A county handling certain subdivision-related fees must base the fee on its actual cost, not on infrastructure construction costs, and it generally may not demand disclosure of dwelling or infrastructure value/cost information except when FEMA requires it for flood insurance program participation.
Sec. 232.901. CERTAIN VALUE-BASED FEES AND DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN INFORMATION PROHIBITED. (a) This section applies only to an application, review, engineering, inspection, acceptance, administrative, or other fee imposed by a county related to the acceptance, review, or processing of engineering or construction plans or for the inspection of improvements for construction in a subdivision or a related improvement associated with or required in conjunction with that construction. (b) A county may not consider the cost of constructing or improving the public infrastructure for a subdivision, lot, or related property development in determining the amount of a fee subject to this section. The county shall determine the fee by considering the county's actual cost to, as applicable, review and process the engineering or construction plan or to inspect the public infrastructure improvement. (c) In determining the county's actual cost for reviewing and processing an engineering or construction plan or inspecting a public infrastructure improvement under Subsection (b), a county may consider: (1) the fee that would be charged by a qualified, independent third-party entity for those services; (2) the hourly rate for the estimated actual direct time of the county's employees performing those services; or (3) the actual costs assessed to the county by a third-party entity that provides those services to the county. (d) A county may not require the disclosure of information related to the value of or cost of constructing or improving a residential dwelling or the public infrastructure improvements for a subdivision, lot, or related property development as a condition of obtaining approval for subdivision construction or for the acceptance of those public infrastructure improvements except as required by the Federal Emergency Management Agency for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program. (e) A county that imposes a fee for reviewing or processing an engineering or construction plan or inspecting a public infrastructure improvement shall annually publish the fee and the hourly rate and estimated direct time incurred by county employees for a fee calculated under Subsection (c)(2). The county must publish the information: (1) on the county's Internet website; or (2) if the county does not maintain an Internet website, in a newspaper of general circulation in the county. Added by Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 534 (H.B. 3492), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2023.