Texas Government Code 551.045 – Exception to General Rule: Notice of Emergency Meeting or Emergency Addition to Agenda
(a) In an emergency or when there is an urgent public necessity, the notice of a meeting to deliberate or take action on the emergency or urgent public necessity, or the supplemental notice to add the deliberation or taking of action on the emergency or urgent public necessity as an item to the agenda for a meeting for which notice has been posted in accordance with this subchapter, is sufficient if the notice or supplemental notice is posted for at least one hour before the meeting is convened.
(a-1) A governmental body may not deliberate or take action on a matter at a meeting for which notice or supplemental notice is posted under Subsection (a) other than:
(1) a matter directly related to responding to the emergency or urgent public necessity identified in the notice or supplemental notice of the meeting as provided by Subsection (c); or
(2) an agenda item listed on a notice of the meeting before the supplemental notice was posted.
Terms Used In Texas Government Code 551.045
- 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.
- 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
(b) An emergency or an urgent public necessity exists only if immediate action is required of a governmental body because of:
(1) an imminent threat to public health and safety, including a threat described by Subdivision (2) if imminent; or
(2) a reasonably unforeseeable situation, including:
(A) fire, flood, earthquake, hurricane, tornado, or wind, rain, or snow storm;
(B) power failure, transportation failure, or interruption of communication facilities;
(C) epidemic; or
(D) riot, civil disturbance, enemy attack, or other actual or threatened act of lawlessness or violence.
(c) The governmental body shall clearly identify the emergency or urgent public necessity in the notice or supplemental notice under this section.
(d) A person who is designated or authorized to post notice of a meeting by a governmental body under this subchapter shall post the notice taking at face value the governmental body’s stated reason for the emergency or urgent public necessity.
(e) For purposes of Subsection (b)(2), the sudden relocation of a large number of residents from the area of a declared disaster to a governmental body’s jurisdiction is considered a reasonably unforeseeable situation for a reasonable period immediately following the relocation.