Texas Local Government Code Title 11, Chapter 344 - Fire Control, Prevention, And Emergency Medical Services Districts

SUBCHAPTER A GENERAL PROVISIONS

• Texas Section 344.001 - Short Title
  This chapter may be cited as the Fire Control, Prevention, and Emergency Medical Services District Act. Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 1295, Sec....
• Texas Section 344.002 - Definitions
  In this chapter: (1) "Board" means the board of directors of a district. (2) "Director" means a member of a board. (3) "District" means a...

SUBCHAPTER B CREATION OF DISTRICT AND TEMPORARY BOARD

• Texas Section 344.003 - Liability Of State
  The state is not obligated for the support, maintenance, or dissolution of a district created under this chapter. Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch....
• Texas Section 344.051 - Authority Of Municipality To Propose District
  (a) The governing body of a municipality with a population of not less than 25,000 nor more than 550,000, or a municipality with a population...
• Texas Section 344.052 - Temporary Board
  (a) Not later than the 60th day after the date the governing body proposes to create a district under this chapter, the governing body shall...
• Texas Section 344.053 - Election Required
  A proposed district may be created and a district tax may be authorized only if the creation and the tax are approved by a majority...
• Texas Section 344.054 - Confirmation Election Order
  (a) The temporary board may call and hold a confirmation election only after the board adopts plans under Section 344.061. (b) An order calling an...
• Texas Section 344.055 - Sales And Use Tax
  (a) A municipality that creates a district shall adopt a sales and use tax under Section 321.106, Tax Code, for financing the operation of the...
• Texas Section 344.056 - Notice Of Election
  In addition to the notice required by Section 4.003(c), Election Code, the temporary directors of a proposed district shall give notice of an election to...
• Texas Section 344.057 - Election Date
  The election shall be held on the next uniform election date authorized by Section 41.001(a), Election Code, after the date on which the election is...
• Texas Section 344.058 - Ballot Proposition
  The ballot for an election to create a district shall be printed to permit voting for or against the proposition: "The creation of the ______...
• Texas Section 344.059 - Canvassing Returns
  (a) Not earlier than the second day and not later than the 13th day after the date of the election, the temporary board shall meet...
• Texas Section 344.060 - Dissolution Of Temporary Board
  If a district has not been created under this chapter before the fifth anniversary of the date a district is first proposed by the governing...
• Texas Section 344.061 - Fire Control, Prevention, And Emergency Medical Services Plan And Budget Plan
  (a) The temporary board shall develop and adopt a two-year fire control, prevention, and emergency medical services plan and a two-year budget plan. The fire...

SUBCHAPTER C ADMINISTRATION

• Texas Section 344.062 - Financing Creation Of District
  (a) A municipality creating a district shall pay the entire cost of creating the district. (b) If a district is created, the district shall reimburse...
• Texas Section 344.101 - Board Of Directors
  (a) Except as provided by Subsections (e) and (f), a district is governed by a board of seven directors appointed in the same manner as...
• Texas Section 344.102 - Performance Bond
  (a) Before assuming the duties of the office, each director or officer must execute a bond for $5,000 payable to the district, conditioned on the...
• Texas Section 344.103 - Officers
  (a) The board shall elect from among its members a president and vice president. (b) The board shall appoint a secretary. The secretary may be...
• Texas Section 344.104 - Compensation
  A director or officer serves without compensation, but a director or officer may be reimbursed for actual expenses incurred in the performance of official duties....
• Texas Section 344.105 - Voting Requirement
  A concurrence of a majority of the members of the board is necessary in matters relating to the business of a district. A two-thirds majority...

SUBCHAPTER D POWERS AND DUTIES

• Texas Section 344.106 - Contract For Administrative Assistance
  The board may contract with a public agency or private vendor to assist the board in the administration or management of the district or to...
• Texas Section 344.151 - Financing District Programs
  (a) The district may finance all costs of a fire control, prevention, and emergency medical services district program, including costs for personnel, administration, expansion, enhancement,...
• Texas Section 344.152 - Coordination; Evaluation; Grants
  (a) The district shall coordinate its efforts with local agencies in developing its fire control, prevention, and emergency medical services program. (b) The district shall...
• Texas Section 344.153 - General Board Power Over Funds
  The board shall manage, control, and administer the district finances except as provided by Section 344.205. Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 1295, Sec....
• Texas Section 344.154 - Use Of Revenue
  The board may spend revenue derived from the sales and use tax distributed under Section 321.106, Tax Code, only for a purpose authorized by Section...
• Texas Section 344.155 - Rules And Procedures
  (a) A board may adopt rules governing programs financed by the district and the functions of district staff. (b) The board may prescribe accounting and...
• Texas Section 344.156 - Purchasing
  (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), the board may prescribe the method of making purchases and expenditures by and for the district. (b) To...
• Texas Section 344.157 - Property To Be Used In Administration
  The board may lease or acquire in another manner facilities, equipment, or other property for the sole purpose of administering the district. Added by Acts...
• Texas Section 344.158 - Reimbursement For Services
  (a) A county or municipality located outside the boundaries of a district on the district's request shall reimburse the district for the district's cost of...
• Texas Section 344.159 - Service Contracts
  The board may contract with the following entities to furnish the staff, facilities, equipment, programs, or services the board considers necessary for the effective operation...
• Texas Section 344.160 - Donations, Gifts, And Endowments
  On behalf of the district, the board or the temporary board may accept a donation, gift, or endowment. The district may hold a donation, gift,...

