OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Legislative Intergovernmental Affairs Committee Meeting – April 7, 2026

City CouncilTuesday, April 7, 2026
BodyFort Worth, Texas
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, April 7, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record

STREAMING COPY IN PREPARATION — RECORDING AVAILABLE FROM THE ORIGINAL SOURCE

Transcript — Verbatim
0:03

In the interest of time, we'll uh begin this legislative intergovernmental affairs committee.

0:08

We'll call it to order.

0:09

I think we got a quorum, we're good.

0:11

First, on the agenda is approval to March 3rd minutes.

0:14

Second.

0:15

All is in favor.

0:17

Aye.

0:17

Any opposed?

0:19

April or March 3rd meetings minutes are approved.

0:22

I went down to briefing items.

0:24

We have Tarleton State University Vision Fort Worth.

0:27

Dr.

0:27

Capp is here along with uh Dr.

0:30

Baker as well.

0:31

So y'all, you're up.

0:33

Great.

0:33

Well, good afternoon, good morning, depending on I know what time it is.

0:37

Uh, but it's good to be with you.

0:39

It's a joy to have a few minutes uh to share a little bit about our Tarleton State Fort Worth efforts and Tarleton State efforts.

0:46

So we do have material for everybody, and if you did not get it already, we'll make sure that you have it before uh the end of today's session.

0:53

But uh, for those I haven't had a chance to personally connect with, my name is Rachel Capua.

0:58

Uh Councilmember Crane, thank you for the the opportunity to connect and uh to share with this committee and this team about uh a few efforts and a few updates related to Tarleton State.

1:10

And I do want to be really mindful of time given the agenda and um us starting a bit later.

1:16

So I'm gonna run through things pretty quickly.

1:19

Uh but if you have any questions as we walk through this, please stop me at any time.

1:24

Uh but there's really kind of three main goals for this.

1:26

Number one, uh, on behalf of our president, Dr.

1:28

James Hurley, and our executive cabinet and team, we wanted to give you some updates about you know university-wide efforts, but really focus specifically on Tarleton State Fort Worth, what's happening here in Fort Worth, um, our our shared vision for Fort Worth, and then how Tarleton State will be part of the Texas AM Fort Worth project.

1:48

And so with that, just some quick level setting and context setting.

1:52

Uh, as a university, as an institution, um, we're at about 21,000 students statewide now.

1:59

Uh, and we really make up uh many locations.

2:03

Our home anchor campus in Stephenville, Texas, uh, which just had its 125th anniversary, uh, now just about a cycle or two ago.

2:14

Um, and so in terms of the institution and its roots, they run deep here in Texas.

2:19

Uh, we are a proud member of the Texas AM system, and so uh it was the first institution to join that system in 1917.

2:28

Uh but here in Fort Worth, we've been serving our city here uh and our community here since 1978.

2:35

And so we have locations uh in the two uh areas mentioned, and then Waco and then Brian.

2:41

So uh just a level set on that context.

2:43

I'll be brief with this, uh, but want to share some specific stats about just the university at large.

2:50

Uh we are experiencing some really tremendous and encouraging enrollment growth, and since 2019, it's been about 60 percent increase, which is in large part to our president and our team.

3:03

But specifically here, uh, this stat that you see on the screen is what we're most proud about.

3:09

It's 84 percent, uh now ranked number one in Texas for six consecutive years for students who graduate, which is what we want, right?

3:18

We want them to graduate with the post-secondary credential and then move to a uh an employment of choice or graduate school.

3:26

So 84% of our students are finding that next step.

3:29

Um, and one of those two paths, and again, it's the number one in Texas, which is something that we're really proud about.

3:36

Um, related to legislative priorities, and I wanted to hit this quickly for this team and this committee in particular.

3:43

Uh, legislatively and from a prioritization standpoint, health sciences is and will continue to remain a key focus for us.

3:51

Uh in this last legislative session, we did focus on uh the proposal for a college of osteopathic medicine.

3:59

Uh so we hired our executive founding dean for that.

4:03

It will be focused on rural health, and so you see on this slide uh as we work and focus and prioritize on health sciences, we want it to specifically impact our rural populations across Texas.

4:15

So you'll see some updates and related efforts there, and then it related to health care, it is about facilities, it is about uh ensuring that we have the right spaces and places for these programs to thrive.

4:27

So the actual building that you see on the left-hand side is here in Fort Worth.

4:31

We opened it in 2024.

4:33

Some of you were there, and the building on the right is our new health professions building in Stephenville.

4:40

So as we really focus on interprofessional education and processes related to those, programs related to those, we have the facilities to help support.

4:49

Let me jump in uh to the most important part of I know what you may have questions about, and that is Tarleton State Fort Worth.

