Friday, February 7, 2020

House Bill 782: Home-Rule Municipalities

The municipality shall pay to the owner the balance of the sale proceeds. The governing body shall assess the land abutting the street or alley improved under this section for two-thirds of the cost of the improvement. The municipality shall pay the entire cost of an improvement at the intersection of streets. The special commissioners appointed under Chapter 21, Property Code, as part of the eminent domain proceeding shall apportion the cost of the improvement between the municipality and the landowners. The municipality's share of the cost may not exceed one-third of the cost. The municipality shall pay its share of the cost, and the landowners shall pay the balance.

home rule municipality texas

To establish a freeway by using a street that exists at the time of the establishment, the municipality must have the consent of the owners of lands abutting the freeway or must purchase or condemn the right of access to the abutting lands. This subsection does not require consent to establish a freeway for the first time as a new way for vehicular and pedestrian traffic. The governing body of the municipality by ordinance shall designate the appropriate official of the municipality who shall present all cases before the commission panels.

Texas Public Policy Foundation social network links

Nine municipalities listed below did not incorporate until after 2010. The column "Main County" refers to the county wherein a municipality has the largest section of its land, with other counties that the municipality has land listed in "Other Counties". As of 2020, Texas municipalities include 966 cities, 232 towns, and 22 villages, although these names have no specific designation in law. “The mere fact that the legislature has enacted a law addressing a subject does not mean that the subject matter is completely preempted.”City of Richardson v. Responsible Dog Owners of Tex., 794 S.W.

The next step is for the city secretary to verify that the signatories are registered voters in the city. If the petition is deemed valid, the city government can either adopt the ordinance or hold an election on the proposed ordinance. This process allows residents to propose legislation themselves, if the city government has not opted to act in some regard. First, citizens must gather signatures on a petition for such a measure, which would include text for a proposed ordinance. Just how many signatures will vary by home rule charter; some might be a particular number of voters and others are calculated by some proportion of votes cast in a prior generation election.

Texas Local Government Code

What if citizens in a home rule city find the city’s charter lacking in some regard? To push through such a change, a petition signed by 5% of voters or 20,000 voters is sufficient to require the city council to call an election on a proposed charter amendment. City charters typically include what form of government is established, provisions for administering city finances, procedures for levying taxes and other matters.

home rule municipality texas

A city with a population exceeding 5,000 may seek home rule status by voter approval ; said status allows more flexibility in local governance . Home-rule municipalities in Texas have fairly broad discretion to place initiatives before voters; however, the system for local elections lacks uniformity across the state because each municipality’s charter governs its local elections. Change in the legal requirements of local election processes are long overdue. The legislature, generally in the interest of statewide uniformity and efficiency, has set some limits on home rule. For example, most city elections can only be held on a date designated in the Texas Election Code.

Home-rule Municipality

The District of Columbia has a limited form of home rule granted by the Federal Government; see District of Columbia home rule for details. The secretary of state shall file and record the certification in his office in a book kept for that purpose. The ballot shall be prepared so that a voter may approve or disapprove any one or more amendments without having to approve or disapprove all of the amendments.

The original or a copy of the summons or citation shall be kept as a record in the ordinary course of business of the municipality and is rebuttable proof of the facts it states. To all unknown owners, by posting a copy of the notice on the front door of each improvement situated on the affected property or as close to the front door as practicable. A commission appointed for the purpose of hearing cases under this subchapter shall consist of one or more panels, each composed of at least five members, to be appointed for terms of two years.

Ouray City Administrator Patrick Rondinelli added that prior to home rule, the city followed a council-manager form of government that is still in place today. While local control was the main reason for the city’s switch from a statutory to home rule municipality, Rondinelli added that the city “did not change much” in day-to-day operations by becoming home rule. Following voter approval, Ouray adopted its home rule charter in 2009. A municipality must exercise due diligence to determine the identity and address of a property owner, lienholder, or registered agent to whom the municipality is required to give notice.

A person who is found by a hearing officer to have violated an ordinance may appeal the determination by filing a petition in municipal court before the 31st day after the date the hearing officer's determination is filed. An appeal does not stay enforcement and collection of the judgment unless the person, before filing the appeal, posts a bond with an agency designated for that purpose by the municipality. A majority of the entire commission shall adopt rules for the entire commission in accordance with any ordinances adopted pursuant to this subchapter. The rules shall establish procedures for use in hearings, providing ample opportunity for presentation of evidence and testimony by respondents or persons opposing charges brought by the municipality or its building officials relating to alleged violations of ordinances. To provide for the public safety, the governing body of a general-law municipality by ordinance may restrict a registered sex offender from going in, on, or within a specified distance of a child safety zone in the municipality.

The requirement imposed by Subsection does not waive governmental immunity for any purpose and a person may not seek injunctive relief or any other judicial remedy to enforce the estimate of the anticipated fiscal impact on the municipality. Residents of home rule cities in Texas are afforded some ability, under certain circumstances, to force their city government to act on measures the government might not have undertaken on its own. An item or vehicle is deceptively similar to a police identification item or patrol vehicle of a municipal police department if the circumstances under which the object is used could mislead a reasonable person as to the object's identity. The marshal or a deputy marshal shall be available to the municipal court when it is in session and shall promptly and faithfully execute writs and process issued by the court.

home rule municipality texas

The commission may file notice of a proceeding before a commission panel in the Official Public Records of Real Property in the county in which the affected property is located. The notice must be posted and either personally delivered or mailed on or before the 10th day before the date of the hearing before the commission panel and must state the date, time, and place of the hearing. In addition, the notice must be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the municipality on one occasion on or before the 10th day before the date fixed for the hearing.

The record owner shall deliver the affidavit in person or by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the governmental entity not later than the 20th day after the date the record owner receives the notice. In Texas, cities are either "general law" or "home rule" cities. Cities governed under general law have only specific powers granted by state law.

home rule municipality texas

The notice of lien must be in recordable form and must state the name of each property owner, if known, the legal description of the property, and the amount due. Luckily, Jersey Village is a home rule city, which grants it wide latitude under Texas law to allow local citizens to govern their city the way they wish. Rather than being told by the state what they can do, the state only defines what a home rule city cannot do. If there is no prohibition in state law or in the state constitution, the city government may do anything consistent with its charter and ordinances.

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