Item 4B
Resolution No. 16-038, Adopt a legislative agenda for the 85th Legislative Session.
Item 4B
Hello, Mayor and Members of the City Council, the following is a presentation of Agenda Item 4B, which is a resolution regarding the City’s draft legislative agenda.
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Resolution No. 16-038, adopting a Legislative Agenda for the
85th Texas Legislative Session
ITEM 4B
Every two years the Texas Legislature meets in regular session, with the next one slated to begin on January 10, 2017. During the session, State Legislators will consider many bills
that have an impact on municipalities.
It is important for the City of Southlake to ensure that it preserves its current authority to govern the City, its citizens and its property.
Agenda item 4B is a resolution adopting a formal legislative agenda on behalf of the City to serve as a framework for its actions and activities during the upcoming 85th Texas Legislative
session.
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General Legislative Policy
As a general policy, the City of Southlake seeks to preserve its current authority to govern the City, its citizens, and its property in accordance with its strategic goals and interests.
As bills are introduced, discussed and considered at each level of the Texas legislative process, it is the desire of the City to make either its support or its opposition known to
the Legislators at the State capitol. As a basis of its position, the City supports any legislation viewed as advancing the City’s strategic goals and interests; or that improves the
health, safety, and welfare of its citizens; or that responsibly increases revenues; or that advances the City’s authority to conduct the public's business.
To further this statement
of preservation, the City will oppose any legislation viewed as detrimental to the City’s strategic goals; or that is contrary to the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens; or
that mandates or results in increased costs or loss of revenues; or that would diminish the fundamental authority of the City and the City Council that has been elected to govern.
The
City will oppose any initiatives that seek to erode municipal authority or that otherwise have a negative impact on municipal operations.
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Support Legislation
The City supports any legislation viewed as advancing the City’s strategic goals and interests; or that improves the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens; or that responsibly
increases revenues; or that advances the City’s authority to conduct the public's business. The proposed 2017 Legislative Agenda delineates examples of issues that the City of Southlake
would support during the session. A few examples are illustrated on this slide.
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Oppose Legislation
To further clarify the City’s Statement of Opposition, the City will oppose any initiatives that seek to erode municipal authority or that otherwise have a negative impact on municipal
operations, including but not limited to legislation that would:
Destroy or erode the authority of the City to govern municipal affairs or diminishes the authority of the City to
provide municipal operations;
Undermine the principles of Home Rule and Local Control or seeks to unnecessary preempt or prohibit the City from regulating an activity or business
entity that directly affects the public’s health, safety and well-being;
Applies a one size fits all solution to complex local policy issues.
Detrimentally affects the health, safety,
and welfare of our citizens;
Nullifies or undermines the City’s existing Charter, Ordinances, Resolutions or Master Plans;
Damages the City’s financial position by reducing revenues
or negatively impacts potential revenue growth including legislation that:
Imposes a:
revenue cap of any type, including a rollback rate below eight percent,
mandatory tax rate ratification
election,
lower rollback petition requirement,
limitation on overall city expenditures, or
a requirement to exclude new property in the effective rate calculations;
Negatively lowers
the homestead appraisal cap or expands the appraisal cap to non-homestead properties or otherwise erodes the basic concept that appraisals reflect true market values of property;
Creates
property or sales tax exemptions or “freezes” that unfairly shift the tax burden to other taxpayers
Erodes the overall tax base;
Restricts the ability of the City to issue debt
through either General Obligation or Certificates of Obligation bonds or cause unnecessary complex public notification requirements;
Imposes a mandate without a commensurate level
of compensation; or
Requires the City to generate revenues for the State including additional state fees on municipal court convictions;
Impairs economic development tools including
but not limited to:
Economic Development Corporations (EDCs),
Property tax abatements,
Tax increment reinvestment zones (TIFs or TIRZ),
Chapter 380 agreements,
Texas Enterprise
Fund,
Skills Development Fund,
Texas Enterprise Zones,
Event and Major Event Trust Funds,
Texas Moving Image Industry Incentive Program; and
TDHCA Housing Tax Credit Program.
