Katy Council Considers Battery Energy Storage System Rules After Staff Review; Public Raised Safety Questions

KATY, Texas — Council members reviewed proposed ordinance language Sept. 22 to add regulatory standards for battery energy storage systems (BESS) as part of the special-use permit process.

City staff explained the proposal grew from a prior permit request and five meetings with a group of subject-matter experts to draft best-practice language. Staff emphasized the change is procedural — adding qualifiers and standards to the existing special‑use permit pathway — and is not tied to any specific facility. The Planning and Zoning Commission had unanimously recommended the language.

During the public hearing, resident Sonia Polidore asked whether the community would have to worry about radiation and other safety concerns from a future facility. The mayor and staff noted the concern would be recorded and could be addressed during the council’s substantive discussion; the public hearing was brief and closed with no additional speakers.

Council read the ordinance’s caption (which includes a penalty of up to $2,000 for violations) and several councilmembers thanked the advisory group that drafted the language. The transcript does not record a final affirmative adoption vote for the ordinance; a councilmember later requested that item 10B be pulled at the city administrator’s request.

What happens next: Because the transcript contains no recorded adoption vote, the ordinance’s final status requires confirmation in the city clerk’s official minutes or in a subsequent meeting record.