Austin conservatives: 'Ask before you annex'

Thanks for the efforts of (former) City Councilman Don Zimmerman, Austin experienced what could be the first defeat of an annexation plan in the town's history in 2015.

To stop a portion of Old Lampasas Trail from being assimilated into Austin's municipal empire was hard work and nothing short of a miracle. However, local conservatives are hoping the Texas Legislature will make it harder for cities to swallow up unincorporated land -- and easier for residents resisting annexation to be heard -- with some long-awaited reforms.

Legislative solutions will be discussed at a Forced Annexation hearing scheduled for Tuesday. The Texas Public Policy Foundation/Americans for Prosperity forum is set for 2 p.m. March 7 in the Sam Houston Building, room 210, in the Texas Capitol complex.

Secondly, the Travis GOP passed a resolution calling on the Lege and Gov. Greg Abbott to take action. The text of the resolution is as follows:

Whereas, Travis County Republican Party believes that residents of the proposed annexed area should vote and that the results of the vote must pass by at least a majority before a municipality can annex the area; 

Therefore, Be It Resolved That The Travis County Republican Party calls upon the 85th Legislature of Texas to pass, and the Governor to sign, a bill providing that the registered voters who reside in the area proposed for annexation must vote in favor of annexation before a municipality can annex that area, and providing that if the registered voters in the area vote against annexation, the municipality that proposed to annex that area may not annex any part of that area for five years.