End mapped out for Texas construction agency

The 5-year-old TRCC was initially billed as a way to regulate home building and create a way for homeowners and builders to resolve disputes out of court. But it had little enforcement authority.

A 2006 audit from the Texas comptroller’s office branded the agency a “paper tiger” and said it shielded builders from responsibility.

The Sunset Advisory Commission staff last year recommended abolishing the agency, in part because of the inability of the agency to force builders to repair shoddy construction work. Homeowners were forced to go through the agency before going to court, but didn’t trust it, the staff report said. “No other regulatory agency has a program with such a potentially devastating effect on consumers’ ability to seek their own remedies,” it said.