In addition to the city’s power to buy, construct, lease,
maintain, operate and regulate public utilities and to manufacture,
distribute and sell the output of such utility operations, the city
shall have further powers as may now or hereafter be granted under
the constitution and laws of the State of Texas.
The city council shall have power by ordinance to grant, amend,
renew and extend all franchises of all public utilities of every character
operating within the City of Gonzales. All ordinances granting, amending,
renewing, or extending franchises for public utilities shall be read
at two separate regular meetings of the city council, and shall not
be finally passed until thirty days after the first reading; and no
such ordinance shall take effect until thirty days after its final
passage; and pending such time, the full text of such ordinance shall
be published as prescribed by state law once each week for four consecutive
weeks and the expense of such publication shall be borne by the proponent
of the franchise. No public utility franchise shall be granted for
a term of more than 20 years nor be transferable except with the approval
of the city council expressed by ordinance.
All grants, removals, 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 council of the City of Gonzales:
(a) To repeal
the same ordinance at any time upon the failure of the grantee to
comply with any provision of the ordinance, the franchise, the charter
of the City of Gonzales, any applicable statute of the State of Texas
or the rule of any applicable governmental body;
(b) To require
proper and adequate extension of plant and service, and the maintenance
of the plant and fixtures at the highest reasonable standard of efficiency;
(c) To establish
reasonable standards of service and quality of products and prevent
unjust discrimination in service or rates;
(d) To examine
and audit at any time the accounts and other records of any such utility
and to require annual and other reports, including reports on operations
within the City of Gonzales;
(e) To impose
such reasonable regulations and restrictions as may be deemed desirable
or conducive to the safety, welfare, and accommodation of the public;
(f) To 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 in any franchise
granted thereunder shall ever be construed to deprive any such property
owner of any right of action for damage 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 and maintain any extension shall terminate with the original grant and shall be terminable as provided in Section
10.03 of this charter. 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.
All franchises heretofore granted are recognized as contracts
between the City of Gonzales and the grantee, and the contractual
rights as contained in any such franchise shall not be impaired by
the provisions of this charter, except that the power of the City
of Gonzales to exercise the right to eminent domain in the acquisition
of utility property is in all things reserved, and except the general
power of the city heretofore existing and herein provided for, to
regulate the rates and services of a grantee which shall include the
right to require proper and adequate extension of plant and service
and the maintenance of the plant and fixtures at the highest reasonable
standard of efficiency. Every public utility franchise hereafter granted
shall be held subject to all the terms and conditions contained in
the various sections of this article whether or not such terms are
specifically mentioned in the franchise. Nothing in this charter shall
operate to limit in any way, as specifically stated, the discretion
of the city council or voters of the city in imposing terms and conditions
as may be reasonable in connection with any franchise grant.
Accounts shall be kept for each public utility owned or operated
by the city, in such manner as to show the true and complete financial
results of such city ownership and operation, including all assets
and all liabilities, appropriately subdivided by classes, depreciation
reserve, other reserves and surplus; also revenues, operating expenses
including depreciation, interest payments, rental, and other disposition
of annual income. The accounts shall show actual capital cost to the
city of each public utility owned; also the cost of all extensions,
additions, and improvements and the source of funds expended for such
capital purposes. They shall show as nearly as possible the cost of
any service furnished to or rendered by any such utility to any city
government department. The city council shall cause an annual report
to be made by a certified public accountant and shall publish such
report showing the financial results of such city ownership and operation,
giving the information specified in this section and such other data
as the city council shall deem expedient.
The city council shall have the power, after due notice and
hearing, to regulate by ordinance the rates and services of city utilities
operating in the City of Gonzales.
The sale of any utility of the City of Gonzales can only be
done by election of registered city voters.