Council hears DART legislative update; staff briefs on withdrawal election process and financial obligations

Irving — City staff, the city’s legislative officer and the city’s DART representative briefed the Irving City Council May 4 on pending state legislation affecting the Dallas Area Rapid Transit district (DART), and on the statutory process and financial consequences of a withdrawal election under Texas law.

Orlando Sanchez, assistant city manager (first reference: Orlando Sanchez, Assistant City Manager), opened an informational presentation on DART. He said DART is a regional transit agency created under Texas Transportation Code Chapter 452 and funded by a 1¢ transit sales-and-use tax approved by local voters in 1983. John Wiese, the city’s legislative officer (first reference: John Wiese, legislative officer), outlined the status of several bills: House Bill 3187 (filed by Rep. Matt Shaheen) would permit cities to recover up to 25% of their annual DART contributions for defined mobility projects; Senate Bill 2118 (filed by Senator Parker) and House companion bills would change board governance so each member city receives representation and Dallas would have multiple votes rather than a dominant share.

Wiese said HB 3187 had a committee hearing but remained pending in the House Transportation Committee and that SB 2118 and similar proposals had not been scheduled for committee action. He noted the legislature’s calendar makes movement uncertain, with key committee deadlines approaching.

Doug Herbachek, who represents Irving on the DART board (first reference: Doug Herbachek, DART board representative), and other council members described ongoing negotiations and internal DART actions. Herbachek and others said DART had proposed a 5% return-of-funds measure after member-city pressure, but several council members said the small rebate does not address governance or long-term proportionality concerns.

Sanchez then reviewed the statutory withdrawal-election process and financial consequences. He said a city council may order a withdrawal election or must do so upon receipt of a petition signed by 20% of the city’s qualified voters; withdrawal elections may be held on the next applicable uniform election date and may be called in the 2026 window based on the statute’s six-year frequency. The ballot proposition reads: “Shall the Dallas Area Rapid Transit be continued in the city of Irving?” If voters favor withdrawal, Sanchez said DART service would cease for Irving on the date the council canvases the election result, but financial obligations attributable to the city (including bonded debt) would continue until DART’s executive committee calculates and the city pays the outstanding components of the city’s obligation; the statute requires a post-withdrawal determination of owed financial obligations.

Council members asked legal and timing questions about petition thresholds, which prior-election counts determine the 20% threshold, the earliest possible election dates, and how long future debt obligations would be collected. City staff recommended executive-session follow-up with legal counsel to examine exposures, potential transition plans and service continuity options such as contracting for local mobility services.

The briefing was informational. No council action was taken at the May 4 work session.