HB2439 is Detrimental to Texas Cities

It's always time to do what's right. Veto this job-killing, economy-crushing legislation.

Please veto HB2439. Building standards are an important tool in shaping development in line with desire of a community.

Governor Abbott: I am heartsick that our congress has passed a bill HB2439 that does not represent our great state of Texas. Since when do we as a state opt to reduce our standards to be at a national base level? The level of pride we feel in our communities – how in the world do we hold our head high when the very independence we have known as a state is now being mandated to bow down to a national level? Since when do we not allow our communities the opportunity utilize and select the materials used to improve or keep up the aesthetic appearance? We are talking about communities where we raise our families and pay our taxes. I am asking you as a voting citizen of this great state to veto this bill that should not have ever made it past our House or Senate. Please do what is right and most represents our great state and VETO this bill.

Local government should make these decisions not Austin-this is a slippery slope and what other things might be coming or going down the road.

For years Texas cities have had the right to set design standards. These standards protect the "value" and "integrity" of their assets, the buildings and homes that generate tax values. HB-2439 will essentially strip this right from our Texas cities. Citizens will lose their voice if this bill is passed, since they select those town council members who are supposed to protect their rights.

This bill will hurt property values & appearances of cities throughout the state of Texas. There will be many surprised and angry Texas citizens once they see the adverse effect this bill has on their homes, cities & property values.

If it's not broke, don't try to fix it, especially this way!

Many cities in Texas have worked hard for many years to make sure the best construction materials were used. Masonry (brick, block, stone) is the best. Take a look at the most historic buildings in the world and you will find masonry. You will not find fiber cement or vinyl siding. Masonry is also the safest for our fire fighters. Do not force Texas municipalities to accept lower quality materials.

Please veto!

As the developer of Craig Ranch in McKinney Texas, we believe HB 2439 will significantly impact Cities abilities to protect future property values unless the property to be developed already has architectural standards with restrictions in place as does our Master Planned Community. In some cases, our architectural standards are more restrictive than the City standards. We have worked jointly with the City of McKinney to set architectural standards that are sustainable and protect property values into the future. To date, the Cities have protected the integrity and standard by imposing architectural standards. Don’t take away the Cities ability to protect property values by eliminating the Cities rights to govern these architectural standards. If HB 2439 would be passed by the State the resulting decrease in overall values by new development and decrease in adjacent properties as a result of HB 2439, would result in significant overall loss in ad valorem values for the State, Cities, and School Districts. One of the main reason’s we are enjoying large employment growth in the State is because of Cities that have high expectations for the quality of the product that is being built and that quality is what large employers are looking for when investing their millions of dollars to move to the State of Texas.

Safety needs to be the main priority within our communities, and safety starts with resiliency. Resilient communities start with comprehensive planning, including stricter building codes that produce robust structures with long service lives. More durable buildings with high-performance features that incorporate concrete and cement promote community continuity. Buildings and structures with resilient design and materials are not only better able to recover following disasters, such as hurricanes or fires, they are also the new “green” buildings. Builders, architects, and designers have come to recognize that more durable public buildings, private homes, and businesses, often built with concrete to resist damage from natural disasters, also reduce the impact entire communities have on our planet.

This bill will take away standards that NEED to be in place to continue to keep Texas a stronger market. For small towns and downtowns to thrive there must be building codes and standards above the National Building Code, which is the bare minimum. Not allowing city governments to control their own communities seems to be against local governments. For a state that doesn't want the national government to tell them what to do, this seems to be backwards. Local elected officials should be deciding what their communities need, not passing a blanket low standard. Texas is better than this. Governor Abbot, please veto this terrible bill.

This is an awful bill. Please veto this bill so that our local communities can continue to run themselves rather than out of state developers.

Government works best at the local levels. Don’t step in where you don’t belong.

There is not a single known ordinance in the State of Texas that specifies the use of Acme Brick! Builders are making a coordinated effort to take design controls away from the cities. This should be a city role, not a builder role - builders will leave the cities after they are through building.

We are opposed to HB2439 and urge you to veto it. We are a historic city and we need to retain our ability to regulate aesthetics and bring beautiful developments into the City that honor our City.

Texas is predominately a "state's rights" state, preferring that local (state ) concerns be dealt with at the state level. The same consideration should be given to cities to deal with local (city) concerns. Being able to influence the "look" of a city is paramount to developing its "character". This character can be an economic engine for both tourism and corporate relocation. The potential unintended consequences of this bill is staggering for all cities in Texas including Austin.

I am the Mayor Pro Tem for Mineral Wells. These bills will have a detrimental impact to our city so I ask that you please veto this bill.

This will completely wreck our new development codes that less than a year old. We are trying stem the tide of being over whelmed with metal buildings.

Cities were developed in the past with the closer available building materials. Once the train arrived buildings were built shipping pre-cut buildings but using many times building materials of the surrounding. Therefore, cities are the adequate entity to qualify aesthetics and quality development in their jurisdiction, keeping the knowledge and coherence of the historic designs.