Texas 2017 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3177 Comm Sub / Bill

Filed 05/02/2017

                    85R24399 SLB-F
 By: Lucio III H.B. No. 3177
 Substitute the following for H.B. No. 3177:
 By:  Larson C.S.H.B. No. 3177


 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 AN ACT
 relating to the delegation of matters to the executive director of
 the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 SECTION 1.  Section 5.122(a), Water Code, is amended to read
 as follows:
 (a)  The commission by rule or order may delegate to the
 executive director the commission's authority to act on an
 application or other request to issue, renew, reopen, transfer,
 amend, extend, withdraw, revoke, terminate, or modify a permit,
 license, certificate, registration, or other authorization or
 approval if:
 (1)  required notice of the application or request for
 the authorization or approval has been given;
 (2)  the holder of or applicant for the authorization
 or approval agrees in writing to the action to be taken by the
 executive director; and
 (3)  the application or request:
 (A)  is uncontested and does not require an
 evidentiary hearing; [or]
 (B)  has become uncontested before parties are
 named because each person who requested a contested case hearing
 within the time allowed by law has:
 (i)  withdrawn the request for a contested
 case hearing without condition;
 (ii)  withdrawn the request for a contested
 case hearing conditioned only on the withdrawal of all other
 hearing requests; or
 (iii)  agreed in writing to the action to be
 taken by the executive director; or
 (C)  has become uncontested because all parties
 have agreed in writing to the action to be taken by the executive
 director.
 SECTION 2.  Section 5.351, Water Code, is amended by adding
 Subsection (c) to read as follows:
 (c)  Notwithstanding Subsection (b), a person affected by a
 ruling, order, or decision on a matter delegated to the executive
 director under Section 5.122 or other law may file a petition to
 review, set aside, modify, or suspend the ruling, order, or
 decision not later than the 30th day after:
 (1)  the effective date of the ruling, order, or
 decision; or
 (2)  if the executive director's ruling, order, or
 decision is appealed to the commission as authorized by Section
 5.122(b) or other law, the earlier of:
 (A)  the date the commission denies the appeal; or
 (B)  the date the appeal is overruled by operation
 of law in accordance with commission rules.
 SECTION 3.  The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
 a matter delegated to the executive director of the Texas
 Commission on Environmental Quality under Section 5.122, Water
 Code, as amended by this Act, on or after the effective date of this
 Act. A matter delegated before the effective date of this Act is
 governed by the law in effect at the time the matter was delegated,
 and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
 SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.