Gov. Rick Perry signed Senate Bill 1086, also known as the "Black Hydrant Bill," into law June 14, and Buda Mayor Todd Ruge said residents and city leaders are "ecstatic" about it.

The bill will require Monarch Utilities and other investor-owned utilities to paint red any fire hydrants that can produce adequate water pressure to fight fires or fire flow.

Monarch and other utilities in Buda have painted hydrants in neighborhoods such as Amberwood, Indian Paintbrush, Leisure Woods and the industrial area in the southern portion of Buda's city limits black to indicate that there is no guarantee the hydrants can provide fire flow.

According to state law, the practice of painting hydrants black frees the utility of any liability in the event that a hydrant is unable to fight a fire.

Leaders from Buda and Kyle said they are hopeful the new law will help attract developers who were wary of locating in the area because of the perceived lack of protection from fire.

"It really could open up the door to some future development for us," Ruge said. "For the city that's good, but also for the emergency services district, they're going to know that they have enough water pressure coming out of those hydrants."

Ruge called SB 1086 a "local bill," meaning that it is designed to be so specific it will only apply to a handful of municipalities. These include Buda, Kyle and Schertz, he said.

"It will mean one less hurdle that we have to go over to convince people that Buda is the right place to be," Ruge said. "Of course it's very attractive because we have low taxes, but now we can say, 'We can assure water pressure, so you should come develop in Buda.'"

The original bill would have held Monarch responsible for maintaining fire flow, but after a round of amendments, the language was softened and Monarch was freed from that requirement.

SB 1086 might not be the bill city leaders originally tried to pass, but, Ruge said, a similar bill in the city of Flower Mound did not get signed into law, so he is still considering its passage a victory.

"In politics you don't always get exactly what you want, but you can hopefully find a happy medium," he said. "I think we found a happy medium on this one."

The bill will take effect Sept. 1.

From the 83rd Texas Legislature

Several new laws were passed in the 83rd Legislative Session that affect San Marcos, Buda and Kyle. Keep up with them over the next week, as we provide updates on a few of the bills that did and did not make it through the legislature.

June 17: Buda mayor praises new black hydrant law

June 19: SB 16 would provide $210 million for the Texas State University System.

June 21: HB 4 would change the structure of the Texas Water Development Board and create a multi-billion fund for water projects over the next two decades.

June 24: SB 1621 would allow the City of Kyle to compete with Monarch Utilities within the utility's service area.