Sec. 49.181.  AUTHORITY OF COMMISSION OVER ISSUANCE OF DISTRICT BONDS.  (a)  A district may not issue bonds to finance a project for which the commission has adopted rules requiring review and approval unless the commission determines that the project is feasible and issues an order approving the issuance of the bonds.  This section does not apply to:
(1)  refunding bonds if the commission issued an order approving the issuance of the bonds or notes that originally financed the project;
(2)  refunding bonds that are issued by a district under an agreement between the district and a municipality allowing the issuance of the district's bonds to refund bonds issued by the municipality to pay the cost of financing facilities;
(3)  bonds issued to and approved by:
(A)  the Farmers Home Administration;
(B)  the United States Department of Agriculture;
(C)  the North American Development Bank;
(D)  the Texas Water Development Board; or
(E)  a federally chartered instrumentality of the United States authorized under 12 U.S.C. Section 2128(f) to finance such a project, provided that the district that issues the bonds is located wholly in a county that:
(i)  does not contain a municipality that has a population of more than 750,000; and
(ii)  is not adjacent to a county described by Subparagraph (i);
(4)  refunding bonds issued to refund bonds described by Subdivision (3); or
(5)  bonds issued by a public utility agency created under Chapter 572, Local Government Code, any of the public entities participating in which are districts if at least one of those districts is a district described by Subsection (h)(1)(E).
(b)  A district may submit to the commission a written application for investigation of feasibility.  An engineer's report describing the project, including the data, profiles, maps, plans, and specifications prepared in connection with the report, must be submitted with the application.
(c)  The executive director shall examine the application and the report and shall inspect the project area.  The district shall, on request, supply the executive director with additional data and information necessary for an investigation of the application, the engineer's report, and the project.
(d)  The executive director shall prepare a written report on the project and include suggestions, if any, for changes or improvements in the project.  The executive director shall retain a copy of the report and send a copy of the report to both the commission and the district.
(e)  The commission shall consider the application, the engineer's report, the executive director's report, and any other evidence allowed by commission rule to be considered in determining the feasibility of the project.
(f)  The commission shall determine whether the project to be financed by the bonds is feasible and issue an order either approving or disapproving, as appropriate, the issuance of the bonds.  If the commission determines that an application for the approval of bonds complies with the requirements for financial feasibility and the district submitting the application is not required to comply with rules regarding project completion, the commission may not disapprove the issuance of bonds for all or a portion of a project or require that the funding for all or a portion of a project be escrowed solely on the basis that the construction of the project is not complete at the time of the commission's determination.  The commission shall retain a copy of the order and send a copy of the order to the district.
(f-1)  For the purposes of evaluating the financial feasibility of a project financed by a bond, the commission shall consider:
(1)  a district located wholly or partly in Austin, Brazos, Chambers, Grimes, Liberty, Walker, or Wharton County as if the district were located in Harris County; and
(2)  a district located wholly or partly in Bastrop, Bell, Blanco, Burnet, Caldwell, Gillespie, Kendall, Lee, or Milam County as if the district were located in Travis County.
(g)  Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the contrary, the commission may approve the issuance of bonds of a district without the submission of plans and specifications of the improvements to be financed with the bonds.  The commission may condition the approval on any terms or conditions considered appropriate by the commission.
(h)  This section does not apply to:
(1)  a district if:
(A)  the district's boundaries include one entire county;
(B)  the district was created by a special Act of the legislature and:
(i)  the district is located entirely within one county;
(ii)  the district is located entirely within one or more home-rule municipalities;
(iii)  the total taxable value of the real property and improvements to the real property zoned by one or more home-rule municipalities for residential purposes and located within the district does not exceed 25 percent of the total taxable value of all taxable property in the district, as shown by the most recent certified appraisal tax roll prepared by the appraisal district for the county; and
(iv)  the district was not required by law to obtain commission approval of its bonds before the effective date of this section;
(C)  the district is a special water authority;
(D)  the district is governed by a board of directors appointed in whole or in part by the governor, a state agency, or the governing body or chief elected official of a municipality or county and does not provide, or propose to provide, water, sewer, drainage, reclamation, or flood control services to residential retail or commercial customers as its principal function;
(E)  the district on September 1, 2003:
(i)  is a municipal utility district that includes territory in only two counties;
(ii)  has outstanding long-term indebtedness that is rated BBB or better by a nationally recognized rating agency for municipal securities; and
(iii)  has at least 5,000 active water connections; or
(F)  the district:
(i)  is a conservation and reclamation district created under Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution, that includes territory in at least three counties; and
(ii)  has the rights, powers, privileges, and functions applicable to a river authority under Chapter 30; or
(2)  a public utility agency created under Chapter 572, Local Government Code, any of the public entities participating in which are districts if at least one of those districts is a district described by Subdivision (1)(E).
(i)  An application for the approval of bonds under this section may include financing for payment of creation and organization expenses.  Expenses are creation and organization expenses if the expenses were incurred through the date of the canvassing of the confirmation election.  A commission rule regarding continuous construction periods or the length of time for the payment of expenses during construction periods does not apply to expenses described by this section.
(j)  The commission shall approve an application to issue bonds to finance the costs of spreading and compacting fill to remove property from the 100-year floodplain made by a levee improvement district if the application otherwise meets all applicable requirements for bond applications.
(k)  The commission shall approve an application to issue bonds to finance the costs of spreading and compacting fill to provide drainage that is made by a municipal utility district or a district with the powers of a municipal utility district if the costs are less than the cost of constructing or improving drainage facilities.
(l)  If a district is approved for the issuance of bonds by the commission to use a certain return flow of wastewater, the approval applies to subsequent bond authorizations unless the district seeks approval to use a different return flow of wastewater.
Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 715, Sec. 2, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.  Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1070, Sec. 8, eff. Sept. 1, 1997;  Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 248, Sec. 12, eff. June 18, 2003;  Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 608, Sec. 8, eff. June 20, 2003;  Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 904, Sec. 1, eff. June 20, 2003.
Amended by: 
Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 249 (H.B. 828), Sec. 1, eff. May 30, 2005.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 36 (S.B. 914), Sec. 1, eff. May 9, 2011.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 156 (H.B. 1901), Sec. 1, eff. May 28, 2011.
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 105 (S.B. 902), Sec. 14, eff. September 1, 2013.
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 161 (S.B. 1093), Sec. 21.004, eff. September 1, 2013.
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 207 (H.B. 4), Sec. 2.20, eff. September 1, 2013.
Acts 2017, 85th Leg., R.S., Ch. 965 (S.B. 2014), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2017.
Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1009 (H.B. 2815), Sec. 17, eff. June 18, 2023.