HBA-KDB H.B. 2762 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2762
By: Brown, Betty
Land & Resource Management
3/28/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, municipalities plan and provide the proper development of
infrastructure for new subdivisions. A municipality has the authority to
adopt subdivision regulations, enforce a major thoroughfare plan, establish
right-of-way widths adequate for major thoroughfares, establish set-back
limits, contract with a developer to install public infrastructure without
bidding, and require new developments to get a certificate of plat
compliance before hooking-up utility connections to new residences.
However,  urban counties do not have the authority for such infrastructure
planning.  House Bill 2762 authorizes certain urban counties to plan and
provide infrastructure for subdivisions. 

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 2762 amends the Local Government Code to authorize the
commissioners court of a county, after notice is published in a newspaper
of general circulation in the county, by order to adopt rules governing
plats and subdivisions of land in the unincorporated area of the county,
require the dedication of land for use as a major thoroughfare, require the
width of a right-of-way on a street or major thoroughfare to be a certain
size, adopt reasonable standards for minimum lot frontages on county roads,
establish building and set-back lines, impose impact fees, and impose
utility connection requirements. 

The bill authorizes the commissioners court to enter into a contract with a
developer of a subdivision or land in the unincorporated area of the county
to construct public improvements, excluding a building, related to the
development of the subdivision or land.  The bill requires a developer to
construct public improvements and requires the county to share the cost of
the improvements as provided by the contract.  The contract must establish
the proportion of the cost the county is obligated to pay at not more than
30 percent of the total contract price.  The bill provides that the
contract may authorize the county to pay not more than 100 percent of the
total cost for any oversizing of improvements required by the county.  The
county is obligated only for payments as provided by the contract.  The
bill requires the commissioners court by order to authorize payment under
the contract as a fixed amount or as a factor or percentage of the total
cost.  The bill authorizes the commissioners court by order to require
provisions in the contract to prevent the developer from imposing extra
costs or to prevent collusion or fraud.  The developer must execute a
performance bond for the construction of the public improvements to ensure
faithful performance of the work in accordance with the plans,
specifications, and contract documents.  The bond must be executed by a
corporate surety in accordance with provisions relating to public work
performance and payment bonds.  The bill authorizes the county to inspect
the developer's books and other records related to the construction of
public improvements. 

This bill applies only to a subdivision of land that is subject to county
regulations for general subdivision platting requirements and located in a
county that has a population of 100,000 or more or is adjacent to a county
that has a population of 100,000 or more and is within the same
metropolitan statistical area, as  designated by the United States Census
Bureau, as that adjacent county. 

For new development which is platted in accordance with platting
requirements in general or subdivision platting requirements in a county
near an international border or the subdivision or platting procedures of
any other political subdivision before the adoption of an impact fee, an
impact fee is prohibited from being collected on any service unit for which
a valid building permit is issued within one year after the date of
adoption of the impact fee. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.