Buda’s sustainability commission is seeking Dark Sky status in a new effort to reduce light pollution and reduce the amount of taxpayer dollars spent, but a new bill designed to encourage dark sky communities is being challenged.
House bill 2439, authored by House Representative Erin Zwiener, provides building restriction exemptions for current Dark Sky communities. However, Buda sustainability commissioner Blake Farrar is uncertain if the bill includes exemptions for communities seeking Dark Sky status.
“It seems like HB 2439 was intended to encourage dark sky communities and provide them some exemptions in the building restrictions, but it seems like that language was geared towards existing dark sky communities. There might be a question if those exemptions apply to communities seeking dark sky status, so the city and I hope to work with Erin Zwiener and others to clarify the language and make sure cities like Buda can move forward with our dark sky initiative,” Farrar said.
