Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2948 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R14239 SMH-F
2	2	By: Larson H.B. No. 2948
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the state and regional water planning process.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 16, Water Code, is amended
10	10	by adding Section 16.052 to read as follows:
11	11	Sec. 16.052. INTERREGIONAL PLANNING COUNCIL. (a) The
12	12	board, at an appropriate time in each five-year cycle for the
13	13	adoption of a new state water plan, shall appoint an interregional
14	14	planning council. The members of the council serve until a new
15	15	state water plan is adopted.
16	16	(b) The council consists of one member of each regional
17	17	water planning group. Each regional water planning group shall
18	18	nominate one or more members for appointment to the council, and the
19	19	board shall consider the nominations in making appointments to the
20	20	council.
21	21	(c) The purposes of the council are to:
22	22	(1) improve coordination among the regional water
23	23	planning groups, and between each regional water planning group and
24	24	the board, in meeting the goals of the state water planning process
25	25	and the water needs of the state as a whole;
26	26	(2) facilitate dialogue regarding water management
27	27	strategies that could affect multiple regional water planning
28	28	areas; and
29	29	(3) share best practices regarding operation of the
30	30	regional water planning process.
31	31	(d) The council shall:
32	32	(1) hold at least one public meeting; and
33	33	(2) prepare a report to the board on the council's
34	34	work.
35	35	SECTION 2. Section 16.053(e), Water Code, as amended by
36	36	Chapters 756 (H.B. 2031), 990 (H.B. 30), and 1180 (S.B. 1101), Acts
37	37	of the 84th Legislature, Regular Session, 2015, is reenacted and
38	38	amended to read as follows:
39	39	(e) Each regional water planning group shall submit to the
40	40	development board a regional water plan that:
41	41	(1) is consistent with the guidance principles for the
42	42	state water plan adopted by the development board under Section
43	43	16.051(d);
44	44	(2) provides information based on data provided or
45	45	approved by the development board in a format consistent with the
46	46	guidelines provided by the development board under Subsection (d);
47	47	(2-a) is consistent with the desired future conditions
48	48	adopted under Section 36.108 for the relevant aquifers located in
49	49	the regional water planning area as of the date the board most
50	50	recently adopted a state water plan under Section 16.051 or, at the
51	51	option of the regional water planning group, established subsequent
52	52	to the adoption of the most recent plan; provided, however, that if
53	53	no groundwater conservation district exists within the area of the
54	54	regional water planning group, the regional water planning group
55	55	shall determine the supply of groundwater for regional planning
56	56	purposes; the Texas Water Development Board shall review and
57	57	approve, prior to inclusion in the regional water plan, that the
58	58	groundwater supply for the regional planning group without a
59	59	groundwater conservation district in its area is physically
60	60	compatible, using the board's groundwater availability models,
61	61	with the desired future conditions adopted under Section 36.108 for
62	62	the relevant aquifers in the groundwater management area that are
63	63	regulated by groundwater conservation districts;
64	64	(3) identifies:
65	65	(A) each source of water supply in the regional
66	66	water planning area, including information supplied by the
67	67	executive administrator on the amount of modeled available
68	68	groundwater in accordance with the guidelines provided by the
69	69	development board under Subsections (d) and (f);
70	70	(B) factors specific to each source of water
71	71	supply to be considered in determining whether to initiate a
72	72	drought response;
73	73	(C) actions to be taken as part of the response;
74	74	[and]
75	75	(D) existing major water infrastructure
76	76	facilities that may be used for interconnections in the event of an
77	77	emergency shortage of water; and
78	78	(E) unnecessary or counterproductive variations
79	79	in specific drought response strategies, including outdoor
80	80	watering restrictions, among user groups in the regional water
81	81	planning area that may confuse the public or otherwise impede
82	82	drought response efforts;
83	83	(4) has specific provisions for water management
84	84	strategies to be used during a drought of record;
85	85	(5) includes but is not limited to consideration of
86	86	the following:
87	87	(A) any existing water or drought planning
88	88	efforts addressing all or a portion of the region and potential
89	89	impacts on public health, safety, or welfare in this state;
90	90	(B) approved groundwater conservation district
91	91	management plans and other plans submitted under Section 16.054;
92	92	(C) all potentially feasible water management