4:56

So I mentioned 1978 was when we had our very first program here.

5:01

And as the city continues to grow, of course, our higher education landscape is also thriving and also growing.

5:08

Specific to our campus here in Cowtown, we're sitting at just under 2700 students here at Tarleton State Fort Worth, about 1800 of those undergraduate, just under 900 graduate.

5:22

This also includes our dual credit program with Crowley ISD.

5:26

So we actually have these students traveling from Crowley and North Crowley High School to Tarleton State Fort Worth five days a week pending their schedule to take college level credit.

5:37

So we're sitting at about 2700 here in Fort Worth across those areas and programs.

5:44

This I just wanted to show a picture.

5:46

So much of the last 24 months for Tarleton State Fort Worth has been about creating community and connection and communication across our teams.

5:54

And so these are just some pictures of that.

5:57

We've hosted different groups and programs with Rev Partnership, the T3 Partnership, school districts, etc.

6:05

So some pictures and some programming that we've been really proud of.

6:09

But as we look at where we're located, and we're specifically in District 6 with Dr.

6:15

Hall.

6:16

She's been really excellent to work with thus far, and we're just thrilled to be an anchor.

6:21

We we hope a continued anchor in District 6 and in the city of Fort Worth.

6:26

And so where we're located, this map gives you a good indication of where we are.

6:30

Southwest Fort Worth in particular, there's so much growth happening and so much underway.

6:35

And so for Tarleton State Fort Worth on Chisholm Trail in the Southwest Corridor of our city, we really are at the waypoint between Fort Worth and Stephenville.

6:46

But we're actually two at the junction of four counties that you see there.

6:50

So who we are, where we are, and and who we serve, we believe is an important responsibility.

6:57

This is a picture that we love to show.

6:59

It was one that the back building or interprofessional education building that you just saw, it's now fully open, uh, so it doesn't look like this anymore.

7:08

But when you look at this picture, you know, some words might come up.

7:11

You might think potential, you might think opportunity.

7:15

Uh, something that comes to mind for our team on a daily basis is access.

7:19

Right now, and I'm gonna say this maybe twice so that I can hopefully underscore it well.

7:25

Right now, Tarleton State Fort Worth is the only four-year public institution in the city of Fort Worth, our city limits, our city lines, that's offering all four years of undergraduate and graduate.

7:38

Tarleton State Fort Worth is the only four-year public institution that's offering all four years of undergraduate and graduate.

7:46

So, this campus, 80 acres of land that was donated to us back in 2014 by the Walton Development Group, is what we want to come alongside, continue to come alongside with the city and the community and stakeholders to build this around who we are serving, not only now but generations, right?

8:05

Year years from now.

8:06

So when you look at this picture, uh Tarleton State and the AM system, we own the land to that back tree line to give you kind of an idea of this picture.

8:16

Uh again, it was a gift from the Walton team and family, which we're so appreciative of, and this really was to help ensure that we were providing those three things access, opportunity, and affordability here in the Fort Worth area.

8:31

This is a quick overview of uh something that we always like to illustrate, and that is just a visual of a page in our master plan.

8:40

Really loved how the team wanted to ensure that we were keeping Fort Worth at the core, Chisholm Trail at the core, even down to the architectural landscape of what you see when you're there and the textures as you see limestone and the and the prairie land.

8:57

So wanting to preserve as much of that on Chisholm Trail as we're able to, uh, but it is certainly a work in progress and something that we really feel just a blessed to be part of.

9:08

This this visual here is actually from 2017 that you see in your in your handouts or on screen.

9:16

Uh, this was the 2017 master plan in particular, and it was to show really showcase what Tarleton State Fort Worth is and will look like when it's fully built.

9:27

So when we say 80 acres, what does 80 acres really look like in full fruition?

9:32

It a lot has happened, right, since 2020, and so we're starting to work with other partners.

9:38

We've hired Bennett partners and our friends and team over at at Schaefer, and we've started building out new visuals.

9:46

This first one that you see here of what Tarleton State Fort Worth will look like and the more immediate future.

10:00

It is focused on creating a traditional, more comprehensive college campus in Southwest Fort Worth that offers the three things that we have even spoken about and hit on today.

10:07

And so this is a picture of the amphitheater.

10:10

It's right outside our main building.

10:12

You can see the Tarleton, the T on Texas logo, but it's one of many renderings that we'll be releasing in the coming weeks and months as we update the master plan and look ahead.

10:24

This is a just a kind of a note of gratitude more than anything else, because for those that are on council, you you had a significant part to play in this.

10:33

And it was this, I think back last spring, we had what we considered at that time Worth Creek Parkway.

