Relating to the imposition by a municipality of a moratorium on property development in certain circumstances.
CriticalImmediate action required
Low Cost
Effective:2025-06-20
Enforcing Agencies
Municipal Governing Bodies (City Councils) • Municipal Zoning Commissions
01
Compliance Analysis
Key implementation requirements and action items for compliance with this legislation
Implementation Timeline
Effective Date:June 20, 2025 (Immediate effect due to supermajority vote).
Compliance Deadline:Immediate. You must submit notice requests to municipalities immediately to ensure you receive the statutory 30-day warning for any proposed moratoriums.
Agency Rulemaking: No state agency rulemaking is required; however, municipalities will likely amend their local ordinances to align with these restrictions over the next 60-90 days.
Immediate Action Plan
1.Audit Land Holdings: Generate a list of all municipalities where your organization holds or options land.
2.Execute Certified Mailings: Send formal requests for notice to the Municipal Secretary of every identified city by June 20, 2025.
3.Update PSA Templates: Revise Force Majeure and Feasibility definitions to reflect the repeal of temporary moratoriums.
4.Calendar Renewals: Set an automated alert for May 2027 to renew your notice requests.
5.Monitor Agendas: Watch for the 3/4 vote count on any moratorium ordinance; a simple majority passage is now invalid on its face.
Operational Changes Required
Contracts
Purchase & Sale Agreements (PSAs): Update "Feasibility Periods." While the risk of a sudden freeze is lower, the timeline to fight a proposed moratorium is longer. Ensure your feasibility period allows for the 30-day notice window.
Force Majeure Clauses: Redefine "Governmental Delays." Since the "temporary moratorium" (Section 212.134(c)) is repealed, a city cannot legally stop accepting permits until the *final* ordinance is passed. A "delay" now legally begins only after the final vote, not upon the initial notice.
Option Agreements: Add a due diligence requirement to verify if the municipality has imposed a moratorium in the target area within the last two years. If yes, they are statutorily barred from doing so again for the same issue.
Hiring/Training
Land Entitlement Teams: Train staff to monitor the new "30-day warning" window. If a notice is published, your team has 30 days to mobilize lobbying efforts before the first hearing occurs.
Administrative Staff: Assign specific personnel to manage the "Notice Request" registry (see Reporting below).
Reporting & Record-Keeping
Mandatory Notice Requests: You must send a written request for notice of moratorium hearings to the Municipal Secretary or City Clerk of every jurisdiction where you hold land.
Format: Must be sent via Certified or Registered Mail.
Retention: Retain the "Green Card" (return receipt). This is your primary evidence to void a moratorium if the city fails to notify you.
Renewal: These requests expire after two years. Calendar a renewal task for 23 months from the mailing date.
Moratorium Clock Tracking: If a moratorium is passed, track the statutory expiration dates:
Day 90: Expiration (unless specific findings of progress are adopted).
Day 180: Hard statutory expiration.
Fees & Costs
Direct Costs: Minimal (postage for certified mail).
Litigation Budget: Prepare for potential litigation if a city attempts to pass a moratorium with a simple majority or 2/3 vote. The law now explicitly demands a 3/4 supermajority.
Strategic Ambiguities & Considerations
"Same Harm" Loophole: The law bans a new moratorium within two years if it addresses the "same harm." Expect cities to manipulate this definition (e.g., labeling a constraint as "Sewer Capacity" one year and "Water Treatment" the next) to bypass the lockout.
"Reasonable Progress": To extend a moratorium beyond 90 days, a city must show "reasonable progress" toward remediation. The statute does not define "reasonable." Cities may claim that administrative tasks (like hiring a consultant) constitute progress.
The "12th Day" Trigger: The governing body must begin the final determination no later than the 12th day after the second hearing. If they miss this window, we interpret the statute to mean they lose jurisdiction, but cities may argue this deadline is directory rather than mandatory.
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Information presented is for general knowledge only and is provided without warranty, express or implied. Consult qualified government affairs professionals and legal counsel before making compliance decisions.
