The 90th Texas Legislature begins January 12, 2027, and housing is one of the biggest topics on the floor, especially how cities zone and permit homes.
City planners and activists are not waiting for January. Councils across Texas are adopting legislative agendas that prioritize protecting local control. House and Senate committees spent the interim asking whether the 2025 housing laws went far enough. DCH works in Dallas neighborhoods, and what happens in Austin this spring will shape what will be built, where, and at what price.
2025 session already changed
The 89th Legislature passed the most significant package of Texas land-use reforms in years, and most of it took effect September 1, 2025. Every 2027 debate starts from these laws.
| Law | What it does | Applies in Dallas? |
|---|---|---|
| SB 840 | Allows multifamily and mixed-use housing by right on land zoned for office, retail or warehouse use, and caps local rules on density, height, setbacks and parking. | Yes (cities over 150,000 in counties over 300,000) |
| SB 15 | Bars large cities from requiring lots bigger than 3,000 sq ft on new subdivisions of 5+ unplatted acres zoned single-family. | Yes |
| HB 24 | Reforms the protest-petition rule critics called the "tyrant's veto," so a few neighbors can't easily block a rezoning. | Yes |
| SB 2477 | Fast-tracks office-to-residential conversions; no traffic studies, extra parking or rezoning for qualifying buildings. | Yes |
| SB 1567 | Stops covered cities from limiting occupancy by family relationship, age, or occupation. | Population limits apply |
| SB 785 | Requires cities to allow HUD-code manufactured homes in at least one area. | Yes |
Sources: Office of the Governor, Texas 2036, The Texan, Texas Policy Research.
Dallas runs a dedicated SB 840 and SB 15 page with pre-application screening and states the 89th Legislature limited its zoning authority. Before SB 840, council members enacted rezoning measures so neighborhood conditions could be attached while they still had the power.
Interim Hearings
Leaders in both chambers assigned housing affordability as an interim study topic, and both committees signaled they want to build on 2025.
The House. In July, the House Land and Resource Management Committee, chaired by Rep. Gary Gates (R-Richmond), reviewed how HB 24, SB 15, SB 840 and SB 1567 are working. Speaker Dustin Burrows said the House would look for "new opportunities to make homeownership more affordable and attainable," pointing to starter-home supply, local rules that drive up costs, and more transparent local government. Members also discussed development fees, permitting delays, third-party plan review, and whether cities should keep catalogs of pre-approved home plans.
The Senate. On September 2, the Senate Local Government Committee, chaired by Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston), heard testimony on the same laws. Several members, including Bettencourt, reacted positively to removing the population thresholds that limit SB 840, SB 1567, and the 2023 ETJ-release law (SB 2038) to certain parts of the state. Testifiers from both the conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation and the progressive Every Texan asked senators to consider expanding them. The committee also weighed audits of local fees, and testimony will feed its interim report ahead of bill filing.
Gov. Greg Abbott has also put housing costs at the center of his reelection campaign.
Advocating for Local Control
At the Texas Municipal League's annual conference in Fort Worth last fall, the theme for local officials was simple: don't wait for the 2027 session. Cities are rapidly adopting resolutions that back TML's principles on preemption, zoning, development, and housing, from Elgin, Bastrop, and Smithville to Schertz. City managers are making the case with resident data.
At a session for Texas city managers, Georgetown survey results showed that 57% of residents said city government should make zoning decisions, and only 1% said the state should. The sharpest tension is in North Texas. Plano, Arlington and Grand Prairie told House members they want to be treated as partners, and defended local standards on landscaping, parking, design, amenities and open space. Housing advocates countered that ordinances passed just before SB 840 took effect, such as height or amenity mandates, raise costs enough to blunt the law. Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas) said he wanted to talk with Arlington and Grand Prairie officials about whether that was the intent.
The city adopts a state legislative agenda every two years, and its October presentation listed 62 priorities, with property-tax flexibility and local authority near the center. The FY 2026-27 budget also set aside $300,000 to support the city's work during the 90th session. At the same time, Dallas is rewriting its own development code, Chapter 51A, with adoption expected around late 2026 or early 2027.
What to watch in 2027
SB 840 covers only cities over 150,000 in counties over 300,000. Bills may target local ordinances that technically comply with SB 840 but make projects expensive to price out. Lawmakers in both chambers questioned whether impact fees, utility connection charges and other local fees track the cost of the services they fund. The House also discussed pre-approved home plans, expanded third-party plan review and inspection, and firmer review deadlines. These aren't as prominent as zoning fights, but they can cut weeks or months off a project.
Dallas needs more homes at more price points, and the rules for building them should be clear and fair. Texas needs an estimated 320,000 more housing units to meet demand; reforms aim to increase starter homes, townhomes, and small multifamily units. Builders and buyers need to know what's allowed before they buy land. Every dollar in fees and delay shows up in a home's price. Cities and the state should be able to agree on transparent, cost-based fees and faster permits.
We will track housing bills as they're filed and share what they mean for Dallas buyers, sellers, and neighborhoods. Find your legislators at Who Represents Me and tell them what you think.
