SRBA board to consider amendments to bring statutes in state compliance

The Sulphur River Basin Authority’s Board of Directors will meet at 1 p.m. today to consider amending bylaws to comply with statutes required by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and state statues as required by the Sunset Advisory Commission Staff Report.

The amendments include changes to conflicts of interest for board members, and the prohibition on granting public money or things of value to an individual, association or corporation. Additional proposed changes include maintaining a list of at least three qualified individuals or firms for each area of professional service SRBA uses, and that these would be sent a request for proposal for any contract awarded for a new project expected to exceed $25,000. The board will also consider an amendment to comply with provisions in contracting with historically underutilized businesses in Texas.

A public comments proposal is included in the amendments, which would require those desiring to speak to complete a public comment registration form. A five-minute time limit per speaker is included, with the public comment portion of the meeting to not exceed a total of 30 minutes for all speakers. In addition, the board would not discuss items presented during public comments, but only respond with factual or policy information.

The board will also consider executing a professional services agreement with Dr. Mike Buttram for water quality services and hear updates on the Clean Rivers Program, the feasibility study and the Region D Water Planning Group.

The meeting will be held at the Mount Pleasant Civic Center, 1800 N. Jefferson, Mount Pleasant, Texas.