HBA-JLV H.B. 2168 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2168 By: Uher Land & Resource Management 4/4/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Under current law, when a piece of property is partitioned, the allotted shares of real property are subject to the same conditions and covenants that applied to the property prior to the partition. Although the retention of prior property rights serves to protect the people subject to a court decree, it sometimes leaves a partitioned piece of property with no reasonable access to a public road. Partitioned pieces of property are often located in an area where the previous property owners would have never foreseen the need for an easement. Problems also arise after the land is partitioned and one of the tract owners decides to sell his land locked property. When these situations arise, the affected parties could find themselves caught in expensive legal proceedings to decide where and on whose property an easement will be located. These situations could be avoided by resolving these issues prior to partitioning the land. House Bill 2168 requires the commissioners appointed to partition property to grant an access easement on a tract of partitioned property for the purpose of providing a reasonable entrance and exit from an adjoining partitioned tract that does not have an existing means of access. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS House Bill 2168 amends the Property Code to require the commissioners appointed to partition property, unless waived by the parties in an action to partition property, to grant a nonexclusive access easement on a tract of partitioned property for the purpose of providing reasonable ingress to and egress from an adjoining partitioned tract that does not have a means of access through a public road or an existing easement appurtenant to the tract. The bill prohibits the access easement from being more than 20 feet in width. The bill provides that the access easement route must be the shortest route to the adjoining tract that causes the least amount of damage to the tract subject to the easement, and is located the greatest reasonable distance from the primary residence and related improvements located on the tract subject to the easement. The bill requires the adjoining tract owner who is granted an access easement to maintain the easement and keep the easement open for public use. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.