The House Committee on Land and
Resource Management held its first meeting of the interim period on March 3. This
committee has jurisdiction over governmental land use controls such as zoning, subdivision
platting, and annexation. During the hearing, the committee heard testimony on the ability
of counties to provide for appropriate growth and development in unincorporated areas
while balancing private property rights. Texas Farm Bureau has significant interest and
policy in this area.
Among those offering testimony was Jim Allison, representing the County
Judges and Commissioners Association of Texas. He told the committee that there is no
intent on his group’s part to ask the Legislature to give counties general
ordinance-making authority. Instead, he said counties will ask the Legislature to consider
giving county government authority over the following:
1) Adopt and enforce the International Uniform Construction
Standards; 2) Permitting within any portion of a municipality’s
extra-territorial jurisdiction not designated for annexation in the municipality’s
three year plan; and, 3) Restrict construction of facilities not considered a
conforming use for that area.
The first two proposals deal with residential construction standards
outside of the city limits. Our TFB policy does not specifically address this residential
issue. It is the third proposal by the counties that has drawn our concern. We do have a
clear policy position in terms of standards for other construction in the county: (Section
163, page 70) "We are opposed to any requirements for building permits for any type
of building or other construction of improvements on farms and ranches in pursuit of
commercial agriculture in rural areas."
Based on our policy statement, TFB will make sure that farm and ranch
interests are exempt from any of the proposed county ordinance changes. We will keep you
posted on the work of this particular committee and our organization’s involvement
during this interim period.
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Make sure you are counted in the 2000 Census! Census Day is April 1.
You should have already or will soon receive your Census form in the mail. It is very
important that everyone take the time to complete the form. For agriculture and rural
Texans, full participation is critical.
Texas was dramatically under-counted in 1990 and the state lost more
than $1 billion in government funding as a result. Census Bureau adjustments conclude that
more than 486,000 Texans were not counted.
It is important to understand how the census data is used, according to
Senate Redistricting Committee Co-Chairman Mario Gallegos (D-Houston). There is a fear in
some segments of society that census data will be used by the IRS or the Immigration and
Naturalization Service and that filling out the form could create problems down the road.
The reality is that census data, says Sen. Gallegos, is strictly
confidential. Only sworn Census Bureau employees can see your form or link your name to
your responses. In fact, federal law provides severe penalties for anyone caught sharing
your answers.
The population numbers derived by the Census will be used next year to
draw new district lines for the Texas House and Texas Senate, as well as the U.S. House of
Representatives and State Board of Education.
•••
The final members of the Agriculture Policy Committee have been named.
Lieutenant Governor Rick Perry has appointed State Sens. Tom Haywood (R-Wichita Falls,
co-chairman), Teel Bivins (R-Amarillo), Ken Armbrister (D-Victoria), and Steve Ogden
(R-College Station). House Speaker Pete Laney previously appointed State Reps. David
Swinford (R-Dumas, co-chairman), Robby Cook (D-Eagle Lake), Jim McReynolds (D-Lufkin), and
Bob Turner (D-Voss).
