Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2581 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R6999 PMO-D
2	2	By: Springer H.B. No. 2581
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to governmental actions affecting private property rights
8	8	in certain oil and gas wells.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 2007.002(4), Government Code, is amended
11	11	to read as follows:
12	12	(4) "Private real property" means an interest in real
13	13	property recognized by common law, including any interest in an oil
14	14	or natural gas well or a groundwater or surface water right of any
15	15	kind, that is not owned by the federal government, this state, or a
16	16	political subdivision of this state.
17	17	SECTION 2. Sections 2007.003(a) and (b), Government Code,
18	18	are amended to read as follows:
19	19	(a) This chapter applies only to the following governmental
20	20	actions:
21	21	(1) the adoption or issuance of an ordinance, rule,
22	22	regulatory requirement, resolution, policy, guideline, or similar
23	23	measure;
24	24	(2) an action that imposes a physical invasion or
25	25	requires a dedication or exaction of private real property;
26	26	(3) an action by a municipality that has effect in the
27	27	extraterritorial jurisdiction of the municipality, excluding
28	28	annexation, and that enacts or enforces an ordinance, rule,
29	29	regulation, or plan that does not impose identical requirements or
30	30	restrictions in the entire extraterritorial jurisdiction of the
31	31	municipality; [and]
32	32	(4) enforcement of a governmental action listed in
33	33	Subdivisions (1) through (3), whether the enforcement of the
34	34	governmental action is accomplished through the use of permitting,
35	35	citations, orders, judicial or quasi-judicial proceedings, or
36	36	other similar means; and
37	37	(5) an action by a political subdivision that imposes
38	38	or enforces a limitation that has the effect of preventing or
39	39	prohibiting the development of an oil or gas well that has been
40	40	permitted by the Texas Railroad Commission under Chapter 91,
41	41	Natural Resources Code.
42	42	(b) This chapter does not apply to the following
43	43	governmental actions:
44	44	(1) an action by a municipality except as provided by
45	45	Subsection (a)(3) or (5);
46	46	(2) a lawful forfeiture or seizure of contraband as
47	47	defined by Article 59.01, Code of Criminal Procedure;
48	48	(3) a lawful seizure of property as evidence of a crime
49	49	or violation of law;
50	50	(4) an action, including an action of a political
51	51	subdivision, that is reasonably taken to fulfill an obligation
52	52	mandated by federal law or an action of a political subdivision that
53	53	is reasonably taken to fulfill an obligation mandated by state law;
54	54	(5) the discontinuance or modification of a program or
55	55	regulation that provides a unilateral expectation that does not
56	56	rise to the level of a recognized interest in private real property;
57	57	(6) an action taken to prohibit or restrict a
58	58	condition or use of private real property if the governmental
59	59	entity proves that the condition or use constitutes a public or
60	60	private nuisance as defined by background principles of nuisance
61	61	and property law of this state;
62	62	(7) an action taken out of a reasonable good faith
63	63	belief that the action is necessary to prevent a grave and immediate
64	64	threat to life or property;
65	65	(8) a formal exercise of the power of eminent domain;
66	66	(9) an action taken under a state mandate to prevent
67	67	waste of oil and gas, protect correlative rights of owners of
68	68	interests in oil or gas, or prevent pollution related to oil and gas
69	69	activities;
70	70	(10) a rule or proclamation adopted for the purpose of
71	71	regulating water safety, hunting, fishing, or control of
72	72	nonindigenous or exotic aquatic resources;
73	73	(11) an action taken by a political subdivision:
74	74	(A) to regulate construction in an area
75	75	designated under law as a floodplain;
76	76	(B) to regulate on-site sewage facilities;
77	77	(C) under the political subdivision's
78	78	[subdivisions's] statutory authority to prevent waste or protect
79	79	rights of owners of interest in groundwater; or
80	80	(D) to prevent subsidence;
81	81	(12) the appraisal of property for purposes of ad
82	82	valorem taxation;
83	83	(13) an action that:
84	84	(A) is taken in response to a real and
85	85	substantial threat to public health and safety;
86	86	(B) is designed to significantly advance the
87	87	health and safety purpose; and
88	88	(C) does not impose a greater burden than is
89	89	necessary to achieve the health and safety purpose; [or]
90	90	(14) an action or rulemaking undertaken by the Public
91	91	Utility Commission of Texas to order or require the location or
92	92	placement of telecommunications equipment owned by another party on
93	93	the premises of a certificated local exchange company; or
94	94	(15) an action described by Subsection (a)(5) that
95	95	imposes or enforces a reasonable standard established by the
96	96	political subdivision for oil or gas wells relating to:
97	97	(A) visual aesthetics;
98	98	(B) noise abatement; or
99	99	(C) hours of operation.
100	100	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.