83R3914 NC-D
 
  By: Burkett H.B. No. 727
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to restrictive covenants regulating drought-resistant
  landscaping.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Sections 202.007(a) and (d), Property Code, are
  amended to read as follows:
         (a)  A property owners' association may not include or
  enforce a provision in a dedicatory instrument that prohibits or
  restricts a property owner from:
               (1)  implementing measures promoting solid-waste
  composting of vegetation, including grass clippings, leaves, or
  brush, or leaving grass clippings uncollected on grass;
               (2)  installing rain barrels or a rainwater harvesting
  system; [or]
               (3)  implementing efficient irrigation systems,
  including underground drip or other drip systems; or
               (4)  using drought-resistant landscaping.
         (d)  This section does not:
               (1)  restrict a property owners' association from
  regulating the requirements, including size, type, shielding, and
  materials, for or the location of a composting device if the
  restriction does not prohibit the economic installation of the
  device on the property owner's property where there is reasonably
  sufficient area to install the device;
               (2)  require a property owners' association to permit a
  device described by Subdivision (1) to be installed in or on
  property:
                     (A)  owned by the property owners' association;
                     (B)  owned in common by the members of the
  property owners' association; or
                     (C)  in an area other than the fenced yard or patio
  of a property owner;
               (3)  prohibit a property owners' association from
  regulating the installation of efficient irrigation systems,
  including establishing visibility limitations for aesthetic
  purposes;
               (4)  prohibit a property owners' association from
  regulating the installation or use of gravel or[,] rocks[, or
  cacti];
               (5)  restrict a property owners' association from
  regulating yard and landscape maintenance if the restrictions or
  requirements do not restrict or prohibit turf or landscaping design
  that promotes water conservation;
               (6)  require a property owners' association to permit a
  rain barrel or rainwater harvesting system to be installed in or on
  property if:
                     (A)  the property is:
                           (i)  owned by the property owners'
  association;
                           (ii)  owned in common by the members of the
  property owners' association; or
                           (iii)  located between the front of the
  property owner's home and an adjoining or adjacent street; or
                     (B)  the barrel or system:
                           (i)  is of a color other than a color
  consistent with the color scheme of the property owner's home; or
                           (ii)  displays any language or other content
  that is not typically displayed by such a barrel or system as it is
  manufactured; or
               (7)  restrict a property owners' association from
  regulating the size, type, and shielding of, and the materials used
  in the construction of, a rain barrel, rainwater harvesting device,
  or other appurtenance that is located on the side of a house or at
  any other location that is visible from a street, another lot, or a
  common area if:
                     (A)  the restriction does not prohibit the
  economic installation of the device or appurtenance on the property
  owner's property; and
                     (B)  there is a reasonably sufficient area on the
  property owner's property in which to install the device or
  appurtenance.
         SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.