Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1304 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R9834 JAM-F
2	2	By: Blanco S.B. No. 1304
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the provision by the Texas Commission on Environmental
8	8	Quality of certain information in a language other than English.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Subchapter E, Chapter 5, Water Code, is amended
11	11	by adding Section 5.1731 to read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 5.1731. DUTY TO RESPOND IN LANGUAGE RECEIVED. The
13	13	commission shall respond to a request for information, public
14	14	comment, response to notice, or other inquiry or correspondence
15	15	within the jurisdiction of the commission in the language in which
16	16	the matter was received by the commission.
17	17	SECTION 2. Subchapter M, Chapter 5, Water Code, is amended
18	18	by adding Section 5.5531 to read as follows:
19	19	Sec. 5.5531. MAILED NOTICE IN ALTERNATIVE LANGUAGE. (a) A
20	20	notice required to be mailed under this subchapter or under Chapter
21	21	26 or 27 of this code or Chapter 361, Health and Safety Code, must be
22	22	sent in the alternative language in which a bilingual education
23	23	program is or would have been taught if either the elementary or
24	24	middle school nearest to the facility or proposed facility is
25	25	required to provide a bilingual education program as required by
26	26	Subchapter B, Chapter 29, Education Code, and:
27	27	(1) students are enrolled in a program at that school;
28	28	(2) students from that school attend a bilingual
29	29	education program at another location; or
30	30	(3) the school that otherwise would be required to
31	31	provide a bilingual education program has been granted an exception
32	32	from the requirements to provide the program as provided by rules of
33	33	the Texas Education Agency.
34	34	(b) The applicant shall pay the costs associated with
35	35	mailing notice under this section, including costs for the
36	36	translation of the notice into a language other than English.
37	37	SECTION 3. Section 5.554, Water Code, is amended to read as
38	38	follows:
39	39	Sec. 5.554. PUBLIC MEETING. (a) During the public comment
40	40	period, the executive director may hold one or more public meetings
41	41	in the county in which the facility is located or proposed to be
42	42	located. The executive director shall hold a public meeting:
43	43	(1) on the request of a member of the legislature who
44	44	represents the general area in which the facility is located or
45	45	proposed to be located; or
46	46	(2) if the executive director determines that there is
47	47	substantial public interest in the proposed activity.
48	48	(b) If notice of the public meeting was required to be
49	49	mailed in a language other than English under Section 5.5531, the
50	50	commission shall provide a translation of the transcript of the
51	51	meeting in each language in which the notice was required to be
52	52	mailed. A transcript produced under this subsection must be:
53	53	(1) paid for by the applicant for the proposed
54	54	activity; and
55	55	(2) made publicly available in the same manner and
56	56	from the same location as other written or audio records of the
57	57	meeting.
58	58	SECTION 4. Section 5.555, Water Code, is amended by adding
59	59	Subsection (c) to read as follows:
60	60	(c) If a notice associated with the permit is required to be
61	61	mailed in a language other than English under Section 5.5531, the
62	62	commission shall provide a translation of the responses to public
63	63	comment in each language in which the notice was required to be
64	64	sent. The applicant shall pay the costs associated with a
65	65	translation made under this subsection.
66	66	SECTION 5. Subchapter M, Chapter 5, Water Code, as amended
67	67	by this Act, applies only to a permit application that is filed with
68	68	the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality on or after the
69	69	effective date of this Act. A permit application filed before the
70	70	effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
71	71	date of filing, and that law is continued in effect for that
72	72	purpose.
73	73	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.