Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2483 Compare Versions

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1	1	88R11087 JAM-F
2	2	By: King of Uvalde H.B. No. 2483
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to financial assistance provided and programs
8	8	administered by the Texas Water Development Board.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Chapter 15, Water Code, is amended by adding
11	11	Subchapter H-1 to read as follows:
12	12	SUBCHAPTER H-1. WATER FOR TEXAS FUND
13	13	Sec. 15.501. DEFINITION. In this subchapter, "fund" means
14	14	the water for Texas fund.
15	15	Sec. 15.502. FUND. (a) The water for Texas fund is a
16	16	special fund in the state treasury outside the general revenue
17	17	fund. The fund is administered by the board. The fund is not
18	18	subject to legislative appropriation.
19	19	(b) The board may use the fund only to disburse money to
20	20	another fund or account administered by the board, including a fund
21	21	or account established by this chapter.
22	22	(c) The board has legal title to money and investments in
23	23	the fund.
24	24	(d) The comptroller may not use the fund to certify under
25	25	Section 49a, Article III, Texas Constitution, that an amount
26	26	appropriated by a bill is with the amount estimated to be available
27	27	in the affected funds.
28	28	(e) Money in the fund may be used only as provided by this
29	29	subchapter.
30	30	(f) The fund consists of:
31	31	(1) money transferred or deposited to the credit of
32	32	the fund by law, including money from any source transferred or
33	33	deposited to the credit of the fund at the board's discretion as
34	34	authorized by law;
35	35	(2) any other revenue that the legislature by statute
36	36	dedicates for deposit to the credit of the fund;
37	37	(3) investment earnings and interest earned on amounts
38	38	credited to the fund;
39	39	(4) money from gifts, grants, or donations to the
40	40	fund; and
41	41	(5) the redeposit of money disbursed from the fund.
42	42	(g) The board may establish separate accounts in the fund as
43	43	necessary or convenient to administer the fund.
44	44	Sec. 15.503. MANAGEMENT AND INVESTMENT OF FUND. (a) Money
45	45	in the fund shall be invested as determined by the board. The fund
46	46	may be invested with the state treasury pool.
47	47	(b) The fund and any accounts established in the fund shall
48	48	be kept and maintained by or at the direction of the board.
49	49	(c) At the direction of the board, the fund and any accounts
50	50	established in the fund may be managed by the comptroller or a
51	51	corporate trustee that is a trust company or a bank that has the
52	52	powers of a trust company for and on behalf of the board and pending
53	53	their use for the purposes provided by this subchapter may be
54	54	invested as provided by an order, resolution, or rule of the board.
55	55	(d) The comptroller or corporate trustee shall manage the
56	56	fund in strict accordance with this subchapter and the orders,
57	57	resolutions, and rules of the board.
58	58	Sec. 15.504. USE OF FUND. (a) The board may make
59	59	disbursements from the fund to another fund or account administered
60	60	by the board, including a fund or account established by this
61	61	chapter, in the amounts the board determines necessary. Legislative
62	62	appropriation is not required for the board to disburse money from
63	63	the fund.
64	64	(b) The board shall ensure that a portion of the money
65	65	disbursed from the fund is used for:
66	66	(1) water infrastructure projects for:
67	67	(A) rural political subdivisions, as defined by
68	68	Section 15.992; and
69	69	(B) municipalities with a population of less than
70	70	150,000; and
71	71	(2) projects to develop new water supply sources.
72	72	(c) Projects funded under Subsection (b)(2) must be
73	73	designed to develop water supply sources not currently available in
74	74	this state. A project may include:
75	75	(1) acquisition of water rights from another state;
76	76	(2) development of infrastructure to transport water
77	77	from another state;
78	78	(3) a desalination project, including marine and
79	79	brackish water desalination;
80	80	(4) a produced water treatment plant; and
81	81	(5) research into new technology that may lead to the
82	82	development of a significant new water supply source, as determined
83	83	by the board based on the amount of water the technology may
84	84	produce.
