Category Archives: Local Governmental Entities
Texas Unmanned Aerial Aircraft Device Update
In my last blog on drones in December 2020, I wrote about the federal suit members of the media have brought regarding First Amendment challenges to Texas drone laws, found in Chapter 423 of the Texas Government Code. [National Press Photographers Assoc, et al v. Steven McCraw, Director of DPS] The case is scheduled… Read More »
MSD: What’s in Your Groundwater?
A Municipal Setting Designation (a “MSD”) places a limitation on the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (“TCEQ”) requirements for the investigation or remediation of property parcels containing contaminated groundwater, when that groundwater is not used and will not be used as potable water now or in the future, located within a city or a… Read More »
Delayed Census Causes Texas Legislature to Go Back to the Future
The Texas Constitution prohibits the Legislature from passing any local or special law regulating the affairs of counties, cities, towns, wards, or school districts. Necessity being the mother of invention, when the Legislature desires to regulate, in effect, a specific county, city, town, ward, or school district, it passes a general law with bracketed… Read More »
City Contracts and State Statutes
In a previous blog post, this firm addressed some instances of first amendment issues implicated by state laws. Particularly of note, was a state statute which prevented Cities from contracting with companies who take a particular political stance. As a brief recap, in 2017, the Texas legislature passed H.B. 89 which provided that a… Read More »
Social Media and Cities: When Is It a Public Forum?
With the growing number of social media platforms and their rapidly increasing potential to attract audiences and disseminate information, local government leaders, management, and staff seeking to engage the community often wonder what can be done about potential internet trolls and keyboard warriors. The chimeric landscape of social media, the vastly growing “like, comment,… Read More »
What is a Mayor Pro Tempore?
To understand what a Mayor Tempore (usually abbreviated as Mayor Pro Tem) is you need to understand the duties of the Mayor. These duties are dependent on the type of city the Mayor has been elected in. The different types of cities in Texas are home-rule cities or general law cities and our firm… Read More »
How Cities in Texas Can Collect on Delinquent Utility Bills
Many municipalities in Texas provide utilities to their citizens in one form or another, but what does a city do when a customer refuses to pay a long overdue bill? The answer is simple, place a lien on the property for the amount owed. However, the process is not as simple as the answer,… Read More »
Constitutional Carry Comes to Texas
Independence Day weekend seems like a fitting time to write about a new freedom to be enjoyed by Texans—constitutional carry. The Firearm Carry Act of 2021 becomes effective on September 1, 2021, authorizing most individuals over the age of 21 to carry a handgun without a license. So-called “constitutional” or “permitless” carry may seem… Read More »
Texas Bans Camping in Public Places
In recent years, many cities across the country have seen a surge in homeless populations. It is not uncommon to see a tent-city within a city, as many displaced individuals have taken to camping in public places. In large cities across the U.S., small encampments can be seen along public rights of way, under… Read More »
Abbott’s Border Promise
Earlier this month, Governor Greg Abbott revealed a new plan to revitalize the campaign promise of former President Donald Trump to build a wall at the Texas-Mexico border. The U.S. Border Patrol and Office of Field Operations has seen a dramatic increase in border encounters with the months of March, April, and May 2021… Read More »