The ownership, right of control and use of the streets, highways, alleys, parks, public places, and all other real property of the City of Beaumont is hereby declared to be inalienable to said City except by ordinances passed by a vote of the governing body of the City as hereinafter provided; and no franchise or easement involving the right to use same either along, across, over or under the same shall ever be valid unless expressly granted and exercised in compliance with the terms hereof and of the ordinances granting the same. No act or omission of the City, its governing body, officers or agents shall be construed to confer or extend by estoppel or indirection any right, franchise or easement not expressly granted by ordinance.
Editor's note–Former section 2, pertaining to the power of city council, was repealed 11/7/2023.
All ordinances granting, amending, renewing or extending franchises shall be read at one regular meeting of the City Council and shall take effect thirty (30) days after passage by the City Council; provided, however, if at any time before any such ordinance shall finally take effect a petition or petitions shall be presented to the City Council signed by not less than five hundred (500) of the bona fide qualified voters of the City, then the governing body shall submit the question of the granting of said franchise to a vote of the qualified voters of the City of Beaumont at its next succeeding general election to be held in said City, provided that notice thereof shall be published at least twenty (20) days successively in a daily newspaper in the City of Beaumont prior to the holding of the election. In the event the next succeeding general election is not within twelve (12) months from the effective date of the ordinance, then the City Council may submit same at a special election. Ballots shall be used briefly describing the franchise to be voted on and the terms thereof; and shall contain the words “For the granting of a franchise” and “Against the granting of a franchise.” The vote shall be canvassed by the City Council and, should it result in a majority of those voting thereon casting their votes in favor of granting a franchise, the City Council shall so declare by order entered in its minutes and said franchise shall at once take effect in accordance with its terms. In the event the majority of such votes be cast “against granting a franchise” then said City Council shall by order entered in its minutes so declare that such franchise shall not take effect. If, at the expiration of any franchise term, the franchise holder has applied for a new franchise and is refused by the City Council, and a petition complying with the foregoing provisions of this section is presented to the City Council, then the Council shall submit the question of the granting of the franchise to the qualified voters in the same manner as heretofore provided. The failure to pass finally on the application within four (4) months after it is filed shall be construed as a refusal. The City Council, in passing an ordinance granting a franchise, may provide therein that it shall not take effect until the same shall have been submitted to and approved by a majority of the qualified voters voting thereon at a general election. After the passage of a franchise ordinance, the full text of such ordinance shall be published on the City’s website.
(Amended 5/1/2021)
The provisions of Section 3 of this Article relating to effective date of ordinance and publication thereof shall not be applicable to the granting of side track, spur track, or switch privileges to any franchise-holding railway connections and switch privileges to the owners or users of any industrial site. Franchises granting these privileges shall take effect ten (10) days after their adoption on third and final reading, and the full text of such ordinance shall be published once in a newspaper of general circulation published in the City of Beaumont at the expense of the proponent of the franchise.
No indeterminate franchise shall be granted. No determinate or fixed term franchise shall ever be granted for a longer term than thirty-five (35) years. No determinate franchise shall ever be granted except upon the condition that the City shall have the right at any time within five (5) years of the expiration of the term thereof, but prior to the last twelve (12) months of said term, to purchase or cause to be purchased the property of the franchise holder devoted to public service thereunder, same to be effective at the expiration of the fixed term. Before the City shall purchase, or cause to be purchased, property from any franchise holder, the matter of the acquisition of such property shall be submitted at a municipal election to be determined by a majority vote of the qualified taxpayers voting thereon.
(Amended 1/25/1972)
All grants, renewals, extensions or amendments of public utility franchises, whether it be so provided in the ordinance or not, shall be subject to the right of the City:
(a) 
To repeal the same by ordinance at any time for failure to begin construction or operation within the time prescribed or otherwise to comply with the terms of the franchise.
(b) 
To require proper and adequate extensions of the plant and service and the maintenance of the plant and fixtures at the highest practicable standard of efficiency.
(c) 
To prescribe the forms of accounts kept by each such utility (where a public utility keeps its accounts and books according to a system prescribed by Federal or State authority or Commission, the keeping of such accounts and books in the manner so prescribed shall be deemed a compliance with the foregoing provisions of this subsection); and at any time to examine and audit the accounts and other records of any such utility and to require annual and other reports including reports on local operations by each such utility.
(d) 
To impose such reasonable regulations and restrictions as may be desired or conducive to the safety, welfare and accommodation of the public.
(e) 
To at any time require such compensation and rental as may be permitted by the laws of the State of Texas.
The consent of abutting and adjacent property owners shall not be required for the construction, extension, maintenance or operation of any public utility; but nothing in this Charter or any franchise granted thereunder shall ever be construed to deprive any such property owner of any right of action for damages or injury to his property as now or hereafter provided by law.
All extensions of public utilities within the City limits shall become a part of the aggregate property of the public utility, shall be operated as such and shall be subject to all the obligations and reserved rights contained in this Charter and in any original grant hereafter made. The right to use or maintain any extension shall terminate with the original grant and shall be terminable as provided in Section 6 of this Article. In case of an extension of a public utility operated under a franchise hereafter granted such right shall be terminable at the same time and under the same conditions as the original grant.
The City Council shall require all public service corporations operating within the corporate limits of the City of Beaumont to file a sworn annual report of the receipts from the operation of the said business for the current year; how expended, how much thereof for the betterment or improvements and the rate of tolls or charges for services rendered to the public. Such annual report shall show any other facts or information that the City Council may deem pertinent for its use in intelligently passing upon any questions that may arise between the City and the said public service corporations; said reports to be filed with the City Clerk.
The City Council shall have the power by ordinance to require any or all railroad companies operating any track or tracks upon or across any public streets of the City of Beaumont to reduce such tracks below the level of the streets intersected or occupied by such tracks, or to elevate such tracks, and to require the company or companies owning or operating such tracks to provide necessary and proper crossing for the public travel at intersecting streets or to remove any tracks from any street occupied by such tracks and to reroute same as designated in the ordinance, provided that the railway company involved be given thirty (30) days notice prior to the adoption of the ordinance.
Within six (6) months after this Charter takes effect, every public utility and every owner of a public utility franchise shall file with the City as may be prescribed by ordinance certified copies of all the franchises owned or claimed within the City or under which such utility operated within the City. The City shall compile and maintain a public record of all public utility franchises issued by the City.
All franchises now legally in force shall remain in full force and effect for the remainder of the term designated therein. All such franchises, however, shall be subject to the provisions of this Charter, provided no vested rights are impaired thereby.