Texas POA Bills    84th Legislature (2015)

A Periodic Report by Sharon Reuler 

 

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Issued April 13, 2015  
 
 

 

 

Friends,

 

Tomorrow - Tuesday April 14 - will be the biggest day of this Session for POA bills.  Sixteen POA bills are scheduled for public hearings.

 

On this 91st day of the 140-day Session, the 31 POA-Pertinent Bills that I'm monitoring are in the following positions:

 

2 are out of committee and waiting for a floor vote of the House

   HB 745 by Bohac - Allowing solar powered stop signs

   HB 939 by Dale - Allowing electric standby generators

  

2 are still pending in committee after having been heard

   HB 748 by Isaac - Allowing above-ground liquid propane tanks

   HB 2999 by Landgraf - Allowing firearms and ammo

  

16 are scheduled for hearings tomorrow - Tuesday April 14

 

11 are still at the gate - haven't been scheduled for hearings (thank heavens) 

 

TUESDAY HEARINGS - 4/14/15 (more about hearings below) 

 

HOUSE COMMITTEES - POA Bills scheduled for hearing 4/14/15


 
    Business & Industry - starts 2:00 pm or adjournment

       HB 971 by Bohac - Board qualifications - reading & swearing

       HB 1072 by Thompson - Board qualifications - moral turpitude crimes

       HB 1178 by Isaac - Prohibits exclusive fuel contracts

       HB 2147 by Keffer - Restores secret ballots

       HB 2148 by Keffer - Clarifies voting method options

       HB 2594 by Parker - Redevelopment of golf courses & country clubs

       HB 2797 by Villalba - OMNIBUS BILL [24 unrelated parts]

       HB 3460 by Murr - Flags - adds many more

       HB 3539 by Dukes - Solar devices can be prohibited if 50 or fewer lots


 
    Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence - starts 2:00 pm or adjournment

       HB 1455 by King - Condo construction defect litigation

 

    Urban Affairs - starts 10:30 am or adjournment

HB 3089 by Galindo - Must retrofit highrises with fire sprinklers 

 

SENATE COMMITTEE - POA Bills scheduled for hearing 4/14/15    

 

    Business & Commerce - starts 8:00 am

       SB 862 by Birdwell - Clarifies voting method options

       SB 864 by Birdwell - Restores secret ballots

       SB 1168 by West - OMNIBUS BILL [24 unrelated parts]

       SB 1626 by Rodriguez - Solar devices can be prohibited if 50 or fewer lots

       SB 1852 by Nichols - Amending restrictions under Chapter 211

POA BILLS REPORT #6
 

My sixth report on POA-Pertinent bills is available on this link.

 

REPORT #6 - 2015 Texas POA Bills

 

On this 91st day of the 140-day Session, the 31 POA-Pertinent Bills that I'm monitoring are in the following positions:

 

2 are out of committee and waiting for a floor vote of the House

   HB 745 by Bohac - Allowing solar powered stop signs

   HB 939 by Dale - Allowing electric standby generators

  

2 are still pending in committee after having been heard

   HB 748 by Isaac - Allowing above-ground liquid propane tanks

   HB 2999 by Landgraf - Allowing firearms and ammo

  

16 (!!!) are scheduled for hearings tomorrow - Tuesday April 14

 

11 are still at the gate - haven't been scheduled for hearings 

 

Some bills previously reported as "POA Bills" are MIA. Because they're only tangentially POA-related, I relegated them to second tier status as Sundry Bills in order to concentrate on the now larger number of genuinely POA-specific bills. I may report on the Sundry Bills at a later date.

OMNIBUS BILL

 

Don't miss the trees for the forest of a 17-page bill with 24 parts, each of which is like a separate bill that stands on its own.  And don't fall for the promo that it's only a "clean-up bill" to fix some of the HOA Reform Laws passed in 2011.  It's that . . . and more.  Of the OMNIBUS BILL's 24 parts, eight are brand NEW laws, and sixteen are clean-up fixes.

