May 11--AUSTIN -- Border counties have been asking lawmakers for years to give them authority to implement building codes to curb the proliferation of substandard housing.

This year, El Paso County is closer than ever to gaining that power with a bill by state Rep. Marisa Marquez, D-El Paso, that has passed the Texas House and is headed to the Senate.

"The county wanted to see better quality of life for those residents and also minimize the occurrences of fire or sewage problems," Marquez said.

Under current law, counties have no ordinance-making authority and are unable to regulate buildings and residences constructed in rural areas. Over the years, homes and businesses have sprouted up with shoddy electrical and plumbing work that leaves them vulnerable to flooding and fires, said El Paso County Attorney Jose Rodriguez.

"That's what happens when we don't have any regulation of construction out there," he said.

For more than a decade, the county has been pushing lawmakers for authority to require builders to comply with quality standards that ensure buildings are safe for residents and business owners.

El Paso is home to nearly 300 colonias, or residential areas that may lack basic living necessities. In all, the Texas attorney general's staff has data on about 2,000 substandard housing developments on the border.

Without building standards and the authority to enforce them, Rodriguez said, taxpayers wind up footing the bill to provide services later or to clean up

damage from water, storms or fires.

"What we want to promote is the health, safety and welfare of the community out there," he said.

Developers and homebuilders have resisted efforts to increase building regulations in rural border areas. They have argued that the Texas Residential Construction Commission already enforces construction standards, that more regulation would drive up the cost of homes and that lawmakers were unfairly setting stricter rules for the border.

"Just another layer of bureaucracy for bureaucracy's sake is not appealing to us," said Ray Adauto, executive vice president of the El Paso Association of Builders.

Adauto said the industry worked with Marquez on a compromise that would allow the county to adopt building codes already set out by the Texas Residential Construction Commission. The measure would limit fees builders pay and ensure that builders would not face stiff criminal penalties for violating the codes.

"Is it perfect No," Adauto said. "Is it a compromise Yes. Will we live with it Yes."

Under the bill, El Paso County could adopt building codes that would apply to unincorporated areas. The codes couldn't be any stricter than those already set out by the Texas Residential Construction Commission, though, and builders would only have to supply the county with reports they already prepare for the commission.

To enforce the building codes, the county would be able to sue a builder that was found to be violating the regulations. Builders found violating the code could also be charged with a Class C misdemeanor. The county could also refer violations to the construction commission.

The measure next moves to the Senate Intergovernmental Relations Committee for a hearing.

Rodriguez said he was hopeful that this would finally be the year the county gets the power it has been seeking to curb substandard developments.

He said he hoped lawmakers would see it as a means to secure millions the state has invested over the years to extend water, sewer and roads to colonias in the El Paso area.

"This is a very important first step," he said.

Brandi Grissom may be reached at bgrissom@elpasotimes.com;512-479-6606.

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