Katy council reviews proposed rules for battery energy storage systems after prior application drew public outcry

City of Katy planning staff on Monday presented draft regulations for battery energy storage systems (BESS), outlining special-use permitting, technical studies and fire-safety measures after the council denied a previous proposal last fall.

The draft ordinance would require any new BESS proposal to apply for a special-use permit and submit a detailed site plan, landscape and screening plans, elevations and renderings, a fire management plan, a hazard mitigation analysis and a plume study. Rachel, a city planner, said the packet also recommends an elevated application fee and 24/7 remote monitoring, a decommissioning plan and a fee-in-lieu of taxes for projects on industrial land.

“This is just a high level outline of what was proposed,” Rachel said, adding that staff had researched about 14 Texas cities and used League City’s ordinance as a starting point.

Council members pressed staff for stronger protections. Council member Dan Smith and others said a 750-foot setback proposed in the draft was too small; Smith said council had previously discussed a one-mile buffer. Council member Janet Court urged adding waterways and utility corridors to setback rules and recommended that the applicant be required to reimburse the city if an incident requires extended hazardous-materials response.

Several members also asked for a required performance bond tied to the decommissioning plan so the city would not be left with a deteriorating site if an owner abandons a facility. Council member Gina Hicks and Council member Roy Robertson suggested the city should hire — and be reimbursed for — third-party technical reviewers instead of allowing applicants to retain reviewers who represent the project proponent.

Rachel told the council that some municipalities and counties have used development agreements or strategic partnerships to impose stricter requirements than local ordinances and that Sulphur Springs had unusually onerous provisions. She said staff had not yet surveyed the three surrounding counties about their approaches.

Council members also favored forming an advisory group of industry and technical experts to evaluate draft rules and recommended additional technical specificity such as whether a required “plume study” should be called “plume modeling” and whether the fire marshal must be included in all plan reviews.

City staff said the proposed regulations could extend into the city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) but acknowledged legal limits on regulating privately owned property in some parts of the ETJ. The city attorney cautioned the council about preemption and ongoing state legislative activity addressing BESS setbacks and other elements; several council members noted potential legal challenges to local restrictions.

Rachel asked council for direction on distance buffers, third-party review structure, bonding for decommissioning and whether to form an advisory committee. Council members agreed they wanted stronger setbacks than 750 feet, a bond requirement in the decommissioning plan, a city-contracted technical review reimbursed by applicants, and an advisory group to refine technical standards before staff drafts ordinance language.

Council did not vote on any regulation at the meeting; staff said the packet’s outline was for discussion and that any ordinance would return for additional review and potential formal action.

Why it matters: Battery storage facilities can pose fire, air-quality and land-use issues for nearby neighborhoods and schools; the council’s choices will shape where and how the technology can be sited in Katy and its extraterritorial jurisdiction.

What’s next: Staff will incorporate council feedback on setbacks, bonding, third-party review arrangements and advisory-group membership and return with ordinance language for future action.