Shout-out to the GA team for a great legislative session

A very special shout out to the Governmental Affairs team and all who contributed to an extremely successful legislative session, which finally ended on May 31. The entire team put in countless hours to ensure numerous legislative victories for Texas REALTORS®, consumers and private property rights.

Thanks to the team's hard work and the support of the many volunteer leaders that participated in the process, the following REALTOR®-supported bills are moving on to the governor’s desk to be signed into law: (list below is from our Advice for Texas REALTORS® blog)

• HOA Reform: Senate Bill 1588 (authored by Sen. Bryan Hughes and sponsored by Rep. Chris Turner) makes several pro-homeowner reforms, including a cap on resale certificate fees, increased transparency in HOA management, and better due process to resolve disputes.

• Removing Discriminatory Covenants from Deeds: Senate Bill 30 (authored by Sen. Royce West and sponsored by Rep. Jeff Leach) provides property owners a way to remove discriminatory covenants from their real estate deeds via the county clerk’s office.

• Increasing Broadband Access: House Bill 5 (authored by Rep. Trent Ashby and sponsored by Sen. Robert Nichols) provides resources to expand access to broadband internet in eligible areas of the state.

• Civil Liability Reform: Senate Bill 6 (authored by Sen. Kelly Hancock and sponsored by Rep. Jeff Leach) ensures that small business owners, like REALTORS®, can continue to provide their essential services during times of crisis with protections from certain claims.

• Eminent Domain Reform: House Bill 2730 (authored by Rep. Joe Deshotel and sponsored by Sen. Lois Kolkhorst) makes the eminent domain process more fair and helps make property owners more aware of their rights when an entity with eminent domain authority seeks to acquire their property.