Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott issued a ruling last fall that special purpose water districts like Lantana do not have the authority to adopt and enforce traffic regulations on the roads inside their communities, and counties do not have authority to enforce county traffic regulations in such areas.
This ruling effectively prevents the Denton County Sheriff’s Department from enforcing traffic regulations within Fresh Water Supply Districts 6 & 7 which encompasses all of Lantana.
In response to this ruling, Texas legislators passed a law this spring to provide a solution that would legally reinstate traffic enforcement inside FWSD’s.
House Bill 2541, which was signed into law by Governor Rick Perry on June 17, authorizes residents of a FWSD to file a petition with their county’s commissioners court requesting traffic enforcement in their community.
The petition does not add dedicated police patrols. It is simply a process set out by the state legislature to allow the county sheriff to enforce our existing posted traffic regulations.
Fresh Water Supply Districts 6 & 7 have been advised that at the current level of service provided by the Denton County Sheriff’s Office, the services requested by the petition will not increase costs to Lantana residents.
The petition must be signed by at least 50 percent of resident property owners in the district to be valid. More details on HB 2541 can be found here.
We have been working to draft a petition and implement a plan to gather signatures, and now we need your help.
Our petition drive will kick off on Sunday, Dec. 11, with resident volunteers going door to door in Lantana between 2:00 and 5:00 p.m. asking for your signature to support this initiative. We will also set up a signing table at the North Community Center meeting room, 11555 Lantana Trail, from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. that day.
Volunteers are needed to assist in this effort. An orientation for volunteers is scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 8, at 6:00 p.m. at the Lantana Fresh Water District office in Bartonville Town Center (2650 FM 407 E Suite 125, Bartonville, TX 76226).
Please contact Ross Ferguson at [email protected] or call 940-728-5050 if you would like to help with the petition drive or have questions about this issue.
Thanks in advance for your support with making our streets safer!
Ross Ferguson, President, FWSD #6
Max Miller, Vice President, FWSD #6
Donna Robichaux, Secretary, FWSD #6
Adrian Weaver, Assistant Secretary, FWSD #6
Jim VanVickle, Treasurer, FWSD #6
John Rausch, President, FWSD #7
Charles Lee, Vice President, FWSD #7
Alex Teusink, Secretary, FWSD #7
Andrew Kloser, Assistant Secretary, FWSD #7
David Ware, Treasurer, FWSD #7
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