In the 2017 legislative session, Texas lawmakers sought to restrict the ability of local governments to violate property rights. Not surprisingly, local governments and the supporters of regulations pertaining to plastic bags, trees, short-term rentals, and more were upset. They argued that local governments should be allowed to enact the laws that their citizens want.
On the surface, this may seem like a reasonable argument. But what might seem reasonable on the surface may not remain so if we consider the full context. Only then can we make an informed decision what is reasonable and what is not.
The supporters of local control argue that we are a nation in which government is of, by, and for the people. If the people desire restrictions on plastic bags, protection for “historic” trees, or regulations controlling short-term rental properties, government should respond accordingly. If the state government intervenes and strikes down such ordinances, then it is usurping the “will of the people.” And that, they want us to believe, is a bad thing.
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