Category Archives: local government trend

Lege TREND. 2 Ways Belton TX Would Be Impacted by Annexation Bill + 1 End Run Around Annexation.

Belton, Texas City Manager says an annexation bull like 85R’s SB 715 would:

  • end annexation
  • if voluntary annexation were permitted it would:
    • allow the city & the proposed annexation area to vote
    • the carrot would be city utilitiies & services while the stick would be city taxes

Belton has used development agreements as a stop gap to halt annexation. 

Temple Daily Telegram | Belton may be impacted by special session annexation bill

3 Points from a Texas Editorial. Trees & Property Rights. East Texas Says Follow the Houston Model.

A Tyler Morning Telegraph editorial supports:

  • The “Save or Trees” advocates neglect that tree ordinances are about “Save our Property Rights”
  • Senate Donna Campbell has it right- tree ordinances that control how property owners use their land is tantamount to a taking of property
  • Follow the Houston model and convert city owned lands to green spaces to prserve trees

Tyler Morning Telegraph | Editorial: We can protect trees and property rights at the same time

Private Property Rights. Tree Regulations make the 2017 Veto List.

Vetoed: SB 744 By Kolkhorst Relating to a tree planting credit to offset tree mitigation fees imposed by a municipality.

The Veto Statement Highlights:

  • Cities dictating trees is a “assault on provate property rights”
  • A compromise bill, like SB 744, cannot only offer ” a very minor restriction on some municipal tree ordinances”
  • state law shall not support “municipal micromanagement of private property”
  • ” we can do better for private property owners in the upcoming special session”

SB 744…

Refreshing Recollection. 3 Points from TPPF on Tree Ordinances.

According to TPPF here’s what’s happening with tree ordinances in Texas

  • 50 cities have onerous tree ordinances
  • By way of example, TPPF points to Austin which requires city approval to:
    • remove a tree with a trunk diameter over 9 inches
    • if the tree is over 24 inches in truck diameter, then its a heritage tree, and removal is forbidded unless there is a safety issue
  • To solve this problem, TPPF recommends that the Legislature

      1. ” prohibit local governments from preventing the…

Brewing Property Rights Trend. City Ordinances. Front Yard Fences.

City: Tyler TX

The front yard fence ordinance that concerns property rights advocates: Requiring a special-use permit to have a fence of any kind in the front yard

What was Tyler’s goal of special use permits for front yard fencing? To stop blighted properties which they tied to chain link fences.

In the words of a Tyler City Council Members: 

  • chain-link makes neighborhoods look like prison yards
  • fences in the front yard are in areas that are headed downward economically

Tyler Morning…

Lege Trend. No Eminent Domain for Certain Developments.

State: Tennessee

The eminent domain prohibition:  no eminent domain for industrial parks. The Tennessee statute set forth examples of projects that constitute public use, the bill deleted industrial parks from the list.

The legislation: Tennessee’s Senate Bill 1184

The Standard Banner | New law prohibits eminent domain for industrial parks

Knoxville News Sentinel | Eminent domain reform protects farmers

Local Government Drops Eminent Domain. Works Deal. 3 takeaways from the Deal.

What local government wanted to use eminent domain? Garden City Utah wanted to take land from 11 property owners to create a public access point to a lake

The city agreed to drop eminent domain proceedings in exchange for? The subdivision agreed to create a public walkway to provide lake access

What 3 goals were accomplished with the deal?

  • home owners kept their privacy
  • town residents and visitors have added access to Bear Lake
  • the town’s population tourism numbers increase

KSL.com…

Private Property Rights. 3 Reasons Tree Cutting Ordinances Harm Property Rights.

Texas Public Policy Foundation lays out 3 reasons that local tree cutting ordinances harm private property rights:

  • private property rights include ownership of the natural resources (trees) contained with the land 
  • TPPF loops in Article I, Section 17 which says in rough terms, if the government takes property, the government pays
  • Trees are not a public resource, trees are a natural resource belinging to the property owner

 

The solution: “Texas Legislature should prohibit local…