By: Bonnen of Brazoria, et al.	H.B. No. 4168
	(Senate Sponsor - Kolkhorst)
	(In the Senate - Received from the House May 6, 2015;
	May 19, 2015, read first time and referred to Committee on
	Administration; May 24, 2015, reported favorably by the following
	vote:  Yeas 4, Nays 0; May 24, 2015, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote

	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
	AN ACT
	relating to the composition of the board of directors and the powers
	of the Gulf Coast Water Authority.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1.  Chapter 712, Acts of the 59th Legislature,
	Regular Session, 1965, is amended by adding Section 3A to read as
	follows:
	Sec. 3A.  In connection with the acquisition of water, or the
	treatment, storage, or transportation of water, the district may
	enter into retail service agreements within the Electric
	Reliability Council of Texas for the purchase of electricity for
	the district's own use and may sell electricity in a sale or resale
	only by way of a registered power marketer or power generation
	company in accordance with applicable public utility commission
	rules and requirements of the Electric Reliability Council of
	Texas. An agreement entered into under this section may provide for
	a term of years and include provisions that the Board of Directors
	determines are in the best interest of the district, including
	provisions for the posting of collateral or payment of an early
	termination amount in the event of early termination.
	SECTION 2.  Sections 5 and 5(a), Chapter 712, Acts of the
	59th Legislature, Regular Session, 1965, are amended to read as
	follows:
	Sec. 5.  The management and control of the District is hereby
	vested in a Board of nine directors. [The seven directors appointed
	by the Commissioners Court of Galveston County shall represent the
	geographic and ethnic diversity of the county.]  Vacancies on the
	Board of Directors, whether by death, resignation or termination of
	the term of office, shall be filled by appointment by the
	commissioners court that appointed the director.  All terms of
	office shall be for a period of two (2) years.  Terms shall be
	staggered. [Three (3) of the members appointed by the Commissioners
	Court of Galveston County shall be registered professional
	engineers under the laws of Texas.]
	Sec. 5(a).  The directors of the district shall be appointed
	as follows:
	(1)  four directors appointed by the Galveston County
	Commissioners Court, one of whom represents municipal interests,
	two of whom represent industrial interests, and one of whom
	represents the county at large;
	(2)  two directors appointed by the Fort Bend County
	Commissioners Court, one of whom represents municipal interests,
	and one of whom represents the county at large; and
	(3)  three directors appointed by the Brazoria County
	Commissioners Court, one of whom represents agricultural
	interests, one of whom represents municipal interests, and one of
	whom represents industrial interests. [One (1) director of the
	District shall be appointed by the Commissioners Court of Galveston
	County upon the recommendation of the City Council of the City of
	Galveston.   Six of the remaining directors shall be appointed by the
	Commissioners Court of Galveston County with two directors
	appointed at-large and the remaining four of those directors
	appointed on the written recommendation of advisory committees
	appointed by the Board of Directors of the Gulf Coast Water
	Authority.   Two of those directors shall be recommended by the
	Mainland Municipal Advisory Committee and two of those directors
	shall be recommended by the Industrial Advisory Committee. The
	Commissioners Court of Galveston County is entitled to accept or
	reject the recommendations made to the court by the advisory
	committees.   If a recommendation made by an advisory committee is
	rejected, the advisory committee shall submit additional
	recommendations to the court.
	[The Industrial Advisory Committee is composed of one
	representative of each industrial customer of the Gulf Coast Water
	Authority.   The Mainland Municipal Advisory Committee is composed
	of one representative of each municipal or water district customer
	of the Gulf Coast Water Authority that contracts for not less than 2
	million gallons of water a day.   The names of the representatives of
	each of the committees shall be submitted to the Board of Directors
	of the Gulf Coast Water Authority by the respective industrial and
	municipal or water district customers.   The directors of the Gulf
	Coast Water Authority shall submit the names of the advisory
	committee members to the Commissioners Court of Galveston County,
	which shall record the names in the minutes of the court.
	[One director shall be appointed by the Commissioners Court
	of Fort Bend County to represent District customers in that county.
	The director must be recommended by one or more of those customers
	and reside in that county.
	[One director shall be appointed by the Commissioners Court
	of Brazoria County to represent District customers in that county.
	The director must be recommended by one or more of those customers
	and reside in that county.]
	SECTION 3.  Chapter 712, Acts of the 59th Legislature,
	Regular Session, 1965, is amended by adding Section 5(b) to read as
	follows:
	Sec. 5(b).  A director appointed under Section 5(a) to
	represent municipal or industrial interests must be a customer of
	or represent an entity that is a customer of the district.
	SECTION 4.  (a)  The terms of the members of the board of
	directors of the Gulf Coast Water Authority serving on the
	effective date of this Act expire September 1, 2015.
	(b)  Not later than September 1, 2015, the entities described
	by Section 5(a), Chapter 712, Acts of the 59th Legislature, Regular
	Session, 1965, as amended by this Act, shall make the appointments
	required by that section.
	(c)  The members of the board appointed under Subsection (b)
	of this section shall draw lots to determine which four board
	members shall serve a one-year term and which five members shall
	serve a two-year term.
	SECTION 5.  (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 6.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this
	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
	Act takes effect September 1, 2015.
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