Title WL, Auxiliary Water Laws

Art. 7811. PETITION. Upon the presentation to the commissioners court of a petition signed by twenty-five of the resident property taxpayers of any proposed district praying for the establishment thereof within the county, and setting forth the boundaries, and accompanied by a ma…

Art. 7812. CONTINGENT DEPOSIT. The petition shall be accompanied by five hundred dollars in cash which shall be deposited with the clerk of the commissioners court of the county in which the largest portion of the proposed district is situated. If the result of the original elect…

Art. 7813. NOTICE OF HEARING. The court shall, when setting a date for the hearing, order the clerk of said court to give notice of the date and place of said hearing by posting, or causing to be posted, not less than twenty days prior to the hearing, a copy of said petition and …

Art. 7814. HEARING. Any person who may be affected thereby may appear before said court and contest the creation of said district, or contend for its creation, and may offer testimony in favor of or against the boundaries of said district to show that the proposed improvements wo…

Art. 7815. HEARING: AUTHORITY OF COURT. Unless otherwise provided, the commissioners court shall have exclusive jurisdiction to hear and determine all contests and objections to the creation and establishment of any district, and shall have exclusive jurisdiction in all subsequen…

Art. 7816. FINDINGS. If at said hearing it appears to the court that the organization of such district and the proposed improvement is feasible and practicable, and that it would be a public benefit or public utility, then it shall so find, and shall also find the amount of money…

Art. 7817. MAY RENEW PETITION. The order dismissing said petition or any appeal therefrom shall not prevent the presentation at any subsequent time of a similar petition with changed boundaries, but the presentation of a similar petition with identical boundaries shall not be per…

Art. 7819. APPEAL: PROCEEDINGS. Within five days from the filing of the appeal bond, the county clerk shall transfer to the district clerk all records filed with the commissioners court pertaining to the establishment of said district, and it shall not be necessary to file additi…

Art. 7820. ELECTION ORDER. If the petition is granted, the commissioners court shall order an election to be held in such district at the earliest legal time, to determine whether or not such district shall be created and whether or not a tax shall be levied sufficient to pay the…

Art. 7821. NOTICE OF ELECTION. Notice of such election stating the time and place of holding the same shall be given by the county clerk by posting or causing to be posted notices thereof in four public places in such district and one at the courthouse door, for thirty days prior…

Art. 7822. BALLOT. The commissioners court shall provide twice as many ballots as there are qualified resident property tax paying voters within such district. Said ballots shall have printed thereon the words and none others: "For the Water Control and Preservation District, and…

Art. 7823. ELECTION: CONDUCT OF. None but resident property taxpayers who are qualified voters of said proposed district shall be entitled to vote at such election. The commissioners court shall create and define, by an order of the court, the voting precincts in the proposed dis…

Art. 7824. LIST OF VOTERS. The tax collector of the county wherein such district is situated, prior to the election, shall make a certified list of the property taxpayers of said district and furnish to the presiding judge of each precinct a list of such voters in such precinct. …

Art. 7825. VOTER'S OATH. Any person who acquired property in said district after the first day of January of the preceding year may vote in said election upon taking the following oath before the presiding judge of the polling place where he offers to vote, and such judge is auth…

Art. 7826. TAXPAYER'S OATH. Any person whose name was erroneously omitted from said list of voters may vote at said election upon the taking the oath as prescribed in the preceding article except that in lieu of the clause "that I was not subject to pay property tax in said distr…

Art. 7827. RESULTS OF ELECTION. Said court shall canvass the vote, and if two-thirds of such votes are in favor of the proposition submitted, then the court shall declare the result of said election to be in favor of said district, and shall enter same in their minutes as provide…

Art. 7828. DECLARATION OF RESULT. Said order of the court shall be as follows: "Commissioners court of ........ County, Texas, ........ day of ........ A.D. ........ in the matter of petition of ........ and ........ others, praying for the establishment of a Water Control and Pr…

Art. 7829. BOARD OF DIRECTORS. At the same meeting when said order is made, or at a called meeting within five days thereafter, the court shall appoint a board of directors consisting of three members, all of whom shall be freehold property taxpayers and legal voters of the count…

Art. 7830. COMBINED DISTRICT. Where a proposed district lies partly within two or more counties, the petition for the establishment of said district shall be presented to the commissioners court of each county. Each such court shall give all necessary notice as provided for a sin…

Art. 7831. COMBINED DISTRICT: DECLARATION. Said county judge shall canvass said vote and declare the result thereof, and if two-thirds of such votes favor the creation of said district, he shall declare the result and make the same order as provided herein for a single district. …

Art. 7832. COMBINED DISTRICT: HEARING. The commissioners court of each county shall hear and determine the matters relating to the establishment of said district in their county, in the same manner as provided for a single district, and appeals may be taken therefrom to the distr…

Art. 7833. COMBINED DISTRICT: DIRECTORS. A board of five directors shall be elected at the same election held for the establishment of such district, and the ballot therefor may have printed thereon the names of such candidates, or the voter may write upon his ballot the names of…

Art. 7834. COMBINED DISTRICT: ELECTION. On the second Tuesday of January after the establishment of such district, and biennially thereafter, an election for such directors shall be held in each such county in accordance with the election laws of this State and the provisions of …

