HBA-KDB H.B. 2634 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2634 By: Farrar Land & Resource Management 3/23/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Deed restrictions are a tool used to stop the encroachment of incompatible land uses and inappropriate development. Currently, a municipality with a population of 1.5 million or more can enforce three different types of deed restrictions: use, setbacks, and the lot size and number of structures on a lot. When petitioning the city of Houston to enforce deed restrictions in the city, some citizens have been told by the legal department that the deed restrictions are too vague and ambiguous to enforce. House Bill 2634 grants a municipality of 1.5 million or more the authority to sue to enforce a broader array of deed restrictions. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS House Bill 2634 amends the Local Government Code to add to the definition of "restriction," as it relates to the miscellaneous regulatory authority of municipalities, a land-use regulation, rather than limitation, that: regulates or restricts the type of activities that may take place on the property, including commercial activities, keeping of animals, use of fire, nuisance activities, vehicle storage, and parking; regulates architectural features of a structure, construction of fences, landscaping, garbage disposal, or noise levels; or specifies the type of maintenance that must be performed on a lot or structure, including maintenance of a yard or fence. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.