Legislation that could require large cities to wholesale water and wastewater to smaller municipalities, which could unlock a 500-plus acre development near the City of Hays, was voted out of committee last month.
But the future of House Bill 2959, authored by State Rep. Jason Isaac (R-Dripping Springs), ended after it wasn’t placed on the calendar to be discussed on the house floor prior to a May 11 deadline.
HB 2959 was voted out of the House Natural Resources Committee by a unanimous 10-0 vote April 27.
The Hays Free Press reported in April a home rule municipality with a city-owned utility located in a county with a population of more than one million people could provide wholesale water and sewer service to general law cities with less than 301 people upon request, if the proposed bill were to be approved.
If approved, wholesale service could be provided if the extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) of the larger home rule city borders the ETJ of the general law city, and if an aquifer provides the sole water supply for the smaller town.
Bill Walters, president of Walters Southwest, who worked with Isaac and officials with the City of Hays on the bill, said he had worked “hand-in-hand” with language on the bill with Isaac, the city of Austin and its lobbying team.
The bill is in conjunction with a service extension request made by Walters to Austin for a 530-acre mixed use development called Hays Commons, which is to be located at the intersection of FM 1626 and State Highway 45 Southwest at the Hays and Travis County lines.
Walters said dialogue was “positive” with Austin officials, as well as Hays County representatives that “have been working hard on it as well.” He said the dialogue was welcome and “all parties clearly understand” the want to avoid additional septic systems
“I think all parties clearly understand that a central sewer and water service is the preferred methodology over septic systems and wells and other alternatives, which are clearly negative toward the environment,” Walters said.
Language in the bill is all in the same context, with all sides wanting more clarification prior to the committee vote, Walters said.
“It was a 10-0 vote, so it was a unanimous vote. I think that sends a strong message,” Walters said.
But the bill is now running up against the clock. With the deadline having already passed, the only way it could return is if a special session is called.
If the bill is approved, Walters said all parties would work with Austin’s water utility to move forward. He added the city of Hays “just wants to be treated fairly in a wholesale agreement” similar to those found in Rollingwood, Sunset Valley and Westlake.
Even if the bill isn’t passed, Walters said he would like to continue to work with Austin and possibly return to the 2019 legislative session, if necessary.
Harvey Davis, City of Hays Mayor, said he would hope to have conversations with Austin, regardless if the bill is approved or not.
“We always want to have good interaction and conversation with our friends at the city,” Davis said.
