84R12324 SLB-D
	By: Lucio	S.B. No. 1616

	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
	AN ACT
	relating to the composition of the Texas Water Development Board.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1.  Section 6.052, Water Code, is amended by
	amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to read as
	follows:
	(a)  The board is composed of five [three] members as
	follows:
	(1)  one [who are appointed by the governor with the
	advice and consent of the senate. One] member who must have
	experience in the field of engineering;
	(2)[,] one member who must have experience in the field
	of public or private finance;
	(3)[, and] one member who must have experience in the
	field of law or business;
	(4)  the commissioner of agriculture; and
	(5)  the commissioner of the General Land Office.
	(a-1)  Members described by Subsections (a)(1), (2), and (3)
	are appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the
	senate. The commissioner of agriculture and the commissioner of
	the General Land Office serve ex officio and may not receive
	compensation for service on the board.
	SECTION 2.  Section 6.053(a), Water Code, is amended to read
	as follows:
	(a)  Appointed members [Members] of the board must be members
	of the general public.
	SECTION 3.  Sections 6.054(a) and (d), Water Code, are
	amended to read as follows:
	(a)  It is a ground for removal from the board of an appointed
	member that the [a] member:
	(1)  does not have at the time of taking office the
	qualifications required for appointment to the board;
	(2)  does not maintain during service on the board the
	qualifications required for appointment to the board;
	(3)  is ineligible for membership under Sections 6.053,
	6.057, and 6.058;
	(4)  cannot, because of illness or disability,
	discharge the member's duties for a substantial part of the member's
	term; or
	(5)  is absent from more than half of the regularly
	scheduled board meetings that the member is eligible to attend
	during a calendar year without an excuse approved by a majority vote
	of the board.
	(d)  The governor, with the advice and consent of the senate,
	may remove an appointed [a] board member from office as provided by
	Section 9, Article XV, Texas Constitution.
	SECTION 4.  Section 6.056(a), Water Code, is amended to read
	as follows:
	(a)  The appointed members of the board hold office for
	staggered terms of six years, with the term of one member expiring
	February 1 of each odd-numbered year. Each appointed member holds
	office until a successor is appointed and has qualified.
	SECTION 5.  Section 6.057(b), Water Code, is amended to read
	as follows:
	(b)  A person may not be an appointed [a] member of the board
	and may not be a board employee employed in a "bona fide executive,
	administrative, or professional capacity," as that phrase is used
	for purposes of establishing an exemption to the overtime
	provisions of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29
	U.S.C. Section 201 et seq.), and its subsequent amendments, if:
	(1)  the person is an officer, employee, or paid
	consultant of a Texas trade association in the field of water
	planning or water financing; or
	(2)  the person's spouse is an officer, employee, or
	paid consultant of a Texas trade association in the field of water
	planning or water financing.
	SECTION 6.  Section 6.058, Water Code, is amended to read as
	follows:
	Sec. 6.058.  LOBBYIST PROHIBITION. A person may not be an
	appointed [a] member of the board or act as the general counsel to
	the board if the person is required to register as a lobbyist under
	Chapter 305, Government Code, because of the person's activities
	for compensation on behalf of a profession related to the operation
	of the board.
	SECTION 7.  Section 6.061, Water Code, is amended to read as
	follows:
	Sec. 6.061.  FULL-TIME SERVICE. Each appointed member of the
	board shall serve on a full-time basis.
	SECTION 8.  Sections 6.062(a) and (c), Water Code, are
	amended to read as follows:
	(a)  A person who is appointed to and qualifies for office as
	a member of the board or serves as an ex officio member of the board
	may not vote, deliberate, or be counted as a member in attendance at
	a meeting of the board until the person completes a training program
	that complies with this section.
	(c)  A person appointed to the board or who serves as an ex
	officio member of the board is entitled to reimbursement, as
	provided by the General Appropriations Act, for the travel expenses
	incurred in attending the training program regardless of whether
	the attendance at the program occurs before or after the person
	qualifies for office.
	SECTION 9.  Section 20.012(a), Water Code, is amended to
	read as follows:
	(a)  The authority is governed by a board of directors
	composed of the [six] directors of the development board.
	SECTION 10.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.