On May 3 the Senate Committee on Intergovernmental Relations took up the following charge:
Charge 1: Study the impact that regulatory requirements have on development, construction, sale and resale of housing. Consider how regulatory loads affect the ability of the housing market to return to normal economic levels, and focus on the impact on the sale of new and used homes. Include costs and benefits of individual categories or types of regulations to allow a better assessment of ways to improve the affordability of housing.
Some witnesses testified on their concern of the balance between cost of regulations and the cost of a new home. It was noted that Texas has minimal regulations and in many cases, existing regulations are needed. However, some witnesses argued the state’s role should be to develop “best practices” for local governments. Chairman Royce West, D – Dallas, also reiterated several times during questioning his desire to ensure the state government did not “overstep” the cities. West concluded the hearing noting it may be important for the committee to differentiate between necessary regulations and those that simply raise municipal revenue.
The committee will meet to take testimony once more (June 14). Then, interested groups will meet throughout the summer to provide more input to the committee. Finally, the committee will meet in October to adopt a final report.