November 4, 2026

By Mary Beth Gahan

On the eve of Election Day, the Flower Mound Town Council named the top issues it would like the Texas Legislature to tackle next session and instituted a new task force to help get the public involved in those efforts.

In recent years, there has been a tug-of-war between local governments and the state over who should have the say on decisions ranging from zoning to taxation. Most of Flower Mound’s priorities for next session deal with retaining local control of municipal matters.

During the session, the town’s legislative consultant, Brandi Bird, will meet with State Sen. Tan Parker and the two state representatives whose districts include Flower Mound to discuss the items the town wants to be addressed in Austin.

The seven priorities, which were whittled down from a longer list in the last few months, include legislation that affirms the ability for “smaller” municipalities to dictate minimum lot sizes and preserves their control over multi-family developments.

In response to a bill that did not go past committee last session, the town would also like to see legislation that “maintains a city’s full authority to regulate” accessory dwelling units. The issue is likely to be brought back again as a bill this session.

Under the same home ownership umbrella, the council also wants the legislature to limit the ability for corporate investors to purchase property and make it more likely that the town has homebuyers who will be residents.

And when developers do build more houses or commercial buildings in Flower Mound, the town would like to be able to update impact fees — money paid by the developer to offset infrastructure improvements that will need to be made — so those costs are “paid by the development itself and not by current taxpayers,” the handout said.

Although it’s unclear what will happen this legislative session with a new governor and new initiatives, but Gov. Abbott and Republicans were wanting to push more cuts to property taxes, including making it more difficult for municipalities to raise taxes.

The town would like public safety costs to be exempt from those caps. Currently, a town or city cannot raise its tax rate to increase revenue more than 3.5 percent without voter approval.

Mayor Pro Tem Adam Schiestel sees another way of achieving the goal of lessening the burden on homeowners: sales tax.

At his suggestion, the town council added a legislative priority that would close the loophole on sale tax sourcing. As it is currently, a company can source its sale to a call center or actual distribution site, meaning it can select which city or town receives the tax revenue from that sale.

Flower Mound lost significant sales tax revenue when HD Supply, a subsidiary of Home Depot, changed its sourcing from a warehouse on Lakeside Parkway to a call center in New Braunfels.

The town also wants the delegation to continue to work on establishing a Texas Tech Health Science Center in Flower Mound and appropriating $20 million for the project. The potential site is a “top priority” for State Sen. Parker and Texas Tech Chancellor Brandon Creighton, Bird said.

“Appropriation issues are always difficult,” Bird said. “They can take years, sometimes decades.”