 

The NEW parts of the OMNIBUS BILL that worry me most relate to assessment lien foreclosure - SECTIONS 18 & 19.  I hope folks aren't so bored by the time they get to the last sections that they fail to recognize their significance.  (Thumbs down)

 

Here's a link to my Section-by-Section description of the Omnibus Bill:

 

Omnibus Bill - HB 2797/SB 1168 - REPORT #5 

  

Sponsored by Texas Community Association Advocates (TCAA), the Omnibus Bill was filed in the House and Senate - and BOTH bills will be heard on Tuesday 4/14/15 - in different committees. The House version is HB 2797 by Rep. Jason Villalba of Dallas. The Senate twin is SB 1168 by Sen. Royce West of Dallas.  

COMMITTEE HEARINGS

 

HEARING NOTICE

 

For each hearing, the committee must post a notice 5 days in advance. The notice states the date, time, and place of the hearing. It also lists the bills that will be given their first public hearing.  The bills are listed in numerical order, but may be heard in a different order.  The notices are posted on the legislature's website, on each committee's page.

 

WEBCAM COVERAGE

  

You  may be able to watch the committee hearings on your computer (or some other device).  Most committee hearings are in rooms with webcams that you can watch "live" in real time, or later as an archived broadcast. It's all available on the legislature's website.  Also, use these links for House broadcasts and the Senate broadcasts.  If you want to watch after the hearing, look for the "video archives". On the House page it's near the bottom. On the Senate page, near the top.   

 

WHAT TO EXPECT AT THE END OF THE DAY

 

Typically, committees don't vote on a bill the day it is heard. Instead, bills are left "pending" in committee until brought up for a vote at a future committee hearing. A pending bill can be changed behind closed doors between the public hearing and the date of voting. (Doesn't seem fair.) At any time after the public hearing, the committee may vote on the original bill that was heard, or on a substituted version that was not heard. If a substituted version is approved by the committee, the bill number will be preceded by C.S. for "Committee Substitute" when it leaves the committee. The public doesn't have access to the CS version until after the committee approves it.

  

4 PAIRS OF COMPANION BILLS to be heard on same day 

 

Of the 16 POA Bills to be heard on Tuesday, four are "Companion Bills" that will be heard in their respective chambers.  People wanting to testify on any of those will need to be in two hearing rooms at the appropriate times. The companions are:

 

       OMNIBUS BILL - HB 2797/SB 1168

       Secret ballots - HB 2147/SB 864

       Solar devices - HB 3539/SB 1626

       Voting methods - HB 2148/SB 862

Want to be Involved?
  
Unless you're politically well connected - and even then - it can be frustrating for the average citizen to participate in the lawmaking process. Here are three tips:
 
Tip One. Attend committee hearings and be prepared to testify. Live testimony carries more weight than letters, faxes, and emails.
 
Tip Two. Financially support organizations that have lobbyists in Austin. As a member of the organization, you can urge its government relations staff or lobbyist to see your point of view and to share your sense of urgency about supporting or stopping a particular bill.
 
Tip Three. If you don't already know, learn the identify of the State Representative and State Senator who represent the district in which you live. (Use "Who represents me?" on Texas Online's homepage.) Because you are their "constituent", they will be attentive. Find out what committees they serve on, and whether they have authored any of the POA bills. Then, communicate - in person, if possible. Otherwise, by phone or letter. Always identify yourself as their constituent. Help them represent you. All the information is available on
HOA Names

 

Boy was I wrong about HB 2753 which I wrote about in Report #5. Watching the committee hearing from my desktop, I learned that the Secretary of State wants the law change to make it easier to approve entity names that are similar but "distinguishable". The current standard prohibiting entity names that are "deceptively similar" is harder to administer, according to the testimony. With new HOAs being born every day, we need all the name flexibility we can get.