85	85	(d) Money disbursed from the fund for the purposes described
86	86	by Subsection (b) may be disbursed to other funds or accounts to be
87	87	used to provide zero interest loans, negative interest loans, loan
88	88	forgiveness, or grants for any purpose described by Subsection (b)
89	89	under criteria developed by the board.
90	90	Sec. 15.505. REDEPOSIT OF MONEY PREVIOUSLY DISBURSED. The
91	91	board may restore to the fund money disbursed from the fund and
92	92	deposited to the credit of another fund or account. Legislative
93	93	appropriation is not required for the board to restore money to the
94	94	fund.
95	95	Sec. 15.506. ADVISORY COMMITTEE. The State Water
96	96	Implementation Fund for Texas Advisory Committee established under
97	97	Section 15.438:
98	98	(1) shall submit comments and recommendations to the
99	99	board regarding the use of money in the fund for use by the board in
100	100	adopting rules under Section 15.507 and in adopting policies and
101	101	procedures under Section 15.508;
102	102	(2) shall review the overall operation, function, and
103	103	structure of the fund at least semiannually and may provide
104	104	comments and recommendations to the board on any matter; and
105	105	(3) may adopt rules, procedures, and policies as
106	106	needed to administer this section and implement its
107	107	responsibilities.
108	108	Sec. 15.507. RULES. The board may adopt rules providing
109	109	for the use of money in the fund that are consistent with this
110	110	subchapter.
111	111	Sec. 15.508. POLICIES AND PROCEDURES TO MITIGATE OR
112	112	MINIMIZE ADVERSE EFFECTS OF CERTAIN FEDERAL LAWS. The board shall
113	113	adopt, and may amend from time to time at the board's discretion,
114	114	policies and procedures for the purpose of mitigating or minimizing
115	115	the adverse effects, if any, of federal laws and regulations
116	116	relating to income taxes, arbitrage, rebates, and related matters
117	117	that may restrict the board's ability to freely invest all or part
118	118	of the fund or to receive and retain all the earnings from the fund.
119	119	Sec. 15.509. NEW WATER SUPPLY INITIATIVE. The board shall
120	120	undertake to acquire through projects funded under Section
121	121	15.504(b)(2) seven million acre-feet of new water supplies from
122	122	sources not previously available in this state by December 31,
123	123	2033.
124	124	SECTION 2. Section 15.994(c), Water Code, is amended to
125	125	read as follows:
126	126	(c) The board may use money in the fund to contract for
127	127	outreach, financial, planning, and technical assistance to assist
128	128	rural political subdivisions [in obtaining and using financing from
129	129	any source] for a purpose described by this section.
130	130	SECTION 3. Section 16.0121, Water Code, is amended by
131	131	adding Subsections (k) and (l) to read as follows:
132	132	(k) The board by rule shall establish a program to provide
133	133	technical assistance to retail public utilities in conducting water
134	134	audits required under Subsections (b) and (b-1) and in applying for
135	135	financial assistance from the board to mitigate the utility
136	136	system's water loss. Rules adopted under this section must provide
137	137	for the prioritization of technical assistance to retail public
138	138	utilities based on:
139	139	(1) water loss audits submitted to the board;
140	140	(2) the population served by the utility; and
141	141	(3) the integrity of the utility's system.
142	142	(l) The board shall submit to the legislature every fifth
143	143	year a water loss report that:
144	144	(1) summarizes the information compiled under
145	145	Subsection (f);
146	146	(2) summarizes the measures taken by retail public
147	147	utilities to reduce water loss; and
148	148	(3) identifies the retail public utilities
149	149	participating in the program established under Subsection (k) and
150	150	details the use of financial assistance provided under that
151	151	subsection.
152	152	SECTION 4. (a) Except as otherwise provided by this Act,
153	153	this Act takes effect September 1, 2023.
154	154	(b) Section 1 of this Act takes effect January 1, 2024, but
155	155	only if the constitutional amendment proposed by the 88th
156	156	Legislature, Regular Session, 2023, creating the water for Texas
157	157	fund to assist in financing water projects in this state is approved
158	158	by the voters. If that constitutional amendment is not approved by
159	159	the voters, Section 1 of this Act has no effect.