By: Phelan, et al. (Senate Sponsor - Kolkhorst) H.B. No. 7
(In the Senate - Received from the House July 31, 2017;
August 1, 2017, read first time and referred to Committee on
Business & Commerce; August 8, 2017, reported adversely, with
favorable Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 5,
Nays 4; August 8, 2017, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 7 By: Campbell
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to municipal regulation of the removal of trees or
vegetation on private property.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 212.003(a), Local Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) The governing body of a municipality by ordinance may
extend to the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the municipality the
application of municipal ordinances adopted under Section 212.002
and other municipal ordinances relating to access to public roads
or the pumping, extraction, and use of groundwater by persons other
than retail public utilities, as defined by Section 13.002, Water
Code, for the purpose of preventing the use of or contact with
groundwater that presents an actual or potential threat to human
health. However, unless otherwise authorized by state law, in its
extraterritorial jurisdiction a municipality shall not regulate:
(1) the use of any building or property for business,
industrial, residential, or other purposes;
(2) the bulk, height, or number of buildings
constructed on a particular tract of land;
(3) the size of a building that can be constructed on a
particular tract of land, including without limitation any
restriction on the ratio of building floor space to the land square
footage;
(4) the number of residential units that can be built
per acre of land; [or]
(5) the size, type, or method of construction of a
water or wastewater facility that can be constructed to serve a
developed tract of land if:
(A) the facility meets the minimum standards
established for water or wastewater facilities by state and federal
regulatory entities; and
(B) the developed tract of land is:
(i) located in a county with a population of
2.8 million or more; and
(ii) served by:
(a) on-site septic systems
constructed before September 1, 2001, that fail to provide adequate
services; or
(b) on-site water wells constructed
before September 1, 2001, that fail to provide an adequate supply of
safe drinking water; or
(6) the ability of an owner of property that has been
platted to remove a tree or vegetation on the owner's property,
except as necessary to mitigate tree-borne diseases as recommended
by the Texas A&M Forest Service, including by:
(A) requiring the owner to file an affidavit or
notice before removing the tree or vegetation; or
(B) imposing a tree mitigation fee.
SECTION 2. Subchapter Z, Chapter 212, Local Government
Code, is amended by adding Section 212.905 to read as follows:
Sec. 212.905. REGULATION OF TREE REMOVAL. (a) In this
section:
(1) "Residential structure" means:
(A) a manufactured home as that term is defined
by Section 1201.003, Occupations Code;
(B) a detached one-family or two-family
dwelling, including the accessory structures of the dwelling;
(C) a multiple single-family dwelling that is not
more than three stories in height with a separate means of entry for
each dwelling, including the accessory structures of the dwelling;
or
(D) any other multifamily structure.
(2) "Tree mitigation fee" means a fee or charge
imposed by a municipality in connection with the removal of a tree
from private property.
(b) A municipality that imposes a tree mitigation fee for
tree removal on a person's property must allow that person to apply
for a credit for tree planting under this section to offset the
amount of the fee.
(c) An application for a credit under Subsection (b) must be
in the form and manner prescribed by the municipality. To qualify
for a credit under this section, a tree must be:
(1) planted on property:
(A) for which the tree mitigation fee was
assessed; or
(B) mutually agreed upon by the municipality and
the person; and
(2) at least two inches in diameter at the point on the
trunk 4.5 feet above ground.
(d) For purposes of Subsection (c)(1)(B), the municipality
and the person may consult with an academic organization, state
agency, or nonprofit organization to identify an area for which
tree planting will best address the science-based benefits of trees
and other reforestation needs of the municipality.
(e) The amount of a credit provided to a person under this
section must be applied in the same manner as the tree mitigation
fee assessed against the person and:
(1) equal to the amount of the tree mitigation fee
assessed against the person if the property is an existing
one-family or two-family dwelling that is the person's residence;
(2) at least 50 percent of the amount of the tree
mitigation fee assessed against the person if:
(A) the property is a residential structure that
is not occupied by the person; and
(B) the person is constructing or renovating the
residential structure for sale as a residential structure and not
for use as the person's residence; or
(3) at least 40 percent of the amount of the tree
mitigation fee assessed against the person if:
(A) the property is not a residential structure;
or
(B) the person is constructing or intends to
construct a structure on the property that is not a residential
structure.
(f) As long as the municipality meets the requirement to
provide a person a credit under Subsection (b), this section does
not affect the ability of or require a municipality to determine:
(1) the type of trees that must be planted to receive a
credit under this section, except as provided by Subsection (c);
(2) the requirements for tree removal and
corresponding tree mitigation fees, if applicable;
(3) the requirements for tree-planting methods and
best management practices to ensure that the tree grows to the
anticipated height at maturity; or
(4) the amount of a tree mitigation fee, except that a
tree mitigation fee may not exceed $400.
(g) A municipality may not impose a tree mitigation fee for
the removal of a tree that:
(1) is diseased or dead; or
(2) poses an imminent or immediate threat to persons
or property.
(h) A municipality may not prohibit the removal of a tree
that:
(1) is less than 24 inches in diameter at the point on
the trunk 4.5 feet above the ground;
(2) is diseased or dead; or
(3) poses an imminent or immediate threat to persons
or property.
(i) This section does not apply to property within five
miles of a federal military base in active use as of December 1,
2017.
SECTION 3. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
a tree mitigation fee assessed by a municipality on or after the
effective date of this Act.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect December 1, 2017.
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