10:42

And Mayor and Council gratefully and thankfully approved that that name be changed to Tarleton State Parkway.

10:49

So sincere and heartfelt thanks for that.

10:52

It is the exit and what will become the exit off Chisholm Trail Parkway.

10:57

And so it does not exist yet, but we've been in a close collaboration with our city colleagues as well as NTTA, and we are expected to break ground on this exit in 2026 with the 2028 opening.

11:11

So just some visuals there to highlight an exciting update.

11:16

What you see here is the illustration of what NTTA has provided us related to campus and the exit.

11:24

And so we're thrilled about this because if you've been to campus, it right now takes you down an almost two mile road, Brewer Boulevard, and this will open up access quite tremendously, actually, for our faculty, staff, students, and really the communities residentially that are around us.

11:41

One of the last updates just to kind of share is really what's ahead.

11:46

We taught, you know, I talked about this this updated master plan.

11:49

We spoke and have spoken at length with many around these tables and across the city about how can we just make sure that we do this work really intentionally as we grow out this campus and again really have this vision for Fort Worth.

12:04

And so this last January, so just a few months ago, we launched our new rooted and rising campaign.

12:11

And I use campaign with a really significant caveat, and that is that it's just a it's a message for what we believe this story and the execution of this campus really means.

12:23

That we are as an institution rooted in Fort Worth for nearly 50 years.

12:27

We're a part of the AM system, which is such a gift, but we want to rise and serve and support a community and a city that's rising and growing in really significant ways.

12:40

And so that's what these groups and individuals I know play a significant and important piece.

12:47

And this website, so the Tarleton.edu slash Vision Fort Worth will be our external facing site.

12:53

The link there is for you.

12:54

It gives you just all the dates and things that we've talked about today, quick facts about our Fort Worth location.

13:00

Uh we've been really honored and thrilled that many here, of course, um, our our our chancellor and our system team, um, Glenn Hager and our our board of uh regents as well as the state have been continued supporters as well as Mayor Parker.

13:16

Uh and thank you to really when Jay was in the assistant city manager role, played a significant part in this campus and its beginnings.

13:25

Um, for that we'll be forever grateful for.

13:27

But I really just want to to end with that this is this is and what we believe a community and a citywide effort.

13:36

Um, I put up a picture here of Mayor Moncrief.

13:40

Um Mayor Moncrief is a Tarleton State graduate.

13:43

He was actually our very first Texan writer, uh, our very first mascot, and back in the 60s, the our student body president.

13:51

Nobody would be you know be surprised by that.

13:54

Uh and and what he says best is that you know, Fort Worth is Tarleton State, and Tarleton State is Fort Worth because of who we serve and what we believe as an institution.

14:05

And so as we continue moving forward, as we continue building buildings, we want to do that in a collective and collaborative way as much as possible.

14:16

And then I'll end with uh just a really quick and and brief overview about AM Fort Worth because as we know this as an innovation hub and innovation district here in in downtown specifically is this is an important project, it's an impactful project.

14:33

Um, and so what you'll start seeing, and as we've started kind of building this out, this website, Snapshot included, is that Tarleton State specifically will have its anchor campus here in Fort Worth on Chisholm Trail, and will we will be a part of Texas AM Fort Worth here in downtown.

14:50

And because it is an AM system effort, and because it is a project that we believe as a system and as an institution uh very strongly in, uh, we're thrilled to be adding value and and some extended value, expansive value to this project.

15:07

And so uh this team knows this slide best.

15:10

I mean, we know what's coming as it relates to Texas AM Fort Worth, uh, specifically the law and education building that you see there to the right hand side, what will open in August of 2026.

15:21

No, the grand openingslash ribbon cutting was just announced for August 5th of 2026.

15:27

Uh we will have Tarleton State will have uh portions of the sixth, seventh, and eighth floors of this building, the law and education building downtown.

15:39

Our sixth floor will be um really all but two classrooms will be fully dedicated to Tarleton State.

15:45

So we'll be moving all of our health sciences, particularly medical laboratory science.

15:51

Uh in your packets, you have a one-pager that lists out the academic programs by uh discipline there if if you need or would like for reference, but this building in particular will really be housed for Tarleton State, um, really our health sciences hub.

16:07

We'll have actual uh in these renderings show them, you know, skills lab simulation suites, etc.

16:14

Really focusing on medical laboratory science as well as graduate level nursing.

16:19

So you see some of that um pictured here, and then finally, we want it to be a community and resource uh location too.

16:27

So this space, if if you have not um seen this particular rendering yet, this is Texas AM Fort Worth, the eighth floor, it will be available to all of uh the the tenants, if you will, in the building.

