Seal of the Senate of Texas
SB 1263 BILL SUMMARY
Board Composition and Appointments
Board terms are extended from two to three years and staggered.
An eighth board position is created. Two additional board members will be added when more than 35% of the service population lives outside principal city.
Board members are appointed as follows, appointments must be made by December 31, 2009:
· CAMPO appointments - 2 of the 3 CAMPO appointments must live in largest city
o 1 elected official from a jurisdiction in which CapMetro’s tax is collected and whose presiding officer serves on CAMPO
o 1 person with at least 10 years of financial/accounting experience
o 1 person with at least 10 years of executive-level experience
· Travis County - 1 appointment – must live in the county or work in the Cap Metro service area within the County
· Williamson County - 1 appointment – must live in the county or work in the Cap Metro service area within the County
· Small Cities in which CapMetro’s tax is collected - 1 appointment, must be an elected official on the governing body of one of those small cities
· City of Austin - 2 appointments, one must be an elected official
Board Transition
o Appointments scheduled to end in 2009 are extended to December 31, 2009.
o Appointments previously expiring in 2010, continue to expire on that date.
o All Board positions must be appointed under the new law between the effective date of the bill, September 1, and December 31, 2009, regardless of the start of the term: Jan. 1 or later in 2010.
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Current
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Expire
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Appointing
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Future Appt.
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Requirements
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John Trevino
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Dec-09
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CAMPO
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CAMPO
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10yrs financial experience
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2 of 3 must live in Austin
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Mike Manor
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Dec-09
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CAMPO
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10yrs executive level experience
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Chris Riley
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Jul-10
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City of Austin
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CAMPO
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elected
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from a jurisdiction in which CapMetro’s tax is collected and whose presiding officer sits on CAMPO; only CAMPO board members representing jurisdictions in which CapMetro’s tax is collected are on the panel that votes on this appointment
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Mike Martinez
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Jul-10
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City of Austin
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elected
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member of CoA Council (including mayor)
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Jamie Jatzlau
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Dec-09
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Small Cities
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Small City
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elected
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member of a city council (including mayor) of a city in Capital Metro’s service area
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Margaret Gomez
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Dec-09
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Travis County
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Travis County
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live in the county or work in the portion of the county served by CapMetro
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John Cowman
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Aug-10
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Small cities/ unincorporated
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Williamson County
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N/A
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N/A
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City of Austin
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None
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Sunset Review
o Subjects Capital Metro to a self-funded review by the Sunset Commission, but prohibits the agency from being abolished. Sunset Report anticipated beginning of 2010. Capital Metro Self Evaluation Report available at http://www.sunset.state.tx.us/82ndreports/cmta/ser.pdf
Internal Auditor
o Requires the Board to appoint an internal auditor to a five year term and authorizes the removal of the auditor with at least three-fourths the vote of the Board.
o Requires the auditor to report directly to the Board instead of to the CEO.
Annual Report
o Requires the authority to provide an annual report to each municipality or county in which sales tax is collected regarding financial obligations between the two.
Rail Referendum
A referendum will continue to be required for Capital Metro to build a passenger rail facility using their current revenue sources.
o Capital Metro referendum not required for Capital Metro to enter into a contract to construct, operate or maintain passenger rail service on behalf of another entity.
o Separate Capital Metro referendum not required to spend funds if an election called by a political subdivision included Capital Metro financial participation.
CAMPO Setting the Fare
Provides that an increase in single-ride base fares become effective unless the CAMPO Board takes action within 60 days of the vote to stop implementation.
Moral Turpitude
Changes fare evasion for Capital Metro services from a crime of moral turpitude, which would block the offender from such things as enrolling law school, applying for professional licenses, securing a realtors license, securing a CPA certification at any time in the future, to a Class C misdemeanor.
Fare Enforcement
Allows Capital Metro to hire fare enforcement officers, just as DART does, to ensure MetroRail riders have purchased their ticket.
Officer Jurisdiction
Permits off duty officers contracted with Capital Metro to enforce laws throughout the Capital Metro jurisdiction, not just within the municipality in which they are commissioned.
