Rep. Burt Solomons held a press conference today announcing his filing of HJR 56 which proposes a constitutional amendment to restrict the power of the legislature to mandate requirements upon certain local governments. HJR 56 limits the Texas Legislature’s authority to pass legislation which would require mandates of local governments without providing a funding source. The legislation, HJR 56, defines a local government as a county, a city, a hospital district, a community college district, or a special district created by the action of a county, city, hospital district, or community college.
“Although fiscal notes provide us with information about the local fiscal impact, they do not hold us accountable,” Representative Solomons stated. “Texas Legislators talk about not passing unfunded mandates, but sometimes things don’t work out the way people talk. If a local government gets sued for not being able to afford to implement an unfunded mandate from the state, HJR 56 provides them with a defense. In practical terms, if a person tries to tell a local government that they must increase spending because of a bill passed after January 1, 2012, then the local government can point to this constitutional provision and decide not to increase spending for that purpose.” HJR 56 was filed on January 10, 2011.