16:39

But what's most exciting perhaps is that we're gonna be able to bring in um community stakeholders, uh extended education, workforce development, um, in partnership with the system to robustly think about what this looks like uh for our city, and then especially for this corridor that we're building in this innovation hub that we're building downtown.

16:59

So that is that is coming.

17:02

This last rendering is a picture of our uh the second building downtown, which again some of you may have seen.

17:09

It's the research and innovation building part A, uh, where Tarleton State will have a biotechnology research and innovation hub.

17:16

So if there were to be kind of the the main key components of this, it is that we with our whole hearts believe that this is a community and and citywide effort.

17:28

And as we grow and as we build out, um, our campus, just in that southwest Fort Worth location that was mentioned, uh, really is expected to grow um to the size of of what we currently have in Stephenville.

17:42

So it will be uh fully built, about 10,000 to 15,000 students just here in the city of Fort Worth for Tarleton State, and that is something that we want to meet that moment as we think about growth at the city level, we want to meet that moment when we think about the priorities of committees like this, uh, mayor and council.

18:02

We want to make sure that we're being thoughtful about our pipelines for education to and through our Tarrett County College family and others.

18:10

Uh, but more importantly, we're in we're in this space together and just appreciate the time very much.

18:15

So I'll welcome any questions, of course, if there are any, and um, on behalf of our team, thank you for the opportunity to share.

18:22

Thank you, Rachel.

18:23

Any questions from the committee?

18:26

I'll just say thank you.

18:27

It was important that you pointed out the for four-year graduate public university that y'all are the first and only at this point.

18:35

So we're glad to have you here as we build out this education edducational framework.

18:40

But thanks for that thorough update on what's going on, and we look forward to seeing what the future brings.

18:44

Thank you so much.

18:45

Thank you.

18:45

Thank you all.

18:46

Thank you.

18:47

All right, moving on.

18:49

Uh, next Texas State Legislator enter in charge is a briefing on that.

18:53

Kwame, y'all.

18:56

Come on up.

19:07

Just gonna go through um the elections um that are coming up in um in November.

19:14

Um you have the 11 races in the uh Fort Worth area.

19:19

Um there's gonna be three that are um that are unopposed.

19:24

That'll be Ramon Ramon Romero and Nicole Collier and um Juniors is hopefully I'll pronounce that right.

19:35

Um beat Chris Turner in the primary, and he will be on the post in November.

19:40

All the other um races are opposed.

19:46

And um there will be obviously a Democrat and Republican in Detroit.

19:51

Um this next slide shows the rematch between um Remett and Long Gans.

20:00

And like I said, it was it's the rematch of that contested primary that happened um at the beginning of the year.

20:08

And um Senator Cook is gonna be um running against um Amy Martinez Salais in November to replace um Senator Birdwell's seat.

20:20

And um Representative King, I mean Senator King, sorry, and um Senator Parker are are not on this this year's ballot.

20:30

Um this slide shows excuse me.

20:33

This slide shows the um governor's priorities and it's uh five-point reform plan.

20:39

Um again, we are going to be the focus of a lot of um legislation that is gonna come up in this next legislation legislative session.

20:50

Um the governor would like to limit local spending growth.

20:54

Um he would also like to see uh two-thirds voter approval for any property tax increase.

21:01

And um he would like to um see um the general publication power that would allow 50% of the voters to force a um rollback ballot.

21:13

Um he also wants to um change the appraisal process to a five-year process rather than the annual process and drop the homestead cap um to three percent yearly and extend that to all properties.

21:31

And uh lastly, he would like to see a um referendum a referendum on eliminating school property tax and um so I'm I'm Brittany.

21:50

I'm gonna take over from Cole Kowami.

21:52

One of the things we wanted to make sure to highlight for y'all is that as a part of the process, we've we're in the legislative session last year.

22:00

We're now in what we call the interim.

22:02

We'll go back to legislative session next January.

22:05

And during this time, they're they're starting their what we call their interim charges, and they're gonna they're gonna have interim charge hearings.

22:12

Um on behalf of the city, we did do um some outreach around your jail diversion program.

22:19

It's a big initiative around homelessness that um you're gonna see that both the Senate and the House will be looking at.

22:25

And so we did do some outreach around that.

22:28

We just wanted to make that as a reference to you in the event that that's a priority um in your and in your district.

22:35

But we wanted to highlight for you again, these are not all the interim charges.

22:40

There are there's probably a hundred pages worth of these.

22:43

But in the Senate, you have kind of one take on things.

22:48

So Kwame just laid out for you kind of what the governor wants everybody to do.

22:52

The Senate, the lieutenant governor Dan Patrick has laid out what he would like the Senate to take on, and one of the key differences that you'll see on property tax, in particular here on this slide with the finance committee, is the Senate is very focused on a homestead exemption.

