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House committee hears bill to let citizens seek court orders against misbehaving special districts
Summary
The House Local Government Committee heard testimony on House Bill 68, which would let citizens and counties pursue a writ of mandamus to compel special districts to fulfill legal duties; the sponsor recounted prior versions, described attorney-fee recovery as subject to court determination, and asked for a due pass to advance the bill.
The House Local Government Committee on Wednesday heard testimony on House Bill 68, a measure that would provide a legal remedy—through a writ of mandamus—against certain special districts that fail to perform required public duties.
Rep. Steve Gist, sponsor of the bill and a member of the committee, said HB68 grew from repeated complaints that publicly funded local boards "weren't posting rates, they weren't posting minutes, they were having closed meetings without public notice" and that the legislation is designed to give local residents and county officials a remedy without moving disputes to the state capitol. "The writ of mandamus is a court order that compels a government…
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