LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD Austin, Texas FISCAL NOTE, 82ND LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION April 7, 2011 TO: Honorable Troy Fraser, Chair, Senate Committee on Natural Resources FROM: John S O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board IN RE:SB1134 by Hegar (Relating to the issuance of permits for certain facilities regulated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated. The bill would prohibit the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) from promulgating new or amending existing authorizations [Permits by Rule (PBR) or Standard Permits (SP)] for the oil and gas industry without performing a regulatory impact analysis (RIA), extensive monitoring, and correlated modeling. The bill would limit the use of worst-case modeling inputs and require actual air quality monitoring data. The bill would provide a definition of planned maintenance, startup, and shutdown (MSS) activities and would extend the deadline for filing an application to authorize MSS activities until January 5, 2014 necessary to maintain certain affirmative defense criteria. The bill would also require that any PBR or SP adopted or amended by the agency that authorizes planned MSS activities must also conduct a RIA, perform monitoring, and perform correlated monitoring. The bill would only apply to a PBR or SP adopted by the agency after the effective date of the bill, which is September 1, 2011 or upon receiving a two-thirds vote of both houses. The TCEQ reports that it adopted a new PBR and SP in January 2011 for counties in the Barnett Shaleregion, a 23-county area in the vicinity of Fort Worth. For purposes of this fiscal note, it isassumed that the bills provisions would apply to all counties in the state except for those in theBarnett Shale and that the TCEQ would have until January 5, 2014 to adopt a PBR for the area outside the Barnett Shale. Passage of the bill is expected to result in the TCEQ requiring additional staff hours duringrulemaking projects to perform the additional research and documentation needed to meet theproposed RIA requirements, depending upon the number of additional rulemaking projects. Thisestimate assumes that air monitoring would be done using existing equipment and analysis resources.It is estimated that the additional costs the agency would incur upon passage of the bill could beabsorbed using existing agency resources. If additional air monitoring would be needed to meet therequirements of the bill, costs to the TCEQ could be significant but would depend on the number ofmonitors needed. Local Government Impact No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated. Source Agencies:582 Commission on Environmental Quality LBB Staff: JOB, SZ, TL
LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas
FISCAL NOTE, 82ND LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION
April 7, 2011
TO: Honorable Troy Fraser, Chair, Senate Committee on Natural Resources FROM: John S O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board IN RE:SB1134 by Hegar (Relating to the issuance of permits for certain facilities regulated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
TO: Honorable Troy Fraser, Chair, Senate Committee on Natural Resources
FROM: John S O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE: SB1134 by Hegar (Relating to the issuance of permits for certain facilities regulated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
Honorable Troy Fraser, Chair, Senate Committee on Natural Resources
Honorable Troy Fraser, Chair, Senate Committee on Natural Resources
John S O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board
John S O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board
SB1134 by Hegar (Relating to the issuance of permits for certain facilities regulated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
SB1134 by Hegar (Relating to the issuance of permits for certain facilities regulated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
The bill would prohibit the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) from promulgating new or amending existing authorizations [Permits by Rule (PBR) or Standard Permits (SP)] for the oil and gas industry without performing a regulatory impact analysis (RIA), extensive monitoring, and correlated modeling. The bill would limit the use of worst-case modeling inputs and require actual air quality monitoring data. The bill would provide a definition of planned maintenance, startup, and shutdown (MSS) activities and would extend the deadline for filing an application to authorize MSS activities until January 5, 2014 necessary to maintain certain affirmative defense criteria. The bill would also require that any PBR or SP adopted or amended by the agency that authorizes planned MSS activities must also conduct a RIA, perform monitoring, and perform correlated monitoring. The bill would only apply to a PBR or SP adopted by the agency after the effective date of the bill, which is September 1, 2011 or upon receiving a two-thirds vote of both houses. The TCEQ reports that it adopted a new PBR and SP in January 2011 for counties in the Barnett Shaleregion, a 23-county area in the vicinity of Fort Worth. For purposes of this fiscal note, it isassumed that the bills provisions would apply to all counties in the state except for those in theBarnett Shale and that the TCEQ would have until January 5, 2014 to adopt a PBR for the area outside the Barnett Shale. Passage of the bill is expected to result in the TCEQ requiring additional staff hours duringrulemaking projects to perform the additional research and documentation needed to meet theproposed RIA requirements, depending upon the number of additional rulemaking projects. Thisestimate assumes that air monitoring would be done using existing equipment and analysis resources.It is estimated that the additional costs the agency would incur upon passage of the bill could beabsorbed using existing agency resources. If additional air monitoring would be needed to meet therequirements of the bill, costs to the TCEQ could be significant but would depend on the number ofmonitors needed.
The bill would prohibit the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) from promulgating new or amending existing authorizations [Permits by Rule (PBR) or Standard Permits (SP)] for the oil and gas industry without performing a regulatory impact analysis (RIA), extensive monitoring, and correlated modeling. The bill would limit the use of worst-case modeling inputs and require actual air quality monitoring data. The bill would provide a definition of planned maintenance, startup, and shutdown (MSS) activities and would extend the deadline for filing an application to authorize MSS activities until January 5, 2014 necessary to maintain certain affirmative defense criteria. The bill would also require that any PBR or SP adopted or amended by the agency that authorizes planned MSS activities must also conduct a RIA, perform monitoring, and perform correlated monitoring. The bill would only apply to a PBR or SP adopted by the agency after the effective date of the bill, which is September 1, 2011 or upon receiving a two-thirds vote of both houses.
The TCEQ reports that it adopted a new PBR and SP in January 2011 for counties in the Barnett Shaleregion, a 23-county area in the vicinity of Fort Worth. For purposes of this fiscal note, it isassumed that the bills provisions would apply to all counties in the state except for those in theBarnett Shale and that the TCEQ would have until January 5, 2014 to adopt a PBR for the area outside the Barnett Shale.
Passage of the bill is expected to result in the TCEQ requiring additional staff hours duringrulemaking projects to perform the additional research and documentation needed to meet theproposed RIA requirements, depending upon the number of additional rulemaking projects. Thisestimate assumes that air monitoring would be done using existing equipment and analysis resources.It is estimated that the additional costs the agency would incur upon passage of the bill could beabsorbed using existing agency resources. If additional air monitoring would be needed to meet therequirements of the bill, costs to the TCEQ could be significant but would depend on the number ofmonitors needed.
Local Government Impact
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.
Source Agencies: 582 Commission on Environmental Quality
582 Commission on Environmental Quality
LBB Staff: JOB, SZ, TL
JOB, SZ, TL