Leaders with the city of McKinney have established legislative priorities ahead of the 2027 Texas legislative session, which is scheduled to start in January.
The overview
McKinney City Council members approved the priorities during an Oct. 20 meeting. Council members adopt a list of priorities for each state legislative session, according to a city document.
Priorities include a focus on home-rule authority, business development and McKinney National Airport, said Nimra Zubair, assistant to the city manager. Priorities are developed in coordination with legislative consultants, the Texas Municipal League, the North Texas Commission and more, according to the city document.
“We use this as a guiding principle that we base our legislative recommendations on,” Zubair said.
The filing period for bills will open Nov. 9, and the legislative session is scheduled to start Jan. 12, 2027. City staff will report back to council members on what’s happening in Austin once the session begins, Zubair said.
The specifics
Council members approved a resolution adopting nine priorities in total. The list can be accessed through the Oct. 20 resolution.
Zooming in
Transportation remains a “top priority” for the city, Zubair said. The priority supports funding for both “new and old projects,” she said. Multiple road projects are listed as priorities on the resolution, including:
Construction of a new FM 456 connection between future Spur 399 and existing FM 456
Construction of Stonebridge Drive between US 380 and Bloomdale Road
Reconstruction of SH 5 between Powerhouse Street and Telephone Road
Mayor Bill Cox said transportation is a “regional concern that all of Collin County has." There have been conversations with other mayors in Collin County about going to Austin in support of transportation funding, he said.
“If you look at this list, it affects more than McKinney,” Cox said. “I think a coalition of elected officials showing up, including at the county level, will have an effect on some of our list here.”