Under current law, a municipality has the power to institute a moratorium on property development affecting residential property and commercial property, but there are different procedural requirements for the two types of property, which, the bill author has informed the committee, denies developers equitable due process and transparency. Thus, additional transparency and notice requirements are needed to prevent municipalities from unfairly imposing moratoriums on property developments. H.B. 2559 seeks to address this issue by revising provisions relating to moratoriums on property development in order to impose additional transparency, notice, and approval requirements and provide fairness and due process to developers.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.
ANALYSIS
H.B. 2559 amends the Local Government Code to change the time in which a municipality is required to publish newspaper notice of a public hearing on a moratorium on property development affecting residential or commercial property from on the 4th day before the hearing date to not later than the 30th day before such date. The bill requires the municipality, by such deadline, to send notice of the hearing by certified mail to any person who has given written notice by certified or registered mail to the municipal secretary requesting notice of the hearing within two years preceding the date of adoption of the ordinance or resolution setting the public hearing. The bill removes provisions that establish that a temporary moratorium takes effect beginning on the fifth business day after the date the newspaper notice is published and that authorize a municipality, during the period of the temporary moratorium, to stop accepting permits, authorizations, and approvals necessary for the subdivision of, site planning of, or construction on real property.
H.B. 2559, with respect to the requirement that two public hearings be held before the governing body of the municipality, does the following:
·removes the condition that such requirement only applies if a general-law municipality does not have a zoning commission; and
·changes the time of separation between the two hearings from a separation of at least four days to a prohibition against the second public hearing being held before the 30th day after the date of the first public hearing.
The bill, relatedly, repeals provisions that require that one public hearing be held before the governing body of the municipality and, if the municipality has a zoning commission, another public hearing be held before that commission.
H.B. 2559 replaces the requirement for the municipality to make a final determination on the imposition of a moratorium within 12 days after the date of the first public hearing with a requirement for the municipality's governing body to begin a final determination on such imposition not later than the 12th day after the date of the second public hearing. The bill lengthens the minimum separation between the minimum two readings of the ordinance imposing the moratorium from a separation of at least 4 days to a separation of not less than 28 days. The bill requires the ordinance to receive the affirmative vote of at least three-fourths of all members of the governing body on final reading in order to take effect.
H.B. 2559 makes provisions relating to the expiration and extension of a moratorium on commercial property that is not based on a demonstrated shortage of essential public facilities applicable to any residential or commercial property development moratorium. The bill, relatedly, repeals provisions relating to the expiration and extension of a moratorium that is based on a shortage of essential public facilities or based on a significant need for public facilities.
H.B. 2559 repeals Sections 212.134(d) and (e) and Section 212.136, Local Government Code.
HB2559 fundamentally restricts municipal authority to freeze development by removing the "commercial property" limitation, thereby extending moratorium protections to all property development. The law eliminates the "surprise" temporary moratorium by mandating a 30-day notice period before a hearing and requiring a three-fourths supermajority vote by the city council to enact any freeze. Implementation Timeline Effective Date: June 20, 2025 (Immediate effect due to supermajority vote).
Q
Who authored HB2559?
HB2559 was authored by Texas Representative Jared Patterson during the Regular Session.
Q
When was HB2559 signed into law?
HB2559 was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on June 20, 2025.
Q
Which agencies enforce HB2559?
HB2559 is enforced by Municipal Governing Bodies (City Councils) and Municipal Zoning Commissions.
Q
How urgent is compliance with HB2559?
The compliance urgency for HB2559 is rated as "critical". Businesses and organizations should review the requirements and timeline to ensure timely compliance.
Q
What is the cost impact of HB2559?
The cost impact of HB2559 is estimated as "low". This may vary based on industry and implementation requirements.
Q
What topics does HB2559 address?
HB2559 addresses topics including city government, city government--land use & zoning and public notice.
Legislative data provided by LegiScanLast updated: November 25, 2025
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