McALLEN — The city plans to sue the state over Senate Bill 1004, which says cities cannot charge telecommunications companies from putting transmitters in public right-of-way. After executive session during Monday’s commission meeting, city commissioners authorized City Attorney Kevin Pagan to file the lawsuit.
McALLEN — The city plans to sue the state over Senate Bill 1004, which says cities cannot charge telecommunications companies from putting transmitters in public right-of-way. After executive session during Monday’s commission meeting, city commissioners authorized City Attorney Kevin Pagan to file the lawsuit.
“The bill significantly restricts municipalities from regulating the construction, development and maintenance of network structures and wireless facilities (or nodes) in the public right-of-way,” the city said in a statement Tuesday, “and prohibits municipalities from entering into franchise agreements with these companies for the use of public right-of-way (ROW), creating statutory caps on fees charged for installing these nodes within the ROW.”
Mayor Jim Darling recently called the State Legislature’s upcoming Special Session an “assault on cities.” He has continued that tone against the state, especially with this bill.
“SB 1004 has pre-empted cities from negotiating reasonable compensation as adequate compensation for the use of public property,” Darling said in a statement. “According to the Texas Municipal League, the potential loss of right-of-way fees to municipalities is estimated to be $813 million annually.”
City Manager Roel “Roy” Rodriguez used a similar tone as Darling against state leadership.
“The state is trying to control revenues,” Rodriguez said. “They’re taking away cities’ power to govern.”
The McAllen City Attorney’s Office has been in contact with various cities across the Rio Grande Valley and the state to create a coalition against the bill.
“Any successful constitutional challenge on SB 1004 is going to require a coordinated effort from every available Texas municipality,” Pagan said.
State Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, the McAllen Democrat, was present but did not vote on SB 1004. Hinojosa, who was in the Corpus Christi part of his district on Tuesday, could not be reached for comment.
The lawsuit is expected to be filed in the next few months, the statement said. SB 1004 takes effect Sept. 1.
