By:  Smith of Harris (Senate Sponsor - Lindsay)                   H.B. No. 266
	(In the Senate - Received from the House March 1, 2005; 
March 30, 2005, read first time and referred to Committee on 
Intergovernmental Relations; May 20, 2005, reported adversely, 
with favorable Committee Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 4, 
Nays 0; May 20, 2005, sent to printer.)


COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 266                                    By:  Deuell


A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT


relating to the time for processing certain county permits.                 
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  Chapter 233, Local Government Code, is amended 
by adding Subchapter Z to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER Z.  MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
	Sec. 233.901.  TIME FOR ISSUANCE OF COUNTY BUILDING PERMIT.  
(a)  This section applies only to a permit required by a county with 
a population of 3.3 million or more to construct or improve a 
building or other structure in the county, but does not apply to a 
permit for an on-site sewage disposal system.
	(b)  Not later than the 45th day after the date an 
application for a permit is submitted, the county must:
		(1)  grant or deny the permit;                                         
		(2)  provide written notice to the applicant stating 
the reasons why the county has been unable to act on the permit 
application; or
		(3)  reach a written agreement with the applicant 
providing for a deadline for granting or denying the permit.
	(c)  For a permit application for which notice is provided 
under Subsection (b)(2), the county must grant or deny the permit 
not later than the 30th day after the date the notice is received.
	(d)  If a county fails to act on a permit application in the 
time required by Subsection (c) or by an agreement under Subsection 
(b)(3), the county:
		(1)  may not collect any permit fees associated with 
the application; and
		(2)  shall refund to the applicant any permit fees 
associated with the application that have been collected.
	Sec. 233.902.  TIME FOR ISSUANCE OF CERTAIN COUNTY PERMITS 
REQUIRED FOR SUBDIVISION OF LAND.  (a)  In this section, "permit" 
has the meaning assigned by Section 245.001 and includes a plat 
required for the subdivision of land.
	(b)  The time in which a county may require a permit for the 
subdivision of land is considered to have expired if:
		(1)  the land to be subdivided that is subject to the 
county's permitting jurisdiction is:
			(A)  within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of 
a municipality; and
			(B)  the subject of a written agreement between 
the owner of the land and a municipality that was effective before 
January 1, 2005, and that provides the municipality shall have the 
exclusive authority to approve permits related to the development 
of the land;
		(2)  as of January 1, 2005, the municipality and the 
county have not entered into an agreement as required by Section 
242.001;
		(3)  the land is located in a district that, under 
Section 49.002, Water Code, is subject to Chapter 49, Water Code; 
and
		(4)  the owner of the land has agreed to develop the 
land in accordance with the agreement described by Subdivision 
(1)(B).
	SECTION 2.  Section 233.901, Local Government Code, as added 
by this Act, applies only to an application for a permit submitted 
on or after September 1, 2005.  An application for a permit 
submitted before that date is governed by the law in effect when the 
application was submitted, and the former law is continued in 
effect for that purpose.
	SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2005.                           



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