The North Texas city of Denton has thrown its hat in with other cities from across the state in their bid to stop a recently passed law that preempts some local ordinances.
Denton becomes the latest to oppose the legislation, joining Houston, San Antonio, El Paso, Arlington, Plano, Waco, and others.
Notably absent from the litigation is the City of Dallas, which has not formally joined the proceedings.
Nevertheless, that has not stopped interim Dallas City Attorney Tammy Palomino from filing an amicus letter with the court claiming the law “abrogates the constitutional structure of government.” Nor has it stopped Dallas City Council Members Adam Bazaldua (District 7), Omar Narvaez (District 6), Jaime Resendez (District 5), Jaynie Schultz (District 11), and Chad West (District 1) from signing on to a separate amicus brief.
At issue is House Bill 2127 — the so-called “Death Star” law — that was recently passed by the Texas Legislature and goes into effect September 1.
HB 2127, called the Texas Regulatory Consistency Act, seeks to institute a more welcoming business environment by preempting local rules that potentially create uncertainty and confusion.
“In recent years, several local jurisdictions have sought to establish their own regulations of commerce that are different than the state’s regulation,” the law noted, leading “to a patchwork of regulations that apply inconsistently across this state.”
“The purpose of this Act is to provide statewide consistency by returning sovereign regulatory powers to the state where those powers belong in accordance with Section 5, Article XI, Texas Constitution.”
The section of the Texas Constitution referred to says that any home rule city may not pass ordinances that “contain any provision inconsistent with the Constitution of the State, or of the general laws enacted by the Legislature of this State.”
The Texas Municipal League (TML) explained that the Texas Regulatory Consistency Act will operate in three distinct ways:
First, it “expressly preempts certain city regulations in the Labor, Property, and Local Government Codes, while exempting specific city regulations from preemption in certain circumstances.”
“Second, it prohibits a city from adopting or enforcing an ordinance in a field of regulation occupied by state law in eight specific codes.”
Third, it “allows a person, or a trade association representing a person, after providing a city with at least three months’ notice, to sue the city for adopting or enforcing an ordinance preempted under H.B. 2127.”
Opponents of the law, such as the City of Denton, claim that it infringes upon their rights as home-rule municipalities to handle issues in a local capacity.
“HB 2127 should be declared unconstitutional as an attempt to circumvent the home-rule authority guaranteed to municipalities by the Texas Constitution because it cannot be construed consistently with the precedents of the Texas Supreme Court,” a joint letter from attorneys representing Arlington, Denton, Plano, and Waco explained, per the Denton Record-Chronicle.
Denton Chief of Staff Ryan Adams further said, “The Denton community deserves to have clarity in what their laws are and, equally important, should not have their ability to govern themselves under the Texas constitution eroded.”