93	93	strategies, including but not limited to improved conservation,
94	94	reuse, and management of existing water supplies, conjunctive use,
95	95	acquisition of available existing water supplies, and development
96	96	of new water supplies;
97	97	(D) protection of existing water rights in the
98	98	region;
99	99	(E) opportunities for and the benefits of
100	100	developing regional water supply facilities or providing regional
101	101	management of water supply facilities;
102	102	(F) appropriate provision for environmental
103	103	water needs and for the effect of upstream development on the bays,
104	104	estuaries, and arms of the Gulf of Mexico and the effect of plans on
105	105	navigation;
106	106	(G) provisions in Section 11.085(k)(1) if
107	107	interbasin transfers are contemplated;
108	108	(H) voluntary transfer of water within the region
109	109	using, but not limited to, regional water banks, sales, leases,
110	110	options, subordination agreements, and financing agreements;
111	111	(I) emergency transfer of water under Section
112	112	11.139, including information on the part of each permit, certified
113	113	filing, or certificate of adjudication for nonmunicipal use in the
114	114	region that may be transferred without causing unreasonable damage
115	115	to the property of the nonmunicipal water rights holder; and
116	116	(J) opportunities for and the benefits of
117	117	developing large-scale desalination facilities for:
118	118	(i) marine seawater that serve local or
119	119	regional entities; and
120	120	(ii) [(J) opportunities for and the
121	121	benefits of developing large-scale desalination facilities for
122	122	seawater or] brackish groundwater that serve local or regional
123	123	brackish groundwater production zones identified and designated
124	124	under Section 16.060(b)(5);
125	125	(6) identifies river and stream segments of unique
126	126	ecological value and sites of unique value for the construction of
127	127	reservoirs that the regional water planning group recommends for
128	128	protection under Section 16.051;
129	129	(7) assesses the impact of the plan on unique river and
130	130	stream segments identified in Subdivision (6) if the regional water
131	131	planning group or the legislature determines that a site of unique
132	132	ecological value exists;
133	133	(8) describes the impact of proposed water projects on
134	134	water quality; [and]
135	135	(9) includes information on:
136	136	(A) projected water use and conservation in the
137	137	regional water planning area; and
138	138	(B) the implementation of state and regional
139	139	water plan projects, including water conservation strategies,
140	140	necessary to meet the state's projected water demands;
141	141	(10) if the regional water planning area has
142	142	significant identified water needs, provides a specific assessment
143	143	of the potential for aquifer storage and recovery projects to meet
144	144	those needs;
145	145	(11) sets one or more specific goals for gallons of
146	146	water use per capita per day in each decade of the period covered by
147	147	the plan for the municipal water user groups in the regional water
148	148	planning area; and
149	149	(12) assesses the progress of the regional water
150	150	planning area in encouraging cooperation between water user groups
151	151	for the purpose of achieving economies of scale and otherwise
152	152	incentivizing strategies that benefit the entire region.
153	153	SECTION 3. Section 16.053(i), Water Code, is amended to
154	154	read as follows:
155	155	(i) The regional water planning groups shall submit their
156	156	adopted regional water plans to the board by January 5, 2001, for
157	157	approval and inclusion in the state water plan. In conjunction with
158	158	the submission of regional water plans, each planning group should
159	159	make legislative recommendations, if any, to facilitate more
160	160	voluntary water transfers in the region or for any other changes
161	161	that the members of the planning group believe would improve the
162	162	water planning process. Subsequent regional water plans shall be
163	163	submitted at least every five years thereafter. Public
164	164	participation for revised regional plans shall follow the
165	165	procedures under Subsection (h).
166	166	SECTION 4. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
167	167	over another Act of the 85th Legislature, Regular Session, 2017,
168	168	relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
169	169	codes.
170	170	SECTION 5. The Texas Water Development Board shall appoint
171	171	the members of the initial interregional planning council under
172	172	Section 16.052, Water Code, as added by this Act, not later than
173	173	September 1, 2018.
174	174	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
175	175	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
176	176	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
177	177	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
178	178	Act takes effect September 1, 2017.