ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS BEFORE BUILDING AND STANDARDS COMMISSION

Houston Code of Ordinances ch. 10, art. IX, div. 3

in effect

Houston Code of Ordinances § 10-341 Building and standards commission created.

Sec. 10-341. - Building and standards commission created. The building and standards commission of the city is hereby created. The commission shall function in the manner authorized by Subchapter C of Chapter 54, Texas Local Government Code. The commission shall conduct administrative hearings as provided by this article, to consider evidence of violations of this article, and to enter orders as are supported by the evidence. (Ord. No. 2011-108, § 4, 2-9-2011)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 10-342 Members of the commission; terms.

Sec. 10-342. - Members of the commission; terms. (a) The commission consists of two commission panels, each of which shall be composed of five regular members appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the city council. At least one member of each commission panel shall be generally familiar with housing for low-income or homeless persons. (b) The mayor also shall appoint eight alternate members to the commission, which members shall be confirmed by the city council. At the request of the neighborhood protection official, which request shall be noted in the records of the commission, in the absence of a regular member an alternate member may serve on either commission panel. (c) Each regular and alternate member shall serve for a term of two years and, absent unusual circumstances as determined by the mayor's office of boards and commissions, shall hold over until the member's successor is appointed and confirmed. Each regular panel position shall be numbered consecutively within each panel as positions one through five, and each alternate position shall be numbered consecutively as positions one through eight. Each member of the commission, regular or alternate, shall be appointed to a specific numbered position. The terms of each even-numbered position shall begin on the first day of each even-numbered year and end on the last day of each odd-numbered year, and the terms of each odd-numbered position shall begin on the first day of each odd-numbered year and end on the last day of each even-numbered year. A vacancy in any position shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term. (d) At its first meeting of each calendar year, the commission as a whole shall elect a chairman to preside over its meetings. A quorum of the commission as a whole consists of a total of 14 members, whether regular members or alternates. (e) A quorum of a commission panel consists of three members. An affirmative vote of three members of each commission panel is required for the issuance of an order by the commission panel. A tie vote shall be treated as a vote to deny the relief requested. No member of the commission may abstain from a vote unless before the vote the member publicly announces the factual basis for his reasonable belief that he has a conflict of interest related to the subject of the vote. (f) Each commission panel shall elect a chairman and vice chairman at its first meeting of each calendar year and may convene at other times as necessary to function in the manner authorized by this article. (g) A member of the commission, regular or alternate, may be removed as provided in Section 54.033(c), Texas Local Government Code. (Ord. No. 2011-108, § 4, 2-9-2011)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 10-343 Authority of the commission.

Sec. 10-343. - Authority of the commission. For the enforcement of this article the commission is authorized to conduct public administrative proceedings, to enter orders, and to take actions to the extent and in the manner authorized by Subchapter C of Chapter 54, Texas Local Government Code. (Ord. No. 2011-108, § 4, 2-9-2011)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 10-344 Hearings before the commission.

Sec. 10-344. - Hearings before the commission. (a) The city attorney may recommend to the commission rules and procedures as are reasonable and necessary for the operation of the commission and the enforcement of this article. The commission as a whole shall adopt rules as required by Section 54.034, Texas Local Government Code. (b) The neighborhood protection official shall designate a city employee to maintain the office of the commission and to preserve all records of the commission for at least three years after the records are created and as otherwise required by law. The city employee designated pursuant to this subsection may be the same city employee designated by the building official pursuant to section 10-332(b) of this Code. (c) Notice of all proceedings before the commission shall be given as required by Section 54.035, Texas Local Government Code, or by Subchapter A of Chapter 214, Texas Local Government Code, and by this Code, as applicable to the proceeding. (d) Proceedings before the commission shall be conducted essentially in the same manner prescribed by division 2 of this article for administrative hearings before the hearing officer. (e) Promptly after the commission has issued a written order under this division, the neighborhood protection official shall give notice of the order in the manner required by Section 54.035, Texas Local Government Code, or by Subchapter A of Chapter 214, Texas Local Government Code, and by this Code, as applicable to the proceeding. (f) In essentially the same manner prescribed by section 10-332(m) of this Code, the building standards official shall provide in recordable form a release of an order entered by the commission. (Ord. No. 2011-108, § 4, 2-9-2011; Ord. No. 2011-697, § 11, 8-10-2011)

Source: City of Houston, Code of Ordinances and City Charter (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/tx/houston/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=COOR_CH10BUNEPR_ARTIXBUST_DIV3ADHEBEBUSTCOFetched: 10/26/2026