By Cody Miller, GHBA Director of Government Affairs
Usually, summer brings slower times. There are fewer events, people are out of town on vacation, and not as much going on. This summer, however, felt like there was a new issue every day that would impact the cost of housing across our region.
Firstly, in Conroe, two City of Conroe council members put an item on a July council meeting agenda that would create a minimum lot width of 65 feet up from 45 feet. This was voted down 2-3, with the three GHBA HOME-PAC endorsed candidates voting no on the issue.
This shows just how important local elections are, even if national and state elections get all of the attention. City and county officials have a much more direct impact on the homebuilding industry than other officials. And during elections, we have the opportunity to understand why candidates are running and to educate on issues impacting the homebuilding and homebuying community. It’s never a bad time to support the PAC, as we continue to support candidates and elected officials that are pro-housing. Learn more at ghba.org/homepac.
In the City of Manvel, the city had proposed a new MUD policy that would potentially hamper MUDs’ ability to pass bonds, restrict land use within the district and give council discretion to disband the MUD. After much back and forth, the city ultimately decided to shelf the MUD policy and instead make MUD decisions on a case-by-case basis. While we usually want consistency and predictability on policies, we felt that the Manvel MUD policy was too egregious to not fight.
Finally, save the date for February 23, 2027, when 150+ GHBA members will head up to Austin and meet up with builders and developers across the state for our Rally Day at the Capitol. We’ll visit with each of the Houston-area legislators on issues and bills that will potentially impact the industry. County authority, viability of special districts, and energy and building codes will be at the top of the list.
There will be much more information shared on this in the coming months, but if you’ve always wanted to get involved with our advocacy efforts, Rally Day is the perfect place to start. Please reach out to me with any questions or issues that you may be facing across our region cmiller@ghba.org.