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Hamlet council adopts resolution opposing state bills that would curb local planning authority
Summary
The Hamlet City Council voted to adopt a nonbinding resolution opposing several state bills (HB 765, SB 688, HB 1009, SB 314) that staff and consultants said would reduce municipal land-use authority and citizens' participation in planning processes. Counsel confirmed councils may adopt such nonbinding resolutions.
The Hamlet City Council voted to go on record opposing recently introduced state legislation that staff and a planning consultant said would reduce municipalities' control over land-use decisions and limit public participation.
Assistant/consultant (S10) briefed the council on a drafted resolution (Resolution 2025-09) that specifically names House Bill 765 and Senate Bill 688 and a pair of companion bills (House Bill 1009 and Senate Bill 314). S10 said the bills would "ultimately undermine the authority of municipalities to conduct their planning duties," remove the extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) authority that lets cities plan just outside city limits, and could chill citizen participation and expose local officials to legal consequences for land-use decisions.
Counsel (S11) told the council a municipal body may adopt a nonbinding resolution on this sort of legislative issue and called such resolutions a common tool used by local governments to articulate concerns to the General Assembly. Councilmember Marmot (S9) moved to adopt the resolution, the motion was seconded, and the council adopted it by voice vote.
The resolution will be shared with other municipalities and used in advocacy efforts opposing the identified bills; staff said they drafted the language after consultation with CodeRight Planners. The council did not take any legislative or lobbying action beyond approving the nonbinding resolution at this meeting.
The council's action is expressly symbolic and advisory; counsel advised that any subsequent lobbying or formal legal challenge would follow separate processes.
