84R10566 MAW-F
By: Eltife S.B. No. 1079
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the regulation of water well drillers and water well
pump installers; affecting fees.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 1901.152, Occupations Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 1901.152. LICENSE APPLICATION[; EXAMINATION FEE].
[(a)] An application for a license must contain:
(1) the applicant's name;
(2) the applicant's business address;
(3) the applicant's permanent mailing address; and
(4) any other relevant information required by the
department.
[(b) An applicant must pay to the department an examination
fee at the time the application is submitted.]
SECTION 2. Section 1901.155, Occupations Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 1901.155. LICENSE EXPIRATION; RENEWAL. (a) A license
issued under this chapter expires on the first anniversary of the
date of issuance [annually].
(b) The commission shall by rule establish requirements for
renewing a license issued under this chapter, including the payment
of applicable fees [On or before the license expiration date, a
license holder must pay an annual renewal fee to the department].
SECTION 3. Section 1901.251, Occupations Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 1901.251. WELL REPORT [LOG]. (a) Each driller who
drills, deepens, or otherwise alters a water well in this state
shall make and keep a legible and accurate well report [log] in
accordance with rules adopted by the commission and on forms
prescribed by the executive director. The well report [log] shall
be recorded at the time of drilling, deepening, or otherwise
altering the well and must contain:
(1) the depth, thickness, and character of the strata
penetrated;
(2) the location of water-bearing strata;
(3) the depth, size, and character of casing
installed; and
(4) any other information required by rules adopted by
the commission.
(b) Not later than the 60th day after the date of the
completion or cessation of drilling, deepening, or otherwise
altering the well, the driller shall deliver or send by certified
mail a copy of the well report [log] to:
(1) the department;
(2) the Texas [Natural Resource Conservation]
Commission on Environmental Quality; and
(3) the owner of the well or the person for whom the
well was drilled.
(c) If the department receives, by certified mail, a written
request from the owner of the well or from the person for whom the
well was drilled that the well report [log] be made confidential,
the department shall protect the contents of the well report [log]
as confidential and not a matter of public record.
SECTION 4. Section 1901.301, Occupations Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 1901.301. GROUNDS FOR DISCIPLINARY ACTION. The
commission may discipline a person under Section 51.353 for a
violation of this chapter or a rule adopted under this chapter,
including:
(1) an intentional misstatement or misrepresentation
of a fact on an application or well report [log] or to a person for
whom a well is being drilled, deepened, or otherwise altered;
(2) the failure to keep, deliver, or send a well report
[log] as required by Section 1901.251;
(3) the failure to advise a person for whom a well is
being drilled that:
(A) injurious water has been encountered;
(B) the water is a pollution hazard; and
(C) the well must be immediately plugged in an
acceptable manner; or
(4) the failure to complete a well in accordance with
standards and procedures adopted by the commission.
SECTION 5. Section 1902.152, Occupations Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 1902.152. LICENSE APPLICATION[; EXAMINATION FEE].
[(a)] An application for a license must contain:
(1) the applicant's name;
(2) the applicant's business address;
(3) the applicant's permanent mailing address; and
(4) any other information required by the department.
[(b) An applicant must pay to the department an examination
fee at the time the application is submitted.]
SECTION 6. Section 1902.155, Occupations Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 1902.155. LICENSE EXPIRATION; RENEWAL. (a) A license
issued under this chapter expires on the first anniversary of the
date of issuance [annually].
(b) The commission shall by rule establish requirements for
renewing a license issued under this chapter, including the payment
of applicable fees [On or before the license expiration date, a
license holder must pay an annual renewal fee to the department].
SECTION 7. The following provisions of the Occupations Code
are repealed:
(1) Section 1901.154;
(2) Section 1901.201;
(3) Section 1901.203;
(4) Section 1901.204;
(5) Section 1901.206;
(6) Section 1902.154;
(7) Section 1902.201; and
(8) Section 1902.203.
SECTION 8. Sections 1901.152 and 1902.152, Occupations
Code, as amended by this Act, apply only to an application for a
license under Chapter 1901 or 1902, Occupations Code, as
applicable, that is submitted to the Texas Department of Licensing
and Regulation on or after the effective date of this Act. An
application for a license submitted before the effective date of
this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the
application was submitted, and the former law is continued in
effect for that purpose.
SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.