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Keller staff seeks council guidance on zoning‑case protest procedures as Texas bills could change rules
Summary
City staff briefed council on how Keller counts and verifies written protests to zoning cases, asked whether to tighten the noon cutoff for counting protests and warned that at least two state bills under consideration could change notice and petition rules.
City staff presented a work‑session briefing on how Keller handles written protests to zoning cases and asked council whether to revise local procedures while a pair of state bills remain pending in Austin.
Staff said the city follows Texas Local Government Code procedures (as implemented in Keller’s Unified Development Code) for noticing and counting written protests to rezonings and special‑use requests. Under Keller’s current practice the cutoff to submit written protest that will count toward the super‑majority threshold is noon on the day of the city‑council public hearing; the code is silent on a process for withdrawing previously submitted protests. Staff described how it verifies signers and property ownership for petition letters within the 200‑foot notification buffer and said staff compiles all public feedback into the agenda packet after redacting contact information per guidance from the Texas attorney general.
Staff briefed council on two bills still alive in the legislative session that could change how local governments handle zoning notices and protests. One bill would raise the petition threshold for forcing a super‑majority vote (staff said it would require approximately 60% of property owners inside the noticed area rather than the current 20% threshold); another would extend the notice range (the 200‑foot buffer in Keller) and lengthen the notice period (from 10 days to 30 days) so many more property owners would receive hearing notices. Staff said both bills were still under consideration and advised council not to adopt permanent local changes until the legislature finishes its session.
What other cities do: staff reported it surveyed peer cities and found variation in practice; Fort Worth requires written protest to arrive two business days before the meeting (more restrictive), while Roanoke had few super‑majority cases and a looser approach. Staff said none of the surveyed cities required notary or signature‑verification on public letters, and most accept signed, written petitions or hand‑delivered letters as formal protests.
Staff questions for council: staff asked whether council wants to keep the current practice of including mayor/council emails in the agenda packet after redaction. Council members expressed mixed views: some said the packet addition is redundant because councilmembers already receive constituent emails; others said the packet provides transparency to the public. Multiple council members supported moving the formal protest deadline earlier to give staff time to verify signatures and give applicants a short window to resolve issues with petitioners — suggested options included a Monday noon deadline with a short retraction window (e.g., Tuesday noon) before the hearing and using two business‑day cutoffs similar to Fort Worth.
Next steps: staff will continue to monitor the legislature and the Texas Municipal League analysis, return with recommended edits in late summer if bills do not pass, and pursue a short‑term administrative change only if council directs staff to do so.
