Enrolled Bill Summary

            House Bill 424 amends the Local Government Code to require that a tenant resident be appointed as a commissioner of a municipal housing authority that has 300 or more housing units under its jurisdiction. The bill further requires a municipal, county, or regional housing authority each year to notify the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs, in writing, of whether a tenant resident serves as a commissioner and, if applicable, of the name and mailing address of that resident. The bill defines "public housing unit" as a dwelling unit for which the owner receives a public housing operating subsidy from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and excludes a unit for which payments are made to the landlord under the federal Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program. The bill exempts a small municipal housing authority, defined as one having fewer than 300 units under its jurisdiction or one with no units that administers only Section 8 housing assistance, if it is unsuccessful in its attempts to recruit an eligible tenant resident.            The bill prohibits a municipal or county housing authority from using any money under its control to pay lobbying expenses, and establishes that a violation is a Class A misdemeanor. The bill establishes that such restriction is in addition to that of Section 556.0055, Government Code, under which a violation would render the authority ineligible to receive additional state funds.

                Reason Given for Veto: "As originally filed, House Bill No. 424 would have appropriately provided local public housing authority boards with more flexibility and would have made state standards for tenant representation conform with current federal standards. An amendment added to House Bill No. 424 would have imposed a restriction on a housing board’s ability to hire legal counsel. This overly broad and unnecessary restriction could lead to the boards receiving less effective, and more costly, legal representation.