BILL ANALYSIS C.S.S.B. 312 By: Wentworth (Kuempel) May 13, 1995 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND Chapter 232, Texas Local Government Code, is dedicated to providing safe and orderly development of privately subdivided property. Information on the prospective uses of the land within a county's boundaries allows a county to foresee and plan for roads, sewers, and other services that will be required by future developments. PURPOSE As proposed, this bill requires subdivision owners to prepare a plat stating the dimensions of each lot. The bill also provides that the commissioners court is not required to publish notice of an application under certain conditions. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1 Amends Sections 232.001(a) and (b), Local Government Code, to provide that these sections are subject to the modified requirements of Section 232.0011 when applicable. SECTION 2 Amends Chapter 232, Local Government Code, by adding Section 232.0011 as follows: (a) Provides that this section applies only to a county with a population of 75,000 or less. (b) Requires the owner of a tract of land outside municipality limits, who divides the tract into two or more parts to lay out lots or streets, alleys, or parks for public use, to have a plat of the subdivision prepared. (c) Sets out the requirements for a plat including a requirement that the plat state the dimensions of each tract intended to be dedicated to public use. SECTION 3 Section 232.007, Local Government Code, (Manufactured Home Rental Communities), is amended by adding Subsection (c), which makes certain manufactured home communities subject to regulation as a subdivision under this chapter. SECTION 4 Amends Section 232.008(b), Local Government Code, to authorize, rather than require, the commissioners court to authorize the owner of the subdivision to file an instrument cancelling the subdivision in whole or in part. SECTION 5 Amends Section 232.009, Local Government Code, as follows: Sec. 232.009. REVISION OF PLAT. Deletes existing Subsection (a) and renumbers accordingly. Existing Subsection (a), which is deleted by this Act, provides that this section applies only to property located outside municipalities with a population of 1.5 million or more. New Subsection (c) provides that the commissioners court is not required under Subsection (b) to publish notice of an application or give notice to nondeveloper owners if the proposed revision of the subdivision plat combines or reconfigures tracts, and the resulting tracts are larger than the original tracts. Subsections (d) and (e) are unchanged. SECTION 6. Effective date: September 1, 1995. SECTION 7. Emergency clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE The substitute is a legislative council draft of the original bill, and therefore, the substitute reorganizes some of the sections in the original and makes some other nonsubstantive, technical changes. The substitute takes the changes that the original bill made in Sections 232.001(a) and (b) (SECTION 1 of the original) and moves the changes to a new Section 232.0011 (SECTION 2 of the substitute). This new section in the substitute is made applicable only to counties of 75,000 or less. SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION S.B. 312 was considered by the committee in a public hearing on May 2, 1995. The following persons testified in favor of the bill: Representative Edmund Kuempel; Nathan Rheinlander, representing Comal County; Thomas Hornseth, representing himself and Comal County; J. L. Evans, representing himself and Comal County; and Donald Lee, representing the Conference of Urban Counties. The bill was left pending. S.B. 312 was considered by the committee in a formal meeting on May 12, 1995. The committee considered a complete substitute for the bill. The substitute was adopted without objection. The bill was reported favorably as substituted, with the recommendation that it do pass and be printed, by a record vote of 5 ayes, 2 nays, 1 pnv, 1 absent.