As I've done since 2005, I will periodically report on bills that seem likely to affect the creation and operation of common interest developments in Texas - subdivisions and condominiums - anything with mandatory membership and assessments.  
New Day for POA Bills in Senate
  

For the first time since 2001, POA bills are not being referred to the Senate Committee on Intergovernmental Relations ("IGR"). What's the connection between POAs and "intergovernmental relations"? Nothing!

  

This Session, POA bills in the Senate are assigned to the Committee on Business & Commerce ("B&C"). Hurrah! B&C is the Senate counterpart to the House Committee on Business & Industry ("B&I"), which has been the custodian of POA bills in the House since at least 1993. Hopefully POA bills have found a new permanent nest in the Senate.

TLO Website
  

The Texas Legislature Online website is the second best thing about our Legislature. (The first being the hiatus between sessions.) TLO is chock full of information and fueled by a powerful search engine that's easy to learn and use. Open 24/7 for free. If you have any interest in legislation, you'll love exploring this amazing website. Look for the "My TLO" tab next to "Home" in the top left corner. Here you can sign up for automatic email alerts of bills that interest you, or topics, or committee meetings.   

HOA/POA Slang
  
If you're Type A about terminology for common interest communities, this report may drive you bonkers. I use HOA and POA interchangeably - and inconsistently - to refer to mandatory membership associations for all types of common interest development - condos, townhomes, subdivisions, masters, mixed-use, and subs.
 
Texas laws, however, do distinguish between condos and non-condos. Condos are subject to Chapter 82 (TUCA) of the Property Code (and maybe also Chapter 81, depending on age).  The non-condos are subject to Chapter 209 of the Property Code, which refers to the developments as "subdivisions."  So, a property is either a condo or a subdivision, and its owners association may be called either HOA or POA or "condo association" or "townhome association" or "neighborhood association" or . . . the options are endless.
 
Speaking of townhomes . . . . contrary to popular belief, Texas law does not recognize townhomes as something other than a condo or subdivision. Townhomes are a style of building that can be condominium in ownership (Chapter 82) or non-condo (Chapter 209).
 
Of course, there's more to it than this windshield tour. But, you get the idea.  Don't bet on what a word means. :-)  
Dates of Interest 

January 13, 2015 - Opening day of 84th Regular Session
March 13, 2015 - Deadline for filing bills (with some exceptions)
June 1, 2015 - Last day of Session (no exceptions)
June 21, 2015 - Last day Governor can veto a bill that passed
August 31, 2015 - Effective date for bills without specific effective dates


Sharon's Perspective 

 

All views expressed are entirely my own, and my views have been known to change. I receive no income for my legislative reporting. I'm not a lobbyist ~ don't head any group or promote any cause ~ don't expect to go to Austin for hearings.

 

I'm a Texas real estate lawyer who works with developers of common interest developments. I write the "HOA docs" for new communities and advise developers on HOA issues that arise during build-out. My developer practice is enriched by an earlier decade of representing established homeowner-controlled POAs.

 

Before becoming a lawyer in 1987, I was a real estate broker specializing in the resales of condominiums and townhomes. Also, I have the sensitivities of a homeowner from 38 years of living in common interest communities, and three bumpy HOA experiences as a home buyer.  

 

My interest in POAs began in 1977. Four years later I was drawn to POA legislation by the then proposed Texas Uniform Condominium Act. I was privileged to play a pivotal role in TUCA's passage in 1993.

 

My nearly 40 years (omg!) of involvement with POA legislation has always been as a volunteer. In recent years I have done little more than report on what's going on under the dome.  I try to call it like I see it.        



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contact info
Although I aspire to be active on social media, I'm still old school. I can be reached at the street address below, by email sreuler@txlandlaw.com, and by phone (972) 720-9727. If I'm not responsive, it's because my day job keeps me plenty busy.
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