The failure of the Elgin Bank legislation in the session has left counties wondering how they can recapture some of their regulatory strength before tackling the issue in the next session, which doesn’t convene until January 1999.
State Rep. Ron Lewis (D-Mauriceville) carried legislation that would have reversed much of the Elgin Bank ruling, but his bill, despite being a priority for the Texas Association of Counties and the Conference of Urban Counties, died in a House committee. The Texas Association of Builders and the counties were at odds over how much lot acreage should continue to be exempt from county authority. The details are complex, but Andrew Erben, the builders’ legislative director, acknowledged it boiled down to this: The Elgin Bank decision gave developers a gift that some are reluctant to return. Shortly before the session ended Erben said, “some of my members” feel that even a small compromise would be giving up a lot.
In Hays County — a growth hotbed that’s become something of a laboratory for land regulations — commissioners on June 3 passed new subdivision and wastewater rules that they hope will help the county manage growth in the Elgin Bank era of development. The new rules aren’t a direct response to Elgin Bank — for one thing, they’ve been in the works for 3 1/2 years — but parts of the rules do attempt to cure problems caused by the court ruling.
The first part of the Hays County rules, which govern subdivisions, took effect immediately. The second part, new on-site sewage regulations, must be approved by the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission before taking effect. The new rules take a strong first step toward protection of the Edwards and Trinity aquifers by giving incentives to developers to provide alternative sources of water — either rainwater collection systems or surface water piped in from outside the aquifers.
The rules require minimum lot sizes of five acres over the Edwards Aquifer’s recharge zone if the development uses traditional septic tanks and single-home wells. Denser development will be allowed in areas not as susceptible to groundwater pollution, and if builders use high-quality waste-treatment systems.
The county also has worked up traffic counts for roads, which will nudge developers toward low-density building. Builders of larger developments will be required to build better roads with adequate space for school buses and turnout lanes.
Because of Elgin Bank, Hays County officials placed much of their new regulatory authority in wastewater rules rather than subdivision regulations. As counties have discovered, state lawmakers can take away growth regulation as easily as they can grant such powers. Wastewater rules, in contrast, stem from state authority, which is broader and more uniform than county-specific regulations. — B.E.
This article appears in June 27 • 1997 and June 27 • 1997 (Cover).