CHAPTER 26. FORM OF GOVERNMENT IN HOME-RULE MUNICIPALITY
LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE
TITLE 2. ORGANIZATION OF MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT
SUBTITLE B. MUNICIPAL FORM OF GOVERNMENT
CHAPTER 26. FORM OF GOVERNMENT IN HOME-RULE MUNICIPALITY
SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 26.001. CHAPTER APPLICABLE TO HOME-RULE MUNICIPALITY. This
chapter applies only to a home-rule municipality.
Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 149, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1987.
SUBCHAPTER B. FORM OF GOVERNMENT
Sec. 26.021. FORM OF GOVERNMENT. The municipality may adopt and
operate under any form of government, including the aldermanic or
commission form.
Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 149, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1987.
SUBCHAPTER C. MUNICIPAL OFFICERS
Sec. 26.041. CREATION OF MUNICIPAL OFFICES. The municipality
may:
(1) create offices;
(2) determine the method for selecting officers; and
(3) prescribe the qualifications, duties, and tenure of office
for officers.
Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 149, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1987.
Sec. 26.042. DATE FOR ELECTION OF OFFICERS. The governing body
of the municipality may set the date of election for municipal
officers in accordance with applicable provisions of the Election
Code.
Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 149, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1987.
Sec. 26.043. FILLING VACANCY IN ELECTIVE OFFICE IN MUNICIPALITY
WITH POPULATION OF 384,000 OR MORE. (a) If a vacancy occurs in
an elective office of a municipality with a population of 384,000
or more and if the charter of the municipality does not provide
for the filling of the vacancy, the governing body of the
municipality, by majority vote, shall appoint an individual to
fill the vacated office for the unexpired term. Pending that
appointment, the governing body may appoint a person on a
temporary basis to serve for a period not to exceed 60 days.
(b) A person appointed under Subsection (a) must possess the
qualifications required of the elected official.
(c) If the municipality holds an election to vote on proposed
amendments to its charter, it shall at that time submit a
proposed charter amendment to provide a method for filling
vacancies in elective offices.
Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 149, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1987.
Sec. 26.044. ELECTION FROM SINGLE-MEMBER AND AT-LARGE DISTRICTS;
LIMITATION ON YEARS OF SERVICE. (a) The governing body of a
municipality with a population of 1.5 million or more must
consist of one mayor elected at large, 16 members elected from
single-member districts, and six members elected at large. Each
member representing a single-member district must reside in the
district.
(b) This section supersedes any charter provision or ordinance
adopted before January 1, 1992. The municipality may adopt a
different composition or organization of its governing body in a
manner provided by its charter on or after January 1, 1992.
(c) The municipality may provide for the members of the
governing body to serve staggered terms.
(d) After each redistricting, the terms of the members of the
governing body representing single-member districts expire, and
an election shall be held in each new district to fill the
position for that district.
(e) The districts must be compact and contiguous and as equal as
practicable in population.
(f) A municipality having the population provided by Subsection
(a) according to the 1980 federal decennial census and covered by
Subsection (a) under the 1990 federal decennial census must
comply with Subsection (a) not later than May 1, 1992. Before
that date, the governing body of the municipality may implement
the transition to a governing body that complies with Subsection
(a) as it determines appropriate.
(g) A municipality to which this section applies for the first
time under the 1990 or a subsequent federal decennial census must
comply with Subsection (a) before the next January 1 that occurs
at least one year after the date the official census data for the
municipality is made public by the United States Bureau of the
Census.
(h) Subsections (a) through (f) apply to a municipality having
the population described by Subsection (a) under the 1980 and
1990 federal decennial censuses only if a finding is made that
representation of the citizens of the municipality requires that
the governing body consist of members as required by Subsection
(a). The finding must be made by the voters of the municipality
voting at an election on the question. The mayor of the
municipality shall order an election on the question for the
November 1991 uniform election date. The mayor shall order the
ballot for the election to be printed to provide for voting for
or against the proposition: "Representation of the citizens of
the municipality of (name of the municipality) requires that the
governing body of the municipality consist of (a description of
the requirements of Subsection (a))." If a majority of the votes
cast at the election favor the proposition, the finding required
by this subsection is considered to have been made, and this
section shall be implemented in the municipality. If a majority
of the votes cast are not in favor of the proposition, this
section has no effect in the municipality.
(i) If this section takes effect on or before July 1, 1991, the
election as required by Subsection (h) shall be held on August
10, 1991, as required by Section 41.001, Election Code, instead
of on the November 1991 uniform election date.
(j) Repealed by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 919, Sec. 2, eff. Aug.
30, 1993.
Added by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 666, Sec. 1, eff. June 16,
1991. Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 919, Sec. 2, eff. Aug.
30, 1993.
Sec. 26.045. FILLING VACANCY ON GOVERNING BODY OF MUNICIPALITY
WITH POPULATION OF 1.5 MILLION OR MORE. If a vacancy occurs on
the governing body of a municipality with a population of 1.5
million or more and more than 270 days remain before the date of
the next general election of members of the governing body, the
governing body shall order a special election in the district in
which the vacancy occurred, or in the entire municipality if the
vacancy occurred in an at-large position, to fill the vacancy.
The special election shall be held on an authorized uniform
election date prescribed by the Election Code that occurs before
the general election and that allows enough time to hold the
election in the manner required by law and shall be conducted in
the same manner as the municipality's general election except as
provided by provisions of the Election Code applicable to special
elections to fill vacancies.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 919, Sec. 1, eff. Aug. 30,
1993.
Sec. 26.046. SIZE OF GOVERNING BODY: CERTAIN MUNICIPALITIES.
(a) This section applies only to a municipality with a
population of 1.1 million or more that elects each member of its
governing body other than the mayor from fewer than 14
single-member districts.
(b) Notwithstanding a charter provision to the contrary, the
municipality may provide by ordinance for the number of districts
used to elect members to the municipality's governing body. The
ordinance may not provide for more than 14 districts.
(c) This section does not affect a mayor who, under a charter
provision, is elected in a municipality at large.
Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 1179, Sec. 1, eff. June 15,
2001.
Sec. 26.047. FILLING VACANCY IN OFFICE OF MAYOR. Unless
otherwise provided by the charter of the municipality or this
chapter, a person serving as a member of the governing body of
the municipality is not, because of that service, ineligible to
be appointed to fill a vacancy in the office of mayor of the
municipality, but the person may not vote on the person's own
appointment.
Added by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch.
513, Sec. 4, eff. June 16, 2007.