents. As border counties, shift from rural to urban, the need arises for counties to obtain broader authority to control new development and address public service and infrastructure requirements. House Bill 325 authorizes designated counties in economically distressed areas along the Mexican border to enact county ordinances to protect the public health, safety, and welfare. 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 325 amends the Local Government Code to authorize the commissioners court of a county to enact ordinances consistent with state law to protect the public health, safety, or welfare that apply only to the unincorporated area of a county. If any ordinance adopted under these provisions conflicts with an ordinance of a municipality, the municipal ordinance prevails within the municipality's jurisdiction. The bill specifies that the provisions of the bill apply only to a county that the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (department) determines: _has both a per capita income that averaged 25 percent below the state average and an unemployment rate that averaged 25 percent above the state average for the most recent three consecutive years for which statistics are available; and _has any part of its territory located within 50 miles of an international border. The bill sets forth provisions governing the departments determination of and notice of applicability of these provisions to a county. The bill provides that a county is entitled to appropriate injunctive relief to prevent the occurrence or continuation of a violation or threatened violation of an ordinance. The bill specifies that a person who violates a restriction or prohibition imposed by an ordinance commits a Class C misdemeanor. The bill requires the department to publish and give notice of the initial determinations by October 1, 2001. The Act applies to a county on a date designated by the department, which must be at least 30 days after the notification is given, but not later than November 1, 2001. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.