Conference committee narrows Fast Track Permits Act to building permits, concurs with House changes

The Commerce Conference Committee concurred with House Bill 2088, known in the transcript as the Fast Track Permits Act, after the Senate committee narrowed the bill’s scope to building permits.

“Harris” explained the Senate committee’s changes: “House Bill 20 88 would enact the Fast Track Permits Act. The Senate committee removed the mandatory section that applied to the platted subdivisions and limited the application of the bill's fast track requirements to just building permits. The Senate Committee did that by striking the words ‘for other required local government approval,’” the transcript records.

A committee participant noted that the House had “inadvertently non-concurred” because the bill was sent to the wrong chairman, but later indicated the House had no concerns with the Senate’s edits. A member confirmed concurrence and moved to concur with the changes.

Action recorded: conference committee concurred with the Senate’s amended version of House Bill 2088, narrowing the bill to apply to building permits and removing the mandatory subdivision provision. The transcript contains no roll-call vote tally.

Background: The Fast Track Permits Act is intended to modify local permitting timelines and requirements; in conference the Senate limited the bill’s mandatory provisions and removed language extending mandatory fast-track treatment to other required local government approvals.

Ending: With concurrence recorded, the committee moved on to discuss other bills and possible vehicles for combining related measures.