SUBCHAPTER D-1 ADDITION OF TERRITORY TO DISTRICT

• Texas Section 344.161 - Authority To Sue And Be Sued
  The board may sue and be sued in the name of the district. Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 1295, Sec. 1, eff. June...
• Texas Section 344.181 - Election Required
  The municipality that created a district may add all or part of the territory in the municipality's extraterritorial jurisdiction to the district and the district...
• Texas Section 344.182 - Confirmation Election Order
  (a) The board may not call and hold a confirmation election until the board adopts a budget plan and a fire control, prevention, and emergency...
• Texas Section 344.183 - Notice Of Election
  In addition to the notice required by Section 4.003(c), Election Code, the board shall give notice of an election to add territory to the district...
• Texas Section 344.184 - Ballot Proposition
  The ballot for an election to add territory to a district shall be printed to permit voting for or against the proposition: "The addition of...

SUBCHAPTER E DISTRICT FINANCES

• Texas Section 344.185 - Election Results
  (a) If a majority of the votes cast in the election favor the addition of the territory to the district, the board shall issue an...
• Texas Section 344.201 - Fiscal Year
  (a) The board shall establish the fiscal year for the district, and the district shall operate on the basis of that year. (b) The fiscal...
• Texas Section 344.202 - Audits And District Records
  (a) The board shall have an annual audit made of the financial condition of the district by an independent auditor. (b) The annual audit and...
• Texas Section 344.203 - Annual Budget Proposal
  (a) The board shall propose an annual budget. The board shall consider the applications for program funding in preparing the proposed budget. (b) The proposed...
• Texas Section 344.204 - Adoption Of Budget
  (a) Not later than the 100th day before the date each fiscal year begins, the board shall hold a public hearing to consider the proposed...
• Texas Section 344.205 - Approval Of Budget
  (a) Not later than the 45th day before the date each fiscal year begins, the governing body of the municipality that created the district shall...
• Texas Section 344.206 - Limitations On Expenditures And Investments
  (a) The district may spend money only for an expense included in the annual budget or an amendment to the budget. (b) A district may...
• Texas Section 344.207 - Account Of Disbursements Of District
  Not later than the 60th day after the last day of each fiscal year, an administrator shall prepare for the board a sworn statement of...
• Texas Section 344.208 - Deposit Of Money
  (a) The board shall deposit district money in a special account in the treasury of the municipality that created the district. (b) District money, other...
• Texas Section 344.209 - Applications For Program Funding
  (a) An officer of the municipality that created the district or the head of a department of that municipality may, with the consent of the...

SUBCHAPTER F REFERENDUM ON CONTINUATION OR DISSOLUTION OF DISTRICT

• Texas Section 344.210 - Bonds Prohibited
  The board may not issue or sell general obligation bonds, revenue bonds, or refunding bonds. Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 1295, Sec. 1,...
• Texas Section 344.251 - Referendum Authorized
  (a) The board may call and hold a referendum election on the question of whether to: (1) continue the district; or (2) dissolve the district....
• Texas Section 344.252 - Application For Petition
  (a) On written application of 10 or more registered voters of the district, the clerk of the municipality that created the district shall issue to...
• Texas Section 344.253 - Petition
  (a) A petition for a referendum to continue a district must contain: (1) the heading: "Petition for a Local Option Referendum to Continue the ____________...
• Texas Section 344.254 - Copies Of Application And Petition
  The clerk or secretary of the municipality shall keep an application and a copy of the petition in the files of the clerk's or secretary's...
• Texas Section 344.255 - Filing Of Petition
  To form the basis for the ordering of a referendum, the petition must: (1) be filed with the clerk or secretary of the municipality not...
• Texas Section 344.256 - Review By Clerk Or Secretary
  (a) The clerk or secretary of the municipality shall, on the request of any person, check each name on a petition to determine whether the...
• Texas Section 344.257 - Certification
  Not later than the 40th day after the date a petition is filed, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, the clerk or secretary of the...
• Texas Section 344.258 - Election Order
  (a) The board shall record on its minutes the date the petition is filed and the date it is certified by the clerk or secretary...
• Texas Section 344.259 - Applicability Of Election Code
  A referendum election authorized by this subchapter shall be held and the returns shall be prepared and canvassed in conformity with the Election Code. Added...
• Texas Section 344.260 - Results Of Referendum
  (a) If less than a majority of the votes cast in a continuation referendum election are for the continuation of a district or if a...

SUBCHAPTER G DISTRICT DISSOLUTION

• Texas Section 344.261 - Election Contest
  Not later than the 30th day after the date the result of a referendum is declared, any qualified voter of the district may contest the...
• Texas Section 344.301 - Time For Dissolution Of District
  (a) A district is dissolved five years after the date the municipality began to impose taxes for district purposes if the district has not held...
• Texas Section 344.302 - Dissolution Of District
  (a) On the date that the district is dissolved, the district shall convey or transfer, as provided by Subsection (h): (1) title to land, buildings,...

Last modified: September 28, 2016