BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 4897

By: Muñoz

Land & Resource Management

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

The bill author has informed the committee of excessive delays and confusion regarding the approval of land development applications by political subdivisions. The bill author has also informed the committee that streamlining the approval process could enhance efficiency and potentially facilitate timely development and growth within communities. C.S.H.B. 4897 seeks to address these issues by clarifying the time frame within which municipal authorities must approve plats.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 4897 amends the Local Government Code to establish that for the purposes of the requirement for a municipal authority to approve, conditionally approve, or disapprove a plat within 30 days after the date the plat is filed, a plat application is considered filed on the day the applicant pays the first required fee applicable to the application to the municipal authority responsible for approving the plat. The bill applies only to a plat application filed on or after the bill's effective date.

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2025.

COMPARISON OF INTRODUCED AND SUBSTITUTE

While C.S.H.B. 4897 may differ from the introduced in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.

The substitute establishes, for the purposes of the requirement for a municipal authority to approve, conditionally approve, or disapprove a plat within 30 days after the date the plat is filed, that a plat application is considered filed on the day the applicant pays the first required fee applicable to the application to the municipal authority responsible for approving the plat, whereas the introduced required the municipal authority responsible for approving plats to provide a list of all required documents and established that a plat is deemed to be submitted when all required documents are submitted and any required fee is paid. The substitute includes a procedural provision absent from the introduced establishing that the bill's provisions apply only to a plat application filed on or after the bill's effective date.