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Committee reviews bill to clarify municipal ETJ removal process and allow landowner opt‑out
Summary
Senate Bill 2523 would clarify and streamline processes for reducing a municipal extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) by petition or election, require notice to affected residents, and allow landowners to opt out of removal efforts before an area is released from municipal jurisdiction.
Senator Bettencourt explained Senate Bill 2523 as a clean‑up to an earlier bill (related to SB 2038) that clarifies how a municipal extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) can be reduced by petition or election under chapters C or D of chapter 42 of the Local Government Code. The bill clarifies that an area subject to a removal petition may include only parcels for which the petitioning owner has an ownership interest and requires the municipality to provide notice to all area residents when it receives a removal petition.
The bill also adds a right for landowners to opt out of removal efforts before an area is released from municipal jurisdiction — language the sponsor said was added after testimony from a landowner who wished to avoid being included in a removal petition. The committee opened and closed public testimony with no speakers registered and left SB 2523 pending subject to call of the chair.
