HB 1284 (Paddie/Hancock) consolidates the jurisdiction over onshore and offshore Class VI UIC wells under the RRC. The bill clarifies the RRC cannot issue a class VI well permit for a previously authorized class I and requires Class VI applicants to obtain authorization from the TCEQ. The bill was sent to the Governor on 5/25.
HB 2225 (T King/Zaffirini) authorizes Texas Parks and Wildlife to manage rights within the Texas Water Trust under a voluntary agreement with a rights holder. The bill was sent to the Governor on 5/25.
HB 2361 (Landgraf/Birdwell) amends the Health and Safety Code to include projects that reduce flaring and other site emissions among the projects that TCEQ should give preference to when awarding grants under the new technology implementation grant program. The bill was sent to the Governor on 5/25.
HB 2708 (Patterson/Paxton) authorizes money in the hazardous and solid waste remediation fee account attributable to fees on the sale of batteries to be used for reimbursement of environmental remediation at the site of a former battery recycling facility. This bill is only applicable to facilities in a municipality with a population of more than 115,000 and 250,000 among other stipulations. The bill was sent to the Governor on 5/28.
HB 3717 (Burns/Lucio) amends current law relating to the sale of a water or sewer utility system by a municipality without an election. The bill was sent to the Governor on 5/28.
SB 211 (Zaffirini/Landgraf) clarifies the judicial review timeline of TCEQ applies to permitting matters under Chapters 361 and 382 of the Texas Health and Safety Code. The bill was signed by the Governor on 5/30 and is effective on 9/1/2021.
SB 872 (Hancock/Lambert) extends the Dry Cleaner Remediation Program until 9/1/2041. The bill was signed by the Governor on 5/15 and was effective immediately.
SB 900 (Alvarado/Paddie) require the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to establish a Performance Standards for Safety at Storage Vessels Program to provide for the protection of groundwater and surface water resources from a release of substances from a storage vessel in the event of an accident or natural disaster. The bill would add to the provisions in the Water Code governing underground and aboveground storage tanks for the purpose of promoting the safety of storage vessels by adopting requirements for the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of such vessels. The bill was sent to the Governor on 5/25.
SB 1818 (Zaffirini/Landgraf) creates an exemption from liability for metal recycling entities as it relates to scrap metal similar to federal law. If the MRE arranged for disposal by contract in an appropriate manner, or if the MRE arranged for transport for disposal or treatment in an appropriate manner, the MRE is not held liable for the polluter’s actions. The bill was signed by the Governor on 5/30 and is effective on 9/1/2021.
Water
SB 601 (Perry/Burrows) create the Texas Produced Water Consortium consisting of the host university, the agency advisory council, the stakeholder advisory council, the technical and economic steering committee, and private entities. The Consortium would be required to study the economics of beneficial uses of fluid oil and gas waste and technology needed for those uses. The bill was sent to the Governor on 6/01.
SB 1160 (Taylor/Bettencourt) creates the Gulf Coast Protection District and establish its purposes, functions, and governance. The bill was sent to the Governor on 6/01.
HB 692 (Shine/Creighton) establishes limits on retainage for certain public work projects. The bill was sent to the Governor on 5/31.
HB 2581 (Kacal/Hancock) require all governmental entities, rather than just state agencies, to publish a detailed methodology for scoring each criterion when using a method other than competitive bidding for construction contract. The bill was sent to the Governor on 5/26.
