Williamson County area leaders raise concerns about new law allowing ETJ residents to deannex

Published: Thu, 08/03/23

WilCo area leaders raise concerns about new law allowing ETJ residents to deannex


The new law goes into effect in September to allow residents to petition out of a city's ETJ. 
(Brooke Sjoberg/Community Impact)

Community Impact
By Chloe Young
Updated 

A new state law going into effect in September could largely impact the ability of cities to expand and regulate the land neighboring their city limits.

Local leaders have expressed concerns that a lack of city control might negatively impact development and place more weight on the county.

Zooming out

Senate Bill 2038, which passed in May, allows residents of an extraterritorial jurisdiction to leave the city’s ETJ through a petition or election. The law also revokes previous state law which allowed a city’s ETJ to naturally expand as the city annexed new territories.
Bennett Sandlin, executive director of the Texas Municipal League, said ETJs allow cities to regulate the following outside of city limits: Bill author and state Sen. Paul Bettencourt said he wanted to the bill to be an exit path for Texans in an ETJ who are displeased with regulations from city leaders they cannot vote for. Property owners who leave an ETJ would only be subject to county rules or could create their own incorporation.

“The purpose is to get people out of what effectively is no representation,” Bettencourt said.

The outlook

Leaders in Round Rock, Georgetown, Cedar Park and Williamson County expressed concern about the following: In their own words

Williamson County Precinct 2 Commissioner Cynthia Long said she’s concerned about the county’s ability to take over platting, law enforcement and emergency services for new areas.

“We will end up having to take over, and we don’t currently have the staff, so we’ll have to increase our staff, and it’ll drive county costs up,” Long said.

Georgetown Mayor Josh Schroeder said unregulated development could mean that an area that would usually allow for 300 mobile homes under the city could be built up to 1,000 units.

“I think it’s gonna just allow for unregulated, very fast-paced growth,” Schroeder said. “It’s a huge impact.”

The new law could also affect cities’ ability to plan for and deliver utilities. Schroeder said Georgetown would not continue to supply water to residents who leave their ETJ, while Round Rock Mayor Craig Morgan said he would be hesitant to do so for any new developments outside of the ETJ.

Cedar Park Mayor Jim Penniman-Morin said he is less worried about the law’s effect on the city’s smaller ETJ, however the law could present a challenge for future residents, he said.

“If your neighbors deannex in a way that you are no longer contiguous with the city, your neighbors may have prevented you from ever being annexed. That may have an impact on the options for that land in the future,” Penniman-Morin said.

What’s next

As city and county leaders remain uncertain of what the bill’s full impact will be, Bettencourt said the state Legislature would be keeping an eye on the bill’s implications once it goes in September.

Beyond boundaries

Many cities in the greater Austin area have extraterritorial jurisdictions, or areas outside of official city limits they have control over.

Georgetown Round Rock Cedar Park
By Chloe Young - Chloe joined Community Impact as a reporter in May 2023 after graduating with a degree in journalism from The University of Texas. She previously served as the Austin metro intern for CI in the summer of 2022 and has interned for KXAN-TV, KUT and Austin Woman Magazine. When she’s not writing, she enjoys spending time in nature, thrift shopping, reading and listening to live music. Her passion is engaging communities around hyperlocal coverage.
 


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