The details
The two bills were authored by State Rep. Cecil Bell Jr. following concerns by commissioners regarding the lack of official regulations across the county regarding roadside vendors and rental developments.
According to the Texas Transportation code, only counties that have a population of more than 1.3 million are allowed to place regulations on roadside vendors such as food trucks and live animal distributors. The amendment proposed by Bell in HB 2012 would allow counties with a population greater than 600,000 to also implement regulations if adjacent to a county with a population of more than 4 million; according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Harris County is the only county in the state that meets the criteria.
"We're starting to shift very hard from rural to suburban, even urban in some areas," Gray said. "In Montgomery County, it's no longer your grandmother or somebody's grandmother sitting on the side of the road selling tomatoes."
Precinct 1 Commissioner Robert Walker said HB 2012 needed to allow counties to regulate seven days a week, and not just during the work week.
What else?
House Bill 4494 would reclassify rental properties such as apartments, trailer parks and recreational vehicle parks as residential development instead of commercial.
"Currently, these developments are not subject to the same level of planning and review as single family subdivisions despite placing similar demands on the local infrastructure, schools, law enforcement, [and] natural resources," Gray said. "This bill would require rental developments to meet the same planning and review standards as single-family housing, ensuring consistency in all regulations across residential developments, and it would help support proper infrastructure planning to accommodate Montgomery County and its rapid growth."
Next steps
Gray said he would bring an official resolution of support for the bills before Commissioners Court during the next meeting on April 8, and encouraged commissioners and residents to reach out to Bell and other state representatives and senators to advocate in favor of the bills.
HB 2012 is being reviewed by the House Subcommittee on County and Regional Government, while HB 4494 is still awaiting committee assignment in the house. If both bills are approved by the house, they will then go before the Texas Senate for further review.
