Page 12 - Builder Brief February 2025

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT
THE TEXAS LEGISLATURE IS NOW IN SESSION + NATIONAL ISSUES "ON THE HILL"
On Tuesday, January 14th, the legislature gaveled in for the first day of the 89thLegislativeSessionforanactionpacked140days. Thisyear,wehave31 freshman legislators in the Texas House of Representatives and 3 new members oftheTexasSenate. TheTexasHousehadahotlycontestedraceforSpeaker, and Rep. Dustin Burrows, a Republican from Lubbock, was elected in the second round of voting. He beat out Rep. David Cook, a Republican from Mansfield, and Rep. Ana-Maira Rodriguez Ramous, a Democrat from Richardson.
On the first day of the legislative session, the Texas Senate unanimously elected Republican State Senator Brandon Creighton as President Pro Tempore. Senator Creighton is a friend of our industry and has championed several crucial issues as a State Senator, including franchise and property tax relief, water, transportation infrastructure, and border security.
There are several critical issues facing residential builders, developers, and remodelersinthissession. HereisaglimpseofwhattheHouseandSenate will debate in the upcoming session:
y Impact Fees
y Development/Development Agreements focusing on involuntary
annexation
y Minimum Lot Sizes
y Building Moratoriums
y Extraterritorial Jurisdiction (ETJ) Issues including releasing properties fromtheETJ
y Institutional Investors/Owners y Foreign Owners
y Building Permits
y State Energy Code
y Water/Wastewater and CCN’s y Expansion of County Authority y Product Mandates
Please join us for the Texas Association of Builders (TAB) for Rally Day on Tuesday, February 11th. We will join the other local builders’ associations from acrossthestatetocallonourelectedofficialsattheStateCapitol. Wewilldivide up into four teams and have handouts to share.
The bus will leave GSABA at 8:00 a.m. sharp and return that evening no later than 7:30 p.m. We have appointments with all our elected officials from the greater San Antonio area and a plated lunch at the DoubleTree Hotel across thestreetfromtheCapitol. Youcanmakeyourreservationonlineatsabuilders. com or call Torrance Abrams at 210-696-3800.
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) has updated its plan to boost housing supply and is diligently working on a 10-point Plan.
KRISTI SUTTERFIELD
1. Eliminate excessive regulations
2. Promote careers in skilled trades
3. Fix building materials supply chains and ease costs
4. Pass federal tax legislation to expand the production of affordable and attainable housing
5. Overturn inefficient local zoning laws
6. Alleviate permitting roadblocks
7. Adopt reasonable and cost-effective building codes
8. Reduce local impact fees and other upfront taxes associated with housing construction
9. Make it easier for developers to finance new housing
10.Update employment policies to promote flexibility and opportunity
The impact on our industry from the November elections will hopefully bring some reductions in costly and inefficient regulatory policies and an extension of mostorallofthe2017taxcuts. Wedofaceuncertainty with illegal immigration enforcement.
A lot is going on at your Association! Mark your calendars for our next meeting with the City of San Antonio’s Development Services Department (DSD) on Tuesday, February 18th at 1:00 pm at GSABA and our bi-monthly call with Wayne Reed, the Cibolo City Manager on Wednesday, February 12th at 3:00 pm. Please feel free to call me if you have issues in the 22-county area that we serve!
Warm Regards,
12 FEBRUARY 2025 | GREATER SAN ANTONIO BUILDERS ASSOCIATION