Monitoring the Session

HB 1749

Darby bill on municipal courts and nuisance cases

Companion SB 304 became law

Verdict: No flags

No flagsInitial review
Rep. Drew DarbyRHouse 72

Initial review · graded Oct 20, 2026 · Headline, summary and grade are analysis of the bill text, not a finding about any person · How we grade

Caption

relating to the jurisdiction of municipal courts over health and safety and nuisance abatement ordinances.

Caption from analyzed text · version I.

Summary

Cities can hand their courts dangerous buildings and junked vehicles.

The bill lets any Texas city pass an ordinance giving its municipal court power over health and safety and nuisance abatement cases, including civil cases over dangerous buildings and junked vehicles. It touches city governments, municipal judges, and property owners inside city limits, plus city-owned property in the area just outside city limits. Once a city opts in, its municipal court can hear these cases alongside district and county courts and can issue search warrants to investigate violations and seizure warrants to secure, remove, or demolish the offending property.

Receipt

The receipt

89R-HB1749 · 2025-01-07

SOLD BY

Rep. Drew DarbyRHouse 72

ITEM

relating to the jurisdiction of municipal courts over health and safety and nuisance abatement ordinances.

WHAT IT DOES

Cities can hand their courts dangerous buildings and junked vehicles.

The bill lets any Texas city pass an ordinance giving its municipal court power over health and safety and nuisance abatement cases, including civil cases over dangerous buildings and junked vehicles. It touches city governments, municipal judges, and property owners inside city limits, plus city-owned property in the area just outside city limits. Once a city opts in, its municipal court can hear these cases alongside district and county courts and can issue search warrants to investigate violations and seizure warrants to secure, remove, or demolish the offending property.

CHARGES

[ ] NONE FOUND

TOTAL

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

LBB estimate · fiscal note version I · source

Sources

Fiscal note · version I · March 24, 2025

No first-year general revenue figure available here.

LBB published estimates · flow over the stated periods.

Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

HISTORY

  1. Filed
  2. Read first time
  3. Referred to Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence
  4. Scheduled for public hearing on . . .
  5. Considered in public hearing
  6. Testimony taken/registration(s) recorded in committee
  7. Left pending in committee
  8. Considered in formal meeting
  9. Reported favorably w/o amendment(s)
  10. Comte report filed with Committee Coordinator
  11. Committee report distributed
  12. Committee report sent to Calendars
  13. Considered in Calendars
  14. Placed on General State Calendar
  15. Read 2nd time
  16. Postponed 4/30/25 10:00 AM
  17. Companion considered in lieu of SB 304
  18. Laid on the table subject to call
FILED UNDER

No verified beat found.

No flags

THANK YOU FOR CHECKING THE RECEIPT

CAMPAIGN PAID FOR BY

CAMPAIGN PAID FOR BY

Drew Darby

Donors

Texans for Truth and Liberty PAC$50KGideon Powell$30,000Dustin Burrows Campaign$28K

Not tied to this bill.

Sources

The author's campaign account only. Own money and internal transfers are separate on the member page.

Derived itemized flow · Jul 9, 2024 to Oct 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Texans for Truth and Liberty PAC$50,000.00

Texans for Truth and Liberty PAC

$50,000.00

Cash
$50,000.00
Paid by others
$0.00
Total
$50,000.00

Also funds 44 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jun 24, 2025 to Oct 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team
Sources

Derived itemized flow · Jun 25, 2025 to Oct 8, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 101007659, 101072052.

Gideon Powell$30,000.00
Dustin Burrows Campaign$27,600.00

Dustin Burrows Campaign

$27,600.00

Cash
$0.00
Paid by others
$27,600.00
Total
$27,600.00
polling $27,600.00

Also funds 39 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Sep 13, 2025 to Sep 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Name match, not a verified identity: normalized filed name and state.

Team
Sources

Derived itemized flow · on Aug 5, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 101068080.

Money

Missing data does not establish zero giving. Display amounts are rounded.

×

Texans for Truth and Liberty PAC

$50,000.00

Cash
$50,000.00
Paid by others
$0.00
Total
$50,000.00

Also funds 44 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jun 24, 2025 to Oct 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team
Sources

Derived itemized flow · Jun 25, 2025 to Oct 8, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 101007659, 101072052.

×

Dustin Burrows Campaign

$27,600.00

Cash
$0.00
Paid by others
$27,600.00
Total
$27,600.00
polling $27,600.00

Also funds 39 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Sep 13, 2025 to Sep 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Name match, not a verified identity: normalized filed name and state.

Team
Sources

Derived itemized flow · on Aug 5, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 101068080.

Votes

No floor vote loaded for this bill.

Witnesses3
For
3
Against
0
On
0
Names

For

  • City of Fort Worth1 registration
  • City of Houston1 registration
  • Dallas Criminal District Attorney John Creuzot1 registration
Sources

3 parsed registrations across the loaded witness lists.

Derived stock of witness registrations. Repeated appearances count separately. Organizations and self-representation appear as printed.

House witness list. Source snapshot 2026-10-20, Central time.

Fiscal

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

LBB estimate · fiscal note version I · source

Sources

Fiscal note · version I · March 24, 2025

No first-year general revenue figure available here.

LBB published estimates · flow over the stated periods.

Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

How this was graded

Analysis of text version I by claude-opus-5-5, Oct 20, 2026, against the published rubric.

Sources

Texas House · Filed Jan 7, 2025

04/30/2025 H Laid on the table subject to call

Texas Legislature Online · Introduced · House Committee Report

Data snapshot Oct 26, 2026 at 4:20 AM CDT. Grades, charges, quotes and corrections follow the published record.

House committee · Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence · Committee vote 10 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent · Out of committee

Companion

SB 304 by Perry (identical)

Subjects

City Government--General

Courts--Municipal

Safety

NUISANCES

SEARCH WARRANTS

Text

The text as introduced · 200 words

89R857 JTZ-D

By: Darby
H.B. No. 1749

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the jurisdiction of municipal courts over health and

safety and nuisance abatement ordinances.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 29.003, Government Code, is amended by

adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:

(a-1) The governing body of a municipality by ordinance may

provide that the court has:

(1) civil jurisdiction for the purpose of enforcing

municipal ordinances enacted under Subchapter A, Chapter 214, Local

Government Code, or Subchapter E, Chapter 683, Transportation Code;

(2) concurrent jurisdiction with a district court or a

county court at law under Subchapter B, Chapter 54, Local

Government Code, within the municipality's territorial limits and

property owned by the municipality located in the municipality's

extraterritorial jurisdiction for the purpose of enforcing health

and safety and nuisance abatement ordinances; and

(3) authority to issue:

(A) search warrants for the purpose of

investigating a health and safety or nuisance abatement ordinance

violation; and

(B) seizure warrants for the purpose of securing,

removing, or demolishing the offending property and removing the

debris from the premises.

SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.