H.B. No. 1544
AN ACT
relating to the eligibility of land to continue to be appraised for
ad valorem tax purposes as qualified open-space land if the land is
temporarily used for sand mining operations; authorizing a fee.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter D, Chapter 23, Tax Code, is amended by
adding Section 23.527 to read as follows:
Sec. 23.527. TEMPORARY CESSATION OF AGRICULTURAL USE FOR
SAND MINING OPERATION. (a) In this section:
(1) "Commission" means the Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality.
(2) "Executive director" means the executive director
of the commission.
(3) "Marketable material" means sand mined and
processed for sale.
(4) "Sand mining operation" means an aggregate
production operation registered under Chapter 28A, Water Code, at
which sand is removed or extracted.
(5) "Unmarketable material" means material excavated
or mined other than marketable material and includes surface soil,
unmarketable sand, and overburden and interburden encountered
during mining and processing operations.
(b) This section applies only to a sand mining operation
that overlies the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer and is located within:
(1) 30 miles of the boundary of a municipality with a
population of more than 500,000; or
(2) one mile of a building in use as a single-family or
multifamily residence.
(c) The measurement of distance for purposes of Subsection
(b) shall be taken from the point on the sand mining operation that
is nearest to the municipal boundary or residence toward the point
on the municipal boundary or residence that is nearest to the sand
mining operation.
(d) The eligibility of land for appraisal under this
subchapter does not end because the land ceases to be devoted
principally to agricultural use to the degree of intensity
generally accepted in the area if:
(1) the owner of the land intends that the use of the
land in that manner and to that degree of intensity be resumed;
(2) the land is used for a sand mining operation; and
(3) the land is reclaimed according to the standard
best practices adopted under this section not later than the first
anniversary of the date sand mining operations began on the land.
(e) The owner of land to which this section applies must
notify the appraisal office in writing not later than the 30th day
after the date sand mining operations begin on the land that the
owner intends to ensure that the requirements of Subsection (d) are
met.
(f) The commission by rule shall adopt standard best
practices for reclamation of land used for a sand mining operation
to be used for the purposes of this section. The standards must:
(1) provide for the protection of surface water,
groundwater, agricultural land, wildlife habitat, and wetlands;
(2) require reclamation to:
(A) occur concurrently with sand mining
operations by managing the movement of marketable and unmarketable
material encountered during the operations; and
(B) incorporate best practices adopted by the
Natural Resources Conservation Service of the United States
Department of Agriculture;
(3) include post-mining reclamation grade standards;
(4) establish slope stabilization requirements,
including by grading perpendicular to the gradient;
(5) require unmarketable material from the land to be
stockpiled on the land and used as backfill for site restoration;
(6) prohibit the inclusion of material not excavated
from the land in the backfill used for site restoration;
(7) prohibit the stockpiling of unmarketable material
at a horizontal to vertical slope greater than a 3 to 1 ratio;
(8) require surface soil removed during sand mining
operations to be used as the uppermost layer of the final
reclamation grade;
(9) require a reclaimed area to be left for successive
vegetation growth after final reclamation grade standard best
practices have been satisfied; and
(10) encourage the construction of ponds to catch
runoff in locations that are outside critical runoff zones for
rivers.
(g) The commission shall establish a process to allow an
owner of land who submits a notice under Subsection (e) to obtain
from the executive director a letter determining whether the land
that is the subject of the notice was reclaimed according to the
standard best practices adopted under this section in the time
frame required under Subsection (d). The owner must apply to the
executive director for the determination not later than the 90th
day after the first anniversary of the date sand mining operations
began on the land.
(h) The executive director shall:
(1) send notice by regular mail or by electronic means
to the chief appraiser of the appraisal district for the county in
which the land is located that the owner has applied for a
determination letter for the land;
(2) issue a letter to the owner stating the executive
director's determination of whether the land has been reclaimed
according to the standard best practices adopted under this section
in the time frame required under Subsection (d); and
(3) send a copy of the determination letter by regular
mail or by electronic means to the chief appraiser of the appraisal
district for the county in which the land is located.
(i) Not later than the 20th day after the date of receipt of
the letter issued by the executive director, the owner seeking the
determination or the chief appraiser may appeal the executive
director's determination to the commission. The commission shall
consider the appeal at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the
commission for which adequate notice may be given. The owner
seeking the determination and the chief appraiser may testify at
the meeting. The commission may remand the matter to the executive
director for a new determination or deny the appeal and affirm the
executive director's determination. On issuance of a new
determination, the executive director shall issue a letter to the
owner seeking the determination and provide a copy to the chief
appraiser as provided by Subsection (h). A new determination of the
executive director may be appealed to the commission in the manner
provided by this subsection. A proceeding under this subsection is
not a contested case for purposes of Chapter 2001, Government Code.
(j) The executive director shall issue a determination
letter required by Subsection (h) to the owner seeking the
determination, and the commission shall take final action on the
initial appeal under Subsection (i) if an appeal is made, not later
than the first anniversary of the date the executive director
receives the request from the owner for the determination.
(k) The commission may charge an owner seeking a
determination letter under this section a fee not to exceed its
administrative costs for making the determination and issuing the
letter required by this section.
(l) The chief appraiser shall accept a final determination
by the executive director as conclusive evidence that land was
reclaimed according to the standard best practices adopted under
this section in the time frame required under Subsection (d).
SECTION 2. (a) This section applies only to land on which a
sand mining operation began before the effective date of this Act.
(b) Notwithstanding Section 23.527(e), Tax Code, as added
by this Act, the eligibility of the land for appraisal under
Subchapter D, Chapter 23, Tax Code, does not end because the land
ceases to be devoted principally to agricultural use to the degree
of intensity generally accepted in the area if:
(1) the owner of the land provides the notice required
by Section 23.527(e), Tax Code, as added by this Act, not later than
the 90th day after the effective date of this Act; and
(2) the chief appraiser of the appraisal district in
which the land is located has not, as of the effective date of this
Act, made a determination under Section 23.55, Tax Code, that a
change in use of the land has occurred.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2021.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 1544 was passed by the House on April
13, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 146, Nays 1, 1 present, not
voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B.
No. 1544 on May 20, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 143, Nays 0,
1 present, not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 1544 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on May 14, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 25, Nays
5.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________
Date
__________________
Governor