A proposal for two East Texas counties to jointly study the effects of solar farms, data centers, and high-capacity water wells failed on a tied vote in Smith County Commissioners Court on June 2. According to reporting from KLTV, the outcome means neighboring Van Zandt County must seek another county partner to gain leverage over rapid industrial development that rural counties cannot otherwise regulate.
The proposal centered on whether rural Texas counties — which under state law possess virtually no zoning or land-use authority — could use provisions in Chapter 391 of the Texas Local Government Code to repurpose an obscure regional-planning statute from the 1960s to gain some authority over a wave of energy, battery storage, and technology infrastructure projects. If successful, proponents suggest the strategy could serve as a template for other rural counties across the state.
The Smith County measure would have established a “sub-regional planning commission” with Van Zandt County under Chapter 391. The proposal failed on a 2-2 vote.
Commissioners Christina Drewry and J. Scott Herod voted in favor, while County Judge Neal Franklin and Commissioner Ralph Caraway Sr. voted against, KLTV reported. Commissioner John Moore was absent following surgery, and the court had previously tabled the item at two earlier meetings.
According to the text of Texas Local Government Code Chapter 391, a regional planning commission does not grant local governments new regulatory or zoning powers. Instead, the statute permits counties to coordinate and study projects affecting public health, safety, and welfare.
The law also mandates that state regulatory bodies, such as the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and the Public Utility Commission (PUC), coordinate with these commissions “to the greatest extent possible.”
Forming a Chapter 391 entity requires a joint resolution between participating counties. The statute dictates that at least two-thirds of the voting members must be elected officials, with a state legislator serving ex-officio as a non-voting member.
Proponents argue that combining local voices under the statute forces state agencies to pay closer attention to rural concerns.
“If we all got together and we were as a unit, we’re asking for information from the Public Utilities Commission, it’s a louder voice than just Van Zandt County,” Van Zandt County Commissioner Cliff Williams said in an interview with KLTV following the vote.
Van Zandt County Judge Andy Reese said that the county is currently facing “up to 17 different entities that are trying to build in our county,” according to KLTV. Following the Smith County rejection, Reese pledged to continue the initiative. “We’ll move forward, and we will find another dance partner,” he said.
The initiative has drawn support from state lawmakers representing the region. During a May 5 Smith County workshop, Rep. Daniel Alders (R-Tyler) and Sen. Bob Hall (R-Edgewood) urged local officials to act.
“Not every project is a must-have,” Alders said, according to coverage by the Tyler Morning Telegraph. “We don’t want to have growth just for the sake of progress.”
Senator Hall cautioned that a Chapter 391 commission “wouldn’t be a complete solution,” according to the Tyler Morning Telegraph. Hall said that he plans to file legislation in the upcoming session to establish uniform statewide development standards so counties “don’t have a hodgepodge of things throughout the state.”
The regulatory vacuum at the county level has long been a source of friction in Texas. Local residents frequently argue that the state’s centralized regulatory framework leaves them vulnerable to rapid industrial expansion. Van Zandt County resident David Dunagan remarked during public comment at the May workshop that rural communities are effectively “at the mercy of Austin,” according to the Tyler Morning Telegraph.
While Chapter 391 commissions are common across Texas for managing regional water and transportation planning, mainstream regional planners question the utility of a new, narrower sub-regional body.
David Cleveland, executive director of the East Texas Council of Governments (ETCOG) — which operates as a Chapter 391 entity — warned the Smith County court that a splinter commission could “fragment the county’s regional voice.” According to KLTV’s account of the meeting, Cleveland said that a separate body could slow public decision-making, weaken the region’s competitiveness for state and federal grants, and suggested that the court instead direct ETCOG to lead the study.
The policy debate occurs alongside broader anxieties regarding resource management in East Texas. In the city of Trinidad, residents staged an impromptu gathering outside City Hall on June 4 after a municipal water workshop was abruptly canceled, KLTV reported.
The regional planning strategy remains active despite the setback in Tyler. Judge Reese said that he intends to approach Rains County to gauge interest in a partnership, according to KLTV. Rains County had previously approved a joint resolution to form a commission in February 2025, but the county subsequently backed out following a change in local political leadership.
Smith County could choose to reintroduce the measure for a vote when its full five-member commissioners court is present.
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