23:11

So again, we've seen um a few different sessions negotiate the homestead exemption with what we call compression.

23:20

And so whenever you look at those two different factions, usually you have the Senate on one side and the house on the other side, and then obviously the governor is somewhere in the middle or has his own ideas as well.

23:31

And so as we get ready to go back into this interim charges as well as the next session, I think what we're seeing here is that this this kind of fight, or the I hate to say it's a fight, but this negotiation is starting early.

23:44

And so one of the reasons it's starting early is because the property tax cuts that they have already done are quite expensive, especially going into each new legislative session.

23:59

So the especially the compression taxes.

24:01

And so as they get ready to go into these new legislative sessions, they have to continue to spend this money on education if they continue to focus on the ISDs, for example.

24:14

And so just to summarize it or try to summarize it here quickly, um, they're going to talk a lot about whether or not they can afford certain pieces of these property tax cuts.

24:25

And you're gonna have affordability affordability of the property tax cuts introduced.

24:30

I think you will see it introduced very much here in finance.

24:33

Um the lieutenant governor has already started talking about what they can afford versus what they can't afford.

24:39

Um and he's kind of he's he's kind of tried to create, I think, some distance between him and what the governor has already outlined.

24:46

I think we'll start seeing that, and Holly's gonna cover the house, um, but you'll see it in house appropriations and or ways and means in the house.

24:54

Um so just to kind of um highlight the property tax piece.

25:00

Um, the other thing I just want to draw special attention to is oil and gas.

25:04

Um gas is a big way that the state has um money.

25:12

Okay, so when they can go in and they can do these massive property tax cuts, it's typically because WTI or um uh Brent crude oil is you know high, eight eighty to a hundred dollars, right?

25:26

And what we saw in the last kind of 12 months is it has fallen.

25:31

But now with our Iranian issue, um, we see it ticking back up.

25:36

It's now over 100, or the last time I checked it was over 100.

25:40

Um, it's very volatile, which is not new in Texas.

25:43

Severance taxes are always volatile.

25:46

But the thing to watch going into the next session is how long it stays, probably above 80 dollars.

25:52

Above $80 means that the legislature probably is going to have some money, and it's it's again, it's how they kind of put money into the rainy day fund.

26:00

It's how they pay for stuff that they want to pay for.

26:03

So if you kind of want to use that as your kind of barometer, um, I've used it as my barometer.

26:09

Um, so the other thing, the other big topic that's happening right now, um, is fraud, waste and abuse and health and human services.

26:18

Um, and then business and commerce actually met last week, and they covered the electric grid, but they also covered data centers.

26:26

And so they covered um uh echo economic development data centers and kind of how the grid plays into that.

26:34

And so we'll see that um as a also a um a theme throughout a number of different charges.

26:41

And so I'm gonna kind of keep going pretty fast though.

26:43

So BNC is gonna pick back up, and they still have another hearing they'll have on managing data center growth, broadband, um, economic developmental meet.

26:53

Um, we have another finance committee meeting again on data centers.

26:57

That theme is going to resonate.

26:59

They're also going to pick up um transportation issues, and you'll also see that your grade issues are a big thing that um is is there, and then the mental health and the homelessness in the Senate.

27:12

And so these are the charges from the Senate.

27:14

Oh, wait, I've got another slide, sorry.

27:17

Um, Senator Bentoncourt's committee, local government, they have a number of issues, obviously, that are gonna impact us here.

27:24

They'll be again looking at cutting property taxes, the homestead exemption, because that's again the focus of um the Senate.

27:33

Then state affairs is going to look at gambling loopholes, um, and there's a pending AG opinion on some things around that nature.

27:41

And then you have water, agriculture, and rural affairs.

27:45

They used this verbiage energy intensive technologies.

27:49

Um, and so that could also be around data centers, um, and just to flag that for you as well, and your water infrastructure revenue.

27:57

And I think that's my last slide.

27:59

Yes.

27:59

So I'm gonna turn it over to Holly, and Holly's gonna cover the house.

28:05

Thank you, everybody.

28:05

Holly Dishields with McGuire Woods Consulting.

28:08

Um, appreciate y'all having us here today.

28:10

So in the House of Representatives, there are 25 standing committees as we have it today, and then there are three new select committees.

28:17

I bring that up because I do want to mention it's not in our slides.

28:20

One of the select committees that I think will be of the utmost importance to Fort Worth, and that's the Select Committee on General Aviation.

28:26

So we will continue to monitor that with you guys and see wherever y'all fold in, but it's gonna be very important to City Fort Worth.

