Bill Text: TX HB939 | 2015-2016 | 84th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relating to unenforceable restrictive covenants regarding standby electric generators affecting residential homes.
Sponsorship: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2015-06-19 - Effective immediately [HB939 Detail]
Download: Texas-2015-HB939-Enrolled.html
| H.B. No. 939 | ||
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| relating to unenforceable restrictive covenants regarding standby | ||
| electric generators affecting residential homes. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Chapter 202, Property Code, is amended by adding | ||
| Section 202.019 to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 202.019. STANDBY ELECTRIC GENERATORS. (a) In this | ||
| section, "standby electric generator" means a device that converts | ||
| mechanical energy to electrical energy and is: | ||
| (1) powered by natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, | ||
| diesel fuel, biodiesel fuel, or hydrogen; | ||
| (2) fully enclosed in an integral | ||
| manufacturer-supplied sound attenuating enclosure; | ||
| (3) connected to the main electrical panel of a | ||
| residence by a manual or automatic transfer switch; and | ||
| (4) rated for a generating capacity of not less than | ||
| seven kilowatts. | ||
| (b) Except as provided by this section, a property owners' | ||
| association may not adopt or enforce a dedicatory instrument | ||
| provision that prohibits, restricts, or has the effect of | ||
| prohibiting or restricting an owner from owning, operating, | ||
| installing, or maintaining a permanently installed standby | ||
| electric generator. | ||
| (c) A property owners' association may adopt or enforce any | ||
| of the following dedicatory instrument provisions to regulate the | ||
| operation and installation of standby electric generators: | ||
| (1) a dedicatory instrument provision that requires a | ||
| standby electric generator to be installed and maintained in | ||
| compliance with: | ||
| (A) the manufacturer's specifications; and | ||
| (B) applicable governmental health, safety, | ||
| electrical, and building codes; | ||
| (2) a dedicatory instrument provision that requires | ||
| all electrical, plumbing, and fuel line connections to be installed | ||
| only by licensed contractors; | ||
| (3) a dedicatory instrument provision that requires | ||
| all electrical connections to be installed in accordance with | ||
| applicable governmental health, safety, electrical, and building | ||
| codes; | ||
| (4) a dedicatory instrument provision that requires | ||
| all natural gas, diesel fuel, biodiesel fuel, or hydrogen fuel line | ||
| connections to be installed in accordance with applicable | ||
| governmental health, safety, electrical, and building codes; | ||
| (5) a dedicatory instrument provision that requires | ||
| all liquefied petroleum gas fuel line connections to be installed | ||
| in accordance with rules and standards promulgated and adopted by | ||
| the Railroad Commission of Texas and other applicable governmental | ||
| health, safety, electrical, and building codes; | ||
| (6) a dedicatory instrument provision that requires | ||
| nonintegral standby electric generator fuel tanks to be installed | ||
| and maintained to comply with applicable municipal zoning | ||
| ordinances and governmental health, safety, electrical, and | ||
| building codes; | ||
| (7) a dedicatory instrument provision that requires | ||
| the standby electric generator and its electrical lines and fuel | ||
| lines to be maintained in good condition; | ||
| (8) a dedicatory instrument provision that requires | ||
| the repair, replacement, or removal of any deteriorated or unsafe | ||
| component of a standby electric generator, including electrical or | ||
| fuel lines; | ||
| (9) a dedicatory instrument provision that requires an | ||
| owner to screen a standby electric generator if the standby | ||
| electric generator is: | ||
| (A) visible from the street faced by the | ||
| dwelling; | ||
| (B) located in an unfenced side or rear yard of a | ||
| residence and is visible either from an adjoining residence or from | ||
| adjoining property owned by the property owners' association; or | ||
| (C) located in a side or rear yard fenced by a | ||
| wrought iron or residential aluminum fence and is visible through | ||
| the fence either from an adjoining residence or from adjoining | ||
| property owned by the property owners' association; | ||
| (10) a dedicatory instrument provision that sets | ||
| reasonable times, consistent with the manufacturer's | ||
| recommendations, for the periodic testing of a standby electric | ||
| generator; | ||
| (11) a dedicatory instrument provision that prohibits | ||
| the use of a standby electric generator to generate all or | ||
| substantially all of the electrical power to a residence, except | ||
| when utility-generated electrical power to the residence is not | ||
| available or is intermittent due to causes other than nonpayment | ||
| for utility service to the residence; | ||
| (12) a dedicatory instrument provision that regulates | ||
| the location of the standby electric generator; or | ||
| (13) a dedicatory instrument provision that prohibits | ||
| an owner from locating a standby electric generator on property: | ||
| (A) owned or maintained by the property owners' | ||
| association; or | ||
| (B) owned in common by the property owners' | ||
| association members. | ||
| (d) A dedicatory instrument provision permitted by | ||
| Subsection (c), if adopted, must be reasonably applied and | ||
| enforced. | ||
| (e) A dedicatory instrument provision that regulates the | ||
| location of a standby electric generator is unenforceable if: | ||
| (1) it increases the cost of installing the standby | ||
| electric generator by more than 10 percent; or | ||
| (2) it increases the cost of installing and connecting | ||
| the electrical and fuel lines for the standby electric generator by | ||
| more than 20 percent. | ||
| (f) If a dedicatory instrument requires that the | ||
| installation of a standby electric generator be approved before | ||
| installation, approval may not be withheld if the proposed | ||
| installation meets or exceeds the dedicatory instrument provisions | ||
| permitted by Subsection (c). | ||
| (g) If a dedicatory instrument provision requires an owner | ||
| to submit an application for approval of improvements located | ||
| exterior to a residence, this section does not negate the | ||
| requirement, but the information required to be submitted as part | ||
| of the application for the installation of a standby electric | ||
| generator may not be greater or more detailed than the application | ||
| for any other improvement. | ||
| (h) In a hearing, action, or proceeding to determine whether | ||
| a proposed or installed standby electric generator complies with | ||
| the requirements of a dedicatory instrument provision permitted by | ||
| Subsection (c), the party asserting noncompliance bears the burden | ||
| of proof. | ||
| SECTION 2. Section 202.019, Property Code, as added by this | ||
| Act, applies to a dedicatory instrument adopted before, on, or | ||
| after the effective date of this Act. | ||
| SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives | ||
| a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as | ||
| provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this | ||
| Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this | ||
| Act takes effect September 1, 2015. | ||
| ______________________________ | ______________________________ | |
| President of the Senate | Speaker of the House | |
| I certify that H.B. No. 939 was passed by the House on May 8, | ||
| 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 139, Nays 2, 1 present, not | ||
| voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B. | ||
| No. 939 on May 27, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 140, Nays 0, 2 | ||
| present, not voting. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Chief Clerk of the House | ||
| I certify that H.B. No. 939 was passed by the Senate, with | ||
| amendments, on May 25, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays | ||
| 0. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Secretary of the Senate | ||
| APPROVED: __________________ | ||
| Date | ||
| __________________ | ||
| Governor | ||
