HBA-JRA, ATS H.B. 509 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 509
By: Hochberg
Judicial Affairs
4/16/1999
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, Texas law does not allow a justice of the peace to issue
injunctions.  The 1st District Court in Harris County handed down a ruling
in November 1998 that interpreted Section 27.034, Government Code, to grant
injunctive power to justices of the peace because the section references
concurrent jurisdiction to allow deed restriction cases to be brought in
either a district court or a justice of the peace court. When the original
law was passed in 1995, language in the bill that would have allowed
justices of the peace to issue injunctions was removed in a committee
substitute.  H.B. 509 specifically prohibits a justice of the peace from
granting a writ of injunction under Section 27.034 (Deed Restriction
Jurisdiction), Government Code. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 27.034, Government Code, by adding Subsection
(j) to establish that a justice of the peace is prohibited from granting a
writ of injunction under Section 27.034 (Deed Restriction Jurisdiction). 

SECTION 2.  States that the purpose of the legislation is to clarify that
the authority that a justice of the peace is granted under Section 27.034
in a deed restriction dispute does not include the authority to grant an
injunction. 

SECTION 3.  Emergency clause.
            Effective date: upon passage.