Art. 7835. DIRECTOR'S BOND AND OATH. Within ten days after their appointment or election, or as soon as practicable thereafter, the directors shall each make a good and sufficient bond for five thousand dollars payable to their district, conditioned upon the faithful performance …

Art. 7836. COUNTY OFFICERS: COMPENSATION. Unless otherwise provided, the duties and powers herein conferred upon the county judges and members of the commissioners court, and other officers are made a part of the regular duties of said officials, which they shall render and perfo…

Art. 7837. ORGANIZATION OF BOARD. As soon as possible after their qualification, the directors shall organize by electing one of their number president and one as district secretary. When the board consists of three members, any two directors shall be a quorum; and when it consis…

Art. 7838. MEETINGS. During the progress of the construction of any improvement under contract, the directors shall maintain a regular office within such district, and may in their discretion when deemed necessary, maintain a regular office in the district during any other time. …

Art. 7839. POWERS. The directors shall have control over the management of all district affairs, shall make all contracts pertaining thereto, and shall employ all necessary employés for the proper conduct and operation of such district, including engineers, bookkeepers and such o…

Art. 7840. POWERS: LIMITATION. Where the district lies wholly in one county, the directors shall not, after the completion of the improvements, employ any attorneys as legal advisers of the district or an engineer for such district, or any other employés, except with the concurre…

Art. 7841. FURTHER POWERS. The directors may employ a general manager to have general charge of the work, paying such compensation as may be agreed upon by the directors. A director may be appointed as general manager at such compensation as may be fixed by the other directors, a…

Art. 7842. OFFICIAL BONDS. All district officers and employés who may be required to give bond or security may furnish bonds of surety companies, subject to the approval of the directors. All such bonds shall be preserved by the directors as the property of said district. After t…

Art. 7843. DISTRICT RECORDS. The directors, through the secretary, shall keep a true account of all matters and proceedings of the board, and shall maintain the records of the district in a secure manner. The preservation, microfilming, destruction, or other disposition of the re…

Art. 7844. DISBURSEMENTS. All payments of any district funds shall be by voucher upon the district depository, and all such vouchers shall be signed by the president or any two directors. All vouchers shall be issued from a regular duplicate book containing a duplicate, which sha…

Art. 7845. DISTRICT DEPOSITORY. The directors shall select a depository for such district in the same manner as now provided by law for the selection of county depositories, and such depository shall be regulated by the same laws as those governing county depositories. In such se…

Art. 7846. AUDIT AND REPORT. The directors shall annually require an audit to be made of the district records and accounts, at the time and in the manner provided for audits of Water Improvement Districts under Chapter 2 of this title, and on the first of January of each year the…

Art. 7847. STATUS OF DISTRICT. Any district may by and through its directors sue and be sued in the name of such district, and all courts of this State shall take judicial notice of the establishment of such districts; and said districts shall contract and be contracted with in t…

Art. 7848. SUITS AFFECTING DISTRICT. No suit shall be brought in any Court of this State contesting the validity or enjoining the formation of any district, or any bonds issued hereunder, or in anywise affecting the establishment of the district, or issuance of bonds by such dist…

Art. 7849. PROPERTY RIGHTS. The directors are hereby empowered to acquire the necessary right of way and property of any kind or character whatsoever for all necessary improvements contemplated by this chapter, by gift, grant, purchase or condemnation proceedings, within or witho…

Art. 7849a. RESISTING WATER CONTROL OFFICER. The directors of any Water Control and Preservation District and the engineers and employés thereof are hereby authorized to go upon any land lying within said district for the purpose of examining same for locating dams, bulkheads, je…

Art. 7850. EMINENT DOMAIN. The right of eminent domain is hereby conferred upon all districts for the purpose of condemning and acquiring the right of way over and through all lands, private and public, except property used for cemetery purposes, necessary for making and maintain…

Art. 7851. DISTRICT ENGINEER. The directors shall have authority to employ a competent engineer whose term of office shall be at the will of the directors. He shall make all necessary surveys, examinations, investigations, maps, plans, and drawings with reference to the proposed …

Art. 7852. FEDERAL CO-OPERATION. The directors shall have full power to co-operate and act with the United States or any officer or department thereof, in any manner pertaining or relating to the construction and maintenance of any improvement, whether by survey, work or expendit…

Art. 7853. CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS. If the district improvements are not carried out by the United States, the contracts for such improvements shall be let by the directors to the lowest and best responsible bidder. If more than one improvement is to be made, the contract may be l…

Art. 7854. SUPERVISION OF WORK. All work contracted for, unless done under Federal supervision, shall be done under the supervision of the district engineer. When the work is completed according to the contract, he shall make a detailed report of same to the directors, showing wh…

Art. 7855. CONTRACT: PAYMENT. (a) The District shall pay the contract price of such contracts as hereinafter provided: (b) The directors shall draw a voucher on the District depository for the amount of any payments in favor of the contractor or his assignee. Said vouchers shall …

Art. 7856. MAINTENANCE OF DISTRICT. After the full and final completion of all improvements of the district, and after payment of all expenses incurred under this chapter, the directors are authorized to use the funds remaining in the Construction and Maintenance Fund for the bes…