House Bill 1522 updates the current 72-hour notice requirement to three business days, meaning weekends and holidays no longer count toward the minimum posting period. The new law is intended to give residents more time to review meeting agendas and participate in local government decisions, according to the bill analysis.
Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, sponsored the bill, which was authored by Rep. Stan Gerdes, R-Smithville. The goal of the bill is to allow for more transparency and accessibility for citizen participation; however, it is also to ensure fairness, according to the bill analysis.
“While this is meant to provide for government transparency and citizen participation, the bill author has informed the committee that the language of the current law can be used to the advantage of a local government whereby the intended transparency is infringed upon,” Gerdes stated in the bill analysis.
What’s happening
The change will apply to local government entities across Texas, including cities, counties and school districts.
In preparation for HB 1522's implementation, some local government entities in the area are shifting meeting schedules to meet the new notice deadlines.
The Woodlands Township and Montgomery County Commissioners Court have moved meetings to remain in compliance with the new notice requirements, according to prior Community Impact reporting. The Woodlands Township will now meet on the third and fourth Thursday of the month instead of the fourth Wednesday and the Thursday prior, beginning Sept. 1. Meanwhile, Montgomery County Commissioners Court will change its meeting dates from Tuesdays to Thursdays starting in January.
However, other cities in the Greater Houston area, such as Tomball and Jersey Village, plan to keep their meeting dates the same, with city officials telling Community Impact it will not affect their cities’ business.
What they’re saying
City of Montgomery officials said July 8 the change in requirement is difficult, and they are looking at ways to accommodate the new bill, including considering moving council meetings to Thursdays instead of Tuesdays, which was on council’s Aug. 12 agenda.
Meanwhile, Montgomery County officials discussed the new bill during the July 15 commissioners court meeting.
“This law goes into effect Sept. 1. Rather than changing for the rest of the year, we'll just change our agenda process for the rest of the year, which will be a little bit of a pain for staff, and I apologize to staff,” Ritch Wheeler, Montgomery County Commissioner Precinct 3, said. “We can manage that for three or four months.”
