On Monday afternoon, Governor Abbott signed into law House Bill 40, which protects private property rights and ensures job growth. HB40 ensures no government or municipality can deprive a private property owner of his or her rights. The Dallas Morning News quotes Governor Abbott saying,
We’re ensuring that people and officials at the local level are not going to be encroaching upon individual liberty or individual rights.”
Additionally, the law provides “regulatory certainty” to oil companies, ensuring they do not inadvertently violate a local ordinance. Governor Abbott said in a press release,
This law ensures that Texas avoids a patchwork quilt of regulations that differ from region to region, differ from county to county or city to city.”
As the AP reports, “the much-watched measure sailed through” the Legislature. It is one of the first bills the Governor has signed this year.