Highland Village council pledges to stay in DCTA while pressing for more local service and clearer oversight

Highland Village's council spent the bulk of its Dec. 9 early work session debating whether the city is getting fair value from the Denton County Transportation Authority (DCTA), then agreed to remain a member while seeking concrete service improvements.

Councilmembers voiced a mix of views: some urged asking voters to decide whether the city should stay in DCTA, while others warned that leaving could cut residents off from services they use. "We should allow our voters to decide," Councilmember Rhonda said, arguing residents should have a voice in the long-term commitment. Councilmember John said the council should instead press the DCTA board for a fee reduction or improved services, adding, "I would support trying to find a way to get a fee reduction." The discussion included a staff-cited figure — "$1,900,000 last year" — for the city's annual contribution to DCTA.

City counsel recited the applicable state statute to clarify the board's authority. The attorney read Section 460.554 of the Texas Transportation Code and told the council the DCTA board "may direct the comptroller of public accounts to collect the authority's sales and use tax at a rate that is lower than the rate approved by the voters," but cautioned any such reduction would apply systemwide and could affect DCTA's ability to meet debt service.

Rather than a vote to exit, the council settled on three near-term steps: draft a "sense of council" to state the city's current intention to remain in DCTA while pressing for improved service to Highland Village; produce written roles and expectations for the city's DCTA board representative (so that representative can advocate specific priorities); and schedule regular updates and targeted follow-ups with DCTA staff and board members. Mayor Wilcox directed staff to place the items on the January agenda and to return with a proposed timeline.

Council members emphasized they were not closing the door on longer-term options. "We can walk and chew gum at the same time," Rhonda said, urging simultaneous engagement with legislators and DCTA. Others warned that a voter initiative would be complex and could take years and additional expense while offering no immediate guarantee of statutory change.

Next steps: staff will draft the sense-of-council language, the representative's roles-and-expectations document and a schedule of monthly or quarterly updates for council review in January. The council also asked staff to seek a DCTA response to a short list of Highland Village priorities before formalizing further action.