Council hears proposed rules for battery energy storage systems; no final vote recorded in public minutes

Katy City Council opened a public hearing and reviewed draft ordinance language intended to add regulatory standards for battery energy storage systems (BESS) to the city’s special-use-permit process, but the transcript does not record a final council vote on the ordinance.

City Planner Rachel Liza summarized the history: earlier this year the council denied the city’s first BESS request and directed staff on Jan. 13 to research best practices and draft regulatory language. Staff then convened a subject-matter expert group that met about five times and incorporated industry standards and best practices into the draft. The Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously recommended approval of the proposed ordinance on Sept. 9.

The council opened a public hearing. Resident Sonia Polidore asked whether the community should be concerned about radiation and safety. The mayor noted that questions would be taken into the discussion record and that speakers may later have the opportunity to address the council during the related agenda discussion. Council closed the public hearing. The city also read the ordinance caption for an amendment to section 15.2‑20 of section 14A‑15 of chapter 14A (zoning) to adopt regulations for battery energy storage systems.

The transcript records council members expressing appreciation for the committee’s work on the draft language but then shows item 10b being pulled at the request of the city administrator. The record as provided to the meeting audio/transcript does not include a roll-call vote adopting the BESS ordinance; therefore the article reports the procedural steps and that the plan had Planning Commission support, but does not say the ordinance was adopted.