Diminishes
the City’s authority to regulate development through:
land use and zoning regulations (including billboard regulations and tree and landscape regulations),
building codes,
planning
requirements,
impact fees or building permit fees,
annexation, or
eminent domain;
Establishes a requirement for compensation resulting from regulatory actions or expands vested permits;
Imposes
mandatory water conservation measures or a “tap fee” or any other state fee on municipal water systems;
Exempts any entity from paying municipal drainage fees;
Allows special districts
to form inside the City or the ETJ without the City’s permission;
Erodes the City’s authority to manage and control public rights-of-way and publicly owned land or limits the City’s
ability to receive fair market compensation for use of public rights-of-way or erodes municipal authority to require companies to pay for the costs of relocating their facilities;
Erodes
the City’s original jurisdiction over certain utilities and certain utility rates or erodes the City’s authority to participate in utility rate cases;
Erodes the City’s previous and
future investments in the Texas Municipal Retirement System;
Imposes expanded collective bargaining rights or expands the current meet and confer laws or expands the scope of the current
disease presumption law or detrimentally amends civil service laws;
Expands the open meetings and public information laws or make them more ambiguous; or
Requires the reporting of
lobbying activities beyond the current requirements or limits or prohibits the City to use funds to communicate or advocate with legislators or limits or prohibits the authority of the
Texas Municipal League to use any revenue to communicate with legislators; or
Erodes municipal governmental immunity;
Repeals or limits red light camera authority generally; or
Erodes
the City’s ability to enter into franchise agreements.
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Partnerships
The City may form strategic partnerships with cities, political subdivisions, and private sector entities that share common goals with the City of Southlake.
Additionally, the City
will work in coordination with organizations such as the Texas Municipal League when their adopted positions are in line with the legislative objectives and goals of the City, and other
agents who are formally authorized to represent the City’s legislative interests, as defined by this legislative agenda. The City’s staff and its governmental relations team are authorized
to act accordingly and work within the Texas legislative process to actively advocate for the passage or defeat of legislation according to these positions adopted by the City Council.
The
formation of strategic partnerships and coordinated efforts is intended to provide the City with a stronger presence in the legislative process.
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Note that the draft legislative agenda has been developed with City strategy as its cornerstone, and is actually included as part of the Legislative agenda itself. This allows the City
to have the flexibility to deal with any issues that arise that either it hasn’t considered at this time or that are still not known prior to the actual commencement of the 85th Legislative
Session.
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Legislative Issues
As a municipal government which provides important and essential services to its citizens, the City of Southlake will monitor any legislation that would unduly restrict the ability of
the City Council to set its own budget or raise the necessary revenue to provide services to City residents and businesses. As it relates to this position, the City will support, oppose
and in some cases seek legislation with the following issues:
Local Budgeting Authority and Revenue Sources and City Debt
Local Control of Land Use Planning, Zoning and Development
Regulation
Protection of Local Economic Development Authority
Texas Municipal Retirement System
Transportation Infrastructure and Systems
Water
Collective Bargaining
Public Notices
Public
Safety
Parks & Recreation
Aircraft Noise and Air Space Utilization
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Staff Recommendation
Approval of Resolution No. 16-038
Please note that it may be necessary for certain members of Staff and members of the City Council to travel to Austin during the legislative session in order to proactively respond to
those issues of greatest importance to the City of Southlake. Funds have been allocated within the Fiscal Year 2017 budget to cover such expenses as they may arise.
The City Attorneys
have contributed to the language of the proposed agenda, and staff recommends passage of Resolution No. 16-038, adopting the City of Southlake’s Legislative Agenda.
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Questions?
If you have any questions regarding the draft legislative agenda please contact me. Thank you!
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