overview of changes from what was previously presented at the February 23 work
session.
City Attorney Bradley Anderle informed City Council that Section 2-52 (Quorum) of the
Rules of Procedure was changed from four to five members of the City Council to align
with State law. The Texas Open Meetings Act (Government Code Chapter 551) defines a
quorum as a majority of the governmental body and the North Richland Hills City Charter
defines the governing body as the mayor and seven (7) council members.
4.
CHARTER ELECTION UPDATE REGARDING TERMS AND TERM LIMITS.
City Attorney Bradley Anderle provided an overview of the City Charter Amendments
approved at the November 4, 2025 election. Propositions A and B, extending the term
length from two to three years and the establishment of term limits, respectively amended
Article V, Sections 3 and 3.A.
The new term length for the governing body will be phased in with the 2026 and 2027
election cycles. The mayor and council places 2, 4, and 6 will be elected for a three-year
term in May 2026 and each election thereafter. Council places 1, 3, 5, and 7 will be
elected for a three-year term in May 2027 and each election thereafter.
The term limit for a council member, regardless of place, is three terms (nine years).
Likewise, the term limit for mayor is three terms (nine years). A person may serve three
terms as a council member and three terms as mayor for a cumulative total of 18 years.
The term limit begins with the May 2026 (mayor and council places 2, 4, and 6) and May
2027 (council places 1, 3, 5, and 7) election cycles. The term limit is not retroactive.
5.
2026 RESTAURANT REWARDS UPDATE
Director of Economic Development Craig Hulse provided an update on the Restaurant
Rewards Program for year 2026. The city increased its users by 93% and monies
rewarded by 106% compared to 2025. The program runs through April 30.
PRESENTATION ON IMPLEMENTATION OF PERMITTING EFFICIENCY
STUDY RECOMMENDATIONS.
6.
City staff presented an update on the Permitting Efficiency Study, reporting departmental
progress on audit recommendations across Building Inspections, Planning, Engineering,
Fire, and Utility Billing. Staff noted that recommendations are at varying stages of
completion and summarized ongoing initiatives including improvements to the water and
sewer tap process, organizational restructuring within Building Inspections, and
continued cross training among building inspectors and code compliance inspectors and
customer service personnel. The update also highlighted team building efforts,
advancement of the unified EPL (E-Services Portal Transitions) system for plan review