28:33

Um, as Brittany mentioned as far as house appropriation goes, they will come out with their own budget.

28:38

They will come out with their own property tax cuts and look for ways to increase revenues amongst the state.

28:44

Um, the one important thing again for Fort Worth is a rail grade crossings, and you will see that across the board in Senate finance, house transportation, house appropriations, and Senate transportation.

28:53

It is of the must utmost importance on both sides, and even Text.

28:58

That will probably be, I would assume, one of their number one legislative priorities.

29:03

Um, house culture, recreation, and tourism, they are going to be looking at the economic development and education contributions that rodeos bring to the state of Texas and keeping up with the heritage and how the state can help promote these events to further enhance what you have guys have going on.

29:18

Um house elections are gonna look at to see if there's a need for adjustment of election timelines.

29:24

I feel like this is a pretty perennial issue that always comes up that they will take a look at, as well as what is the evolving technology, are communities keeping up with it, are there additional staffing needs to make sure that elections are handled correctly and then improve any efficiencies that the state can to make that easier on the communities?

29:42

The House Select Committee on Governmental Oversight, again, one of the new committees, and it is sorry, moving forward.

29:50

Um it is not doge.

29:55

We still have doge, um, but it is going to look at all of these acts that have been around for quite some time.

30:01

The regulatory consistency act.

30:02

That's a full scale review of local local government ordinances across the state.

30:07

Tort claims, uh, they're just gonna see if it needs to be updated, safeguarding taxpayer funds.

30:11

That's gonna be looking at what public funds are used for third parties, and then the public information act.

30:17

They pretty much always have some some tweaks and some suggestions on what the legislative sessions should do with that.

30:23

Homeland Security, Public Safety, and Veterans Affairs.

30:26

They're gonna monitor HP 33, which is the active shooter incidents at public education institutions, um, K through 12 as well as universities, and then strengthening the law enforcement pipeline.

30:38

I'm so happy to see this because they're gonna look at recruitment, retention, pipeline, and then family resources that are needed to encourage folks to go into the academy and into law enforcement.

30:48

Houseways and means we'll look at local government spending and debt practices.

30:52

That will also be where property tax relief is probably most focused as far as legislation and not the actual accounting for it.

31:00

House Committee on Land Resource Management.

31:03

They're gonna review all of the things that were taking up last session with zoning, density requirements, residential developments, pre-planning processes, uh local government fees, third parties, and that'll be something that we will keep a very, very close eye on, of course, for you guys.

31:20

The House Committee on Natural Resources, Groundwater Management.

31:23

I think you're gonna hear more about groundwater next legislative session than probably any time in the past, looking at the adequacy, looking to see what data and modeling is readily available and how all of those pieces come together to make the state's plan.

31:36

Um, I think they're about to come out with a new regional water plan.

31:38

Sure, folks in this room have been working on it.

31:40

So they will base a lot of those recommendations and things on that regional water plan for the state.

31:46

Innovative water supply strategies.

31:47

That is looking at the new water supply for Texas fund and how it is being implemented, who is trying to apply for it, what can be done to promote it more for communities to use for these efficiencies.

31:59

House Committee on State Affairs, disaster preparedness, just coordination, you know, everything after the floods of last summer.

32:05

I think they're just gonna be looking to see how state and local and all of the folks work better together.

32:11

Um poll attachments will be involving what is impacting and impeding any type of broadband to get out to the rural areas, and then of course, we have data centers, and as of this morning, they released the agenda for the House State Affairs Committee to take up data centers on Thursday, so we can dive into that as much or as little as y'all want to.

32:31

I'll get through all of this.

32:32

Transportation, as I said, railroad grade separation projects.

32:35

They hopefully will also be looking at short lines, aviation, ports, all of the usual suspects.

32:43

And then last but not least, here is the current list of hearings that have been posted.

32:47

We of course will see a whole lot more.

32:50

Um they are starting to pop like wildfire.

32:52

So most of the hearings in the spring will take place until probably May June.

32:59

Little summer break, maybe a couple things in there, and then they'll pick back up in the fall.

33:02

These interim charges will then be have recommendations in different reports submitted to the speaker and lieutenant governor in October.

33:10

Those reports will be made public in November, and legislation will already start being drafted based on those recommendations of the committees.

33:17

So another side note Sunset Advisory Commission is also about to start meeting and releasing their calendar, and that is all of the health and human services agencies.

33:26

So as many of you might be familiar, about every 10 to 12 years, health and human services goes into one agency, and then they break it down into five.

33:33

One agency and break it down into five.

33:35

So it'll be very interesting to see what the Sunset Commission does with that this session, and the new chairwoman is uh Senator Lewis Cole Course.

33:43

So happy to answer any questions.

