Sec. 212.004.  PLAT REQUIRED.  (a)  The owner of a tract of land located within the limits or in the extraterritorial jurisdiction of a municipality who divides the tract in two or more parts to lay out a subdivision of the tract, including an addition to a municipality, to lay out suburban, building, or other lots, or to lay out streets, alleys, squares, parks, or other parts of the tract intended by the owner of the tract to be dedicated to public use must have a plat of the subdivision prepared.  A division of a tract under this subsection includes a division regardless of whether it is made by using a metes and bounds description in a deed of conveyance or in a contract for a deed, by using a contract of sale or other executory contract to convey, or by using any other method.  A division of land under this subsection does not include a division of land into parts greater than five acres, where each part has access and no public improvement is being dedicated.
(b)  To be recorded, the plat must:
(1)  describe the subdivision by metes and bounds;
(2)  locate the subdivision with respect to a corner of the survey or tract or an original corner of the original survey of which it is a part; and
(3)  state the dimensions of the subdivision and of each street, alley, square, park, or other part of the tract intended by the owner of the tract to be dedicated to public use.
(c)  The owner or proprietor of the tract or the owner's or proprietor's agent must acknowledge the plat in the manner required for the acknowledgment of deeds.
(d)  The plat must be filed and recorded with the county clerk of the county in which the tract is located.
(e)  The plat is subject to the filing and recording provisions of Section 12.002, Property Code.
(f)  A plat is considered filed on the date the applicant submits the plat, along with a completed plat application and the application fees and other requirements prescribed by or under this subchapter, to:
(1)  the governing body of the municipality; or
(2)  the municipal authority responsible for approving plats.
(g)  The governing body of a municipality or the municipal authority responsible for approving plats may not require an analysis, study, document, agreement, or similar requirement to be included in or as part of an application for a plat, development permit, or subdivision of land that is not explicitly allowed by state law.
Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 149, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1987.  Amended by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 1, Sec. 46(b), eff. Aug. 28, 1989;  Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 624, Sec. 3.02, eff. Sept. 1, 1989;  Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 1046, Sec. 1, eff. Aug. 30, 1993.
Amended by: 
Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1125 (H.B. 3699), Sec. 4, eff. September 1, 2023.