Texas SB 1935 (2025): Proposed HOA Board, Fine and 5% Assessment Cap, Not Law

Quick Answer

Texas Senate Bill 1935 (2025) is NOT law. As filed on April 4, 2025, it would have required owners to elect more of a property owners' association board on set timelines after a developer sells lots, required fines to be reasonable with a cap on continuing violations, and barred regular assessment increases of 5 percent or more without a majority owner vote. We found no evidence it was enacted: the 2025 statute text for the sections it would have changed does not contain its language. We could not confirm the bill's final procedural status.

At a Glance

What the Bill Would Have Done

We read the Senate Research Center's analysis of the bill as filed, not the bill text itself. Its summary, section by section:

Board meeting location (Section 1)

Amend § 209.0051(c-1) so that, if a majority of board members were not elected by owners other than the declarant, board meetings (other than electronic or telephonic ones) would have to be held in a specified area, including within 10 miles of the subdivision.

Declarant control (Sections 2 and 5)

Amend § 209.00591 to keep a declarant control period but add timelines regardless of what the declaration says. Within 120 days after a majority of lots are conveyed to owners other than the declarant or qualifying builders, at least one-third of the board would have to be elected by those owners. Within 120 days after 75 percent of lots are conveyed, at least a majority. If the declaration did not state the number of lots, a majority would be required by the 10th anniversary of recording. The declarant would also have had to give notice to owners within 30 days of the one-third threshold, by website posting and email. Transition rules would have required the one-third or majority levels by March 1, 2026 for associations that had already passed those thresholds.

Fines (Sections 3 and 6)

Add § 209.0061(e): a fine must be "reasonable in the context of the nature and frequency of the violation and the effect of the violation on the subdivision as a whole," and an association allowing continuing-violation fines to accumulate would have to set a reasonable maximum. It would apply prospectively.

Assessment increases (Sections 4 and 7)

Add § 209.018: "notwithstanding a provision in a dedicatory instrument," an association could not increase a regular assessment by 5 percent or more per year unless approved by at least a majority of the total votes allocated to owners entitled to vote. It would apply prospectively.

What Current Law Still Says

We checked the 2025 Texas statutes for the sections the bill would have changed:

• Board composition. Current § 209.00591(c) says that regardless of the declarant control period, within 120 days after 75 percent of lots are conveyed to non-declarant owners (excluding qualifying builders), "at least one-third of the board members must be elected by owners other than the declarant." If the number of lots is not stated, one-third by the 10th anniversary of recording. There is no majority timeline and no declarant notice requirement in the text we read.
• Fines. Current § 209.0061 requires an enforcement policy with categories, a fine schedule and hearing information, and lets the board reserve case-by-case variation. It has no subsection (e) on reasonableness or a continuing-violation cap.
• Assessment cap. We did not find text for a § 209.018 in the sources we could open. Our reading: no statewide 5 percent assessment cap or majority-vote rule was enacted by this bill. Your documents and other provisions may still limit increases.

What This Means in Practice

Boards

Do not describe the 5 percent vote, the fines cap or the majority-board timeline as Texas law. Assessment increases remain governed by your dedicatory instruments and the rest of Chapter 209. Brooks v. Northglen shows the Texas Supreme Court enforcing deed-restriction limits on increases; see the related page.

Owners

If your declaration or bylaws already limit increases, require votes, or set board-election timelines, those documents still control. The failed bill gives no new statewide right.

What we could not confirm

We could not open the Texas Legislature's history page, so we do not state whether the bill had a hearing, a committee vote or died in committee. We found no enrolled version. Treat "not law" as supported by the current statute text, and the procedural story as unverified. The bill may be filed again in a future session; the 90th Legislature convenes in January 2027.

Timeline

Related Texas Law

• Brooks v. Northglen Association (2004): assessment increases and deed limits
• H.B. 614 (2023): fine schedule and enforcement policy
• Chapter 209: owner voting and board elections
• S.B. 2629 (2025): electronic meetings and voting
• Chapter 209: Residential Property Owners Protection Act
• Texas HOA laws complete guide

Board Checklist

• Remove any statement that Texas caps regular assessment increases at 5 percent without an owner vote.
• Check your declaration and bylaws for assessment limits and vote requirements.
• Confirm your fine schedule meets current § 209.0061 and is posted or delivered as required.
• If the developer still controls the board, confirm the election thresholds in current § 209.00591 with counsel.
• Keep a note of the bill in case it returns in the 2027 session.
• Verify the status of any bill before citing it to owners.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Texas SB 1935 law?

No. We found no evidence it was enacted, and the 2025 statute text for the sections it would have changed does not contain its provisions.

Does Texas cap HOA assessment increases at 5 percent?

Not under this bill. It proposed a 5 percent trigger for a majority owner vote, but it did not become law. Your documents may impose their own limits.

Did SB 1935 pass the Legislature?

We could not confirm its procedural history. We found no enrolled bill and no sign it was enacted.

What would the bill have changed about developer control?

It would have required at least one-third of the board to be elected by non-declarant owners after a majority of lots were conveyed, and a majority after 75 percent, within 120 days each.

Could a similar bill return?

Possibly. The Legislature meets in odd years, and the 90th Legislature convenes in January 2027. We do not know what will be filed.

Where This Comes From

We read the Senate Research Center bill analysis of S.B. 1935 (as filed, April 4, 2025) on the Texas Legislature's website and the 2025 published text of Property Code §§ 209.00591 and 209.0061. We did not read the bill text itself, a committee report or the bill history, and could not open § 209.018.

How APM Helps

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Legal disclaimer: This article is general information, not legal advice. Laws change and associations differ. Confirm the current statute text and how it applies to your governing documents with a licensed Texas attorney before acting.