North Richland Hills council approves intergovernmental legislative affairs subcommittee and task force

The North Richland Hills City Council on March 23 approved a resolution to create an intergovernmental legislative affairs subcommittee and a volunteer legislative task force to improve tracking and engagement on state legislation.

City Manager Paulette Hartman told the council the proposal establishes a subcommittee comprised of the mayor and two council members, plus a nine-member citizen task force as a legislative communications and tracking resource. The resolution sets the structure; appointments to the volunteer task force will be brought back at the first April meeting.

Hartman said the city studied other programs and plans to use a software platform to support the effort, describing the tool as more than software: "It’s actually kind of an AI tool... a closed loop, AI system," she said, and added it can produce draft bill summaries and communications tied directly to the Texas legislative filing system.

Council member Matt Blake moved to approve the resolution; it was seconded and, after brief discussion about the effectiveness of Georgetown’s program as a model, the council voted 7-0 to adopt the measure.

The item will allow the city to monitor bills more quickly and prepare communications to volunteers and stakeholders when timely action is needed at the state level. Staff said they will return with mayoral recommendations for task-force appointments at the council’s first meeting in April.