33:45

Great.

33:46

Thanks, Holly.

33:46

Any questions from anybody?

33:50

No.

33:51

Well, thanks for the update.

33:52

Appreciate that.

33:53

Um, Elizabeth, is this your time where you say an Alan?

33:57

This is his last meeting, so yeah, I think I have some interim charges for uh Councilman Blaylock.

34:07

I just beg of you, my friend, colleague, that you remember how much we love local control, and don't make us call you down to this uh this particular legislative hearing if you forget that.

34:23

So I'm looking at you.

34:24

It's not a threat, but I'm looking at you.

34:29

What are your two favorite words, Alan?

34:31

Local control.

34:34

Let me hear you say it loud from your chest, Alan.

34:37

Come on, what's your two favorite words?

34:41

Are you read enough yet?

34:42

I can keep going.

34:44

Elizabeth, thank you so much for your support.

34:46

I'm so excited.

34:47

You want to see me down there.

34:49

I can't wait to be there and have these conversations again.

34:55

Great.

34:55

Uh, if there are no questions, uh, thank you again for being oh, sorry.

34:58

Yeah, yes, please.

35:00

Just curious.

35:00

We still have a contract with Corley Pipes, don't we?

35:03

Yes, yes, we do currently.

35:04

Yes, sir.

35:05

And they they usually do an update as well.

35:06

We get that next meeting.

35:08

Um yes, we can make it make that okay.

35:11

Usually we do them all together.

35:12

I was just curious on why we weren't didn't have them today.

35:16

Okay.

35:17

Okay, thank you.

35:20

Yeah, it sounds good.

35:21

I appreciate it.

35:22

Uh anything else than meeting adjourn.

35:24

Thanks, y'all.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
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Legislative Update██████████15%
Fiscal Sustainability█████8%
Procedural████6%
Economic Development██3%
Summary of Proceedings

Legislative Intergovernmental Affairs Committee Meeting – April 7, 2026

The Legislative Intergovernmental Affairs Committee met on April 7, 2026, to approve the previous meeting's minutes and receive two briefings: one on Tarleton State University's Fort Worth expansion and a second on the upcoming Texas legislative interim charges and priorities. No public comments were heard.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved the minutes of the March 3, 2026 meeting by unanimous voice vote.

Discussion Items

  • Tarleton State University – Vision Fort Worth Dr. Rachel Capua (joined by Dr. Baker) presented an update on Tarleton State University's Fort Worth campus. Key points included:

    • Tarleton State is the only four-year public institution in Fort Worth offering all four undergraduate and graduate years.
    • The Fort Worth campus currently enrolls approximately 2,700 students (1,800 undergraduate, 900 graduate, including dual credit from Crowley ISD).
    • The 80-acre campus on Chisholm Trail was donated by the Walton Development Group in 2014.
    • A master plan update is underway with Bennett Partners and Schaefer; new renderings show an amphitheater and traditional college campus design.
    • The former Worth Creek Parkway has been renamed Tarleton State Parkway; ground breaking is expected in 2026 with an opening in 2028 (in coordination with NTTA).
    • Tarleton State is participating in the Texas A&M Fort Worth innovation district downtown: it will occupy parts of the sixth, seventh, and eighth floors of the Law and Education Building (opening August 5, 2026) for health sciences, and will have a biotechnology research hub in the second building (Research and Innovation Building Part A).
    • The university launched its "Rooted and Rising" campaign in January 2026 to highlight its 50-year presence in Fort Worth and its growth aspirations.
    • The fully built campus is projected to serve 10,000–15,000 students in Fort Worth.
    • Councilmember Crane thanked the presenters and highlighted Tarleton State's unique role as the only four-year public university in the city.
  • Texas State Legislature Interim Legislative Update Kwame (staff), followed by Brittany and Holly Dishields (McGuire Woods Consulting), provided a briefing on the upcoming November 2026 elections and the interim charges for the 2027 legislative session. Key points:

