Texas Government Code 2267.001 – Definitions
Terms Used In Texas Government Code 2267.001
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
- Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
- Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
- Person: includes corporation, organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, and any other legal entity. See Texas Government Code 311.005
- Property: means real and personal property. See Texas Government Code 311.005
- Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
- User fees: Fees charged to users of goods or services provided by the government. In levying or authorizing these fees, the legislature determines whether the revenue should go into the treasury or should be available to the agency providing the goods or services.
In this chapter:
(1) “Affected jurisdiction” means any county or municipality in which all or a portion of a qualifying project is located.
(1-a) “Center” means the center for alternative finance and procurement established under § 2152.110 by the Texas Facilities Commission.
(1-b) “Commission” means the Partnership Advisory Commission established under Chapter 2268.
(2) “Comprehensive agreement” means the comprehensive agreement authorized by § 2267.058 between the contracting person and the responsible governmental entity.
(3) “Contracting person” means a person who enters into a comprehensive or interim agreement with a responsible governmental entity under this chapter.
(4) “Develop” means to plan, design, develop, finance, lease, acquire, install, construct, or expand a qualifying project.
(5) “Governmental entity” means:
(A) a board, commission, department, or other agency of this state, including an institution of higher education as defined by § 61.003, Education Code, that elects to operate under this chapter through the adoption of a resolution by the institution’s board of regents; and
(B) a political subdivision of this state that elects to operate under this chapter by the adoption of a resolution by the governing body of the political subdivision.
(5-a) “Improvement” means:
(A) a building, structure, fixture, or fence erected on or affixed to land;
(B) the installation of water, sewer, or drainage lines on, above, or under land;
(C) the paving of undeveloped land; and
(D) specialized software that in any manner is related to the control, management, maintenance, or operation of an improvement.
(6) “Interim agreement” means an agreement authorized by § 2267.059 between a contracting person and a responsible governmental entity that proposes the development or operation of the qualifying project.
(7) “Lease payment” means any form of payment, including a land lease, by a governmental entity to the contracting person for the use of a qualifying project.
(8) “Material default” means any default by a contracting person in the performance of duties imposed under § 2267.057(f) that jeopardizes adequate service to the public from a qualifying project.
(9) “Operate” means to finance, maintain, improve, equip, modify, repair, or operate a qualifying project.
(9-a) “Private entity” means any individual person, corporation, general partnership, limited liability company, limited partnership, joint venture, business trust, public benefit corporation, nonprofit entity, or other business entity.
(9-b) “Property” means any matter or thing capable of public or private ownership.
(9-c) “Proposer” means a private entity that submits a proposal to a responsible governmental entity or affected jurisdiction.
(10) “Qualifying project” means:
(A) any ferry, mass transit facility, vehicle parking facility, port facility, power generation facility, fuel supply facility, oil or gas pipeline, water supply facility, public work, waste treatment facility, hospital, school, medical or nursing care facility, recreational facility, public building, technology facility, or other similar facility currently available or to be made available to a governmental entity for public use, including any structure, parking area, appurtenance, and other property required to operate the structure or facility and any technology infrastructure installed in the structure or facility that is essential to the project’s purpose; or
(B) any improvements necessary or desirable to real property owned by a governmental entity.
(10-a) “Real property” means:
(A) improved or unimproved land;
(B) an improvement;
(C) a mine or quarry;
(D) a mineral in place;
(E) standing timber; or
(F) an estate or interest, other than a mortgage or deed of trust creating a lien on property or an interest securing payment or performance of an obligation, in a property described by Paragraphs (A) through (E).
(11) “Responsible governmental entity” means a governmental entity that has the power to develop or operate an applicable qualifying project.
(12) “Revenue” means all revenue, income, earnings, user fees, lease payments, or other service payments that arise out of or in connection with the development or operation of a qualifying project, including money received as a grant or otherwise from the federal government, a governmental entity, or any agency or instrumentality of the federal government or governmental entity in aid of the project.
(13) “Service contract” means a contract between a governmental entity and a contracting person under § 2267.054.
(14) “Service payment” means a payment to a contracting person of a qualifying project under a service contract.
(14-a) “State entity” means a governmental entity described by Subdivision (5)(A).
(15) “User fee” means a rate, fee, or other charge imposed by a contracting person for the use of all or part of a qualifying project under a comprehensive agreement.