    • Of the 11 state legislative races in the Fort Worth area, 3 are unopposed (Ramon Romero, Nicole Collier, and Beat Chris Turner winner Junior?). The remaining races have both Democratic and Republican candidates.
    • Governor Abbott's five-point reform plan includes: limiting local spending growth; requiring two-thirds voter approval for property tax increases; allowing 50% of voters to force a rollback ballot (general publication power); changing appraisal to a five-year cycle; dropping the homestead exemption cap to 3% yearly and extending it to all properties; and a referendum on eliminating school property taxes.
    • Senate interim charges (Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick) focus on property tax (homestead exemption vs. compression), oil and gas revenue volatility, fraud/waste/abuse in health and human services, data center growth and grid impact, transportation (rail grade crossings), mental health and homelessness.
    • Senate Local Government Committee (Senator Bettencourt) will examine cutting property taxes and homestead exemptions.
    • House interim charges include 25 standing committees plus three new select committees (General Aviation, Governmental Oversight, etc.). Key topics: property tax relief (homestead exemption), rail grade crossings, rodeo heritage, election timeline adjustments, regulatory consistency review, tort claims, public information act, active shooter incidents (HB 33), law enforcement pipeline, local government spending/debt practices, zoning and density regulations, groundwater management, innovative water supply, data centers, disaster preparedness, and broadband.
    • Holly noted that the Select Committee on General Aviation will be important for Fort Worth.
    • The Sunset Advisory Commission will review health and human services agencies, which historically cycle between consolidation and fragmentation.
    • An exchange occurred between Councilmember Blaylock (attending his last meeting) and another member about preserving local control; Blaylock affirmed his commitment to local control.
    • A councilmember asked about the status of the contract with Corley Pipes; it was confirmed the contract is still active and an update will be provided at the next meeting.

Key Outcomes

  • Approved the March 3, 2026 meeting minutes.
  • Received briefings from Tarleton State University and state legislative consultants; no formal votes were taken on the briefings.
  • Noted that the next meeting will include an update on the Corley Pipes contract.

Meeting Transcript

In the interest of time, we'll uh begin this legislative intergovernmental affairs committee. We'll call it to order. I think we got a quorum, we're good. First, on the agenda is approval to March 3rd minutes. Second. All is in favor. Aye. Any opposed? April or March 3rd meetings minutes are approved. I went down to briefing items. We have Tarleton State University Vision Fort Worth. Dr. Capp is here along with uh Dr. Baker as well. So y'all, you're up. Great. Well, good afternoon, good morning, depending on I know what time it is. Uh, but it's good to be with you. It's a joy to have a few minutes uh to share a little bit about our Tarleton State Fort Worth efforts and Tarleton State efforts. So we do have material for everybody, and if you did not get it already, we'll make sure that you have it before uh the end of today's session. But uh, for those I haven't had a chance to personally connect with, my name is Rachel Capua. Uh Councilmember Crane, thank you for the the opportunity to connect and uh to share with this committee and this team about uh a few efforts and a few updates related to Tarleton State. And I do want to be really mindful of time given the agenda and um us starting a bit later. So I'm gonna run through things pretty quickly. Uh but if you have any questions as we walk through this, please stop me at any time. Uh but there's really kind of three main goals for this. Number one, uh, on behalf of our president, Dr. James Hurley, and our executive cabinet and team, we wanted to give you some updates about you know university-wide efforts, but really focus specifically on Tarleton State Fort Worth, what's happening here in Fort Worth, um, our our shared vision for Fort Worth, and then how Tarleton State will be part of the Texas AM Fort Worth project. And so with that, just some quick level setting and context setting. Uh, as a university, as an institution, um, we're at about 21,000 students statewide now. Uh, and we really make up uh many locations. Our home anchor campus in Stephenville, Texas, uh, which just had its 125th anniversary, uh, now just about a cycle or two ago. Um, and so in terms of the institution and its roots, they run deep here in Texas. Uh, we are a proud member of the Texas AM system, and so uh it was the first institution to join that system in 1917. Uh but here in Fort Worth, we've been serving our city here uh and our community here since 1978. And so we have locations uh in the two uh areas mentioned, and then Waco and then Brian. So uh just a level set on that context. I'll be brief with this, uh, but want to share some specific stats about just the university at large. Uh we are experiencing some really tremendous and encouraging enrollment growth, and since 2019, it's been about 60 percent increase, which is in large part to our president and our team. But specifically here, uh, this stat that you see on the screen is what we're most proud about. It's 84 percent, uh now ranked number one in Texas for six consecutive years for students who graduate, which is what we want, right? We want them to graduate with the post-secondary credential and then move to a uh an employment of choice or graduate school. So 84% of our students are finding that next step. Um, and one of those two paths, and again, it's the number one in Texas, which is something that we're really proud about. Um, related to legislative priorities, and I wanted to hit this quickly for this team and this committee in particular. Uh, legislatively and from a prioritization standpoint, health sciences is and will continue to remain a key focus for us. Uh in this last legislative session, we did focus on uh the proposal for a college of osteopathic medicine. Uh so we hired our executive founding dean for that. It will be focused on rural health, and so you see on this slide uh as we work and focus and prioritize on health sciences, we want it to specifically impact our rural populations across Texas. So you'll see some updates and related efforts there, and then it related to health care, it is about facilities, it is about uh ensuring that we have the right spaces and places for these programs to thrive.

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