Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB4256 Compare Versions

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1	1	H.B. No. 4256
2	2
3	3
4	4	AN ACT
5	5	relating to the establishment of a grant program to plug leaking
6	6	water wells in certain counties.
7	7	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8	8	SECTION 1. Chapter 28, Water Code, is amended by adding
9	9	Subchapter E to read as follows:
10	10	SUBCHAPTER E. LEAKING WATER WELLS GRANT PROGRAM
11	11	Sec. 28.101. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
12	12	(1) "District" means a district or authority created
13	13	under Section 52, Article III, or Section 59, Article XVI, Texas
14	14	Constitution, that has the authority to regulate the spacing of
15	15	water wells, the production of water wells, or both.
16	16	(2) "Fund" means the leaking water wells fund created
17	17	under Section 28.103.
18	18	(3) "Program" means the leaking water wells program
19	19	established under Section 28.104.
20	20	Sec. 28.102. APPLICABILITY OF SUBCHAPTER. This subchapter
21	21	applies only to a district in a county that:
22	22	(1) has a population of 16,000 or less; and
23	23	(2) is adjacent to at least seven counties with
24	24	populations of less than 15,000.
25	25	Sec. 28.103. LEAKING WATER WELLS FUND. (a) The leaking
26	26	water wells fund is created as a fund in the state treasury outside
27	27	the general revenue fund.
28	28	(b) The fund consists of:
29	29	(1) money appropriated, credited, or transferred to
30	30	the fund by the legislature;
31	31	(2) gifts or grants contributed to the fund; and
32	32	(3) interest earned on deposits and investments of the
33	33	fund.
34	34	(c) Interest earned on money deposited to the credit of the
35	35	fund is exempt from Section 404.071, Government Code. Interest
36	36	earned on money in the fund shall be retained in the fund.
37	37	(d) The fund may be used only to implement the program
38	38	established under Section 28.104, including the costs of program
39	39	administration and operation.
40	40	Sec. 28.104. LEAKING WATER WELLS PROGRAM. The commission
41	41	shall establish and administer the leaking water wells program to
42	42	plug leaking water wells. Under the program, the commission shall
43	43	provide grants to districts for eligible projects to offset the
44	44	cost of plugging leaking water wells.
45	45	Sec. 28.105. APPLICATION FOR GRANT. (a) A district may
46	46	apply for and receive a grant for an eligible project under the
47	47	program.
48	48	(b) An application for a grant under this subchapter must be
49	49	made on a form provided by the commission and must contain the
50	50	information required by the commission.
51	51	Sec. 28.106. ELIGIBILITY OF PROJECTS FOR GRANTS;
52	52	PRIORITIZATION. (a) To be eligible for a grant for a project, a
53	53	district must:
54	54	(1) demonstrate that the project includes a leaking
55	55	water well:
56	56	(A) that:
57	57	(i) is located within 2,000 feet of a
58	58	drinking water well, a water well for livestock or irrigation, or a
59	59	sensitive wildlife area; or
60	60	(ii) has seasonal or annual flow to the
61	61	surface, or a hydrological connection to surface water, including a
62	62	waterway, intermittent stream, or springs system; and
63	63	(B) of which:
64	64	(i) the plug, casing, completion interval,
65	65	or general integrity is known by the district to be deficient; or
66	66	(ii) the completion interval is
67	67	sufficiently proximate to other known intervals or pressurized
68	68	zones with high concentrations of salinity, chlorides, sulfides, or
69	69	other hazardous or toxic components;
70	70	(2) obtain any necessary approval from a surface owner
71	71	for access to the property where the leaking water well is located;
72	72	and
73	73	(3) as necessary and subject to Subsection (b), engage
74	74	in a bid process to select and hire a contractor or subcontractor to
75	75	perform the work.
76	76	(b) Notwithstanding any other law, a contract for work on a
77	77	project for which a grant is provided under the program:
78	78	(1) must be awarded to a contractor or subcontractor
79	79	selected from a list of approved well pluggers maintained by the
80	80	Railroad Commission of Texas; and
81	81	(2) may be awarded to the contractor or subcontractor
82	82	whose bid or proposal the recipient of the grant determines
83	83	provides the best value for the recipient based on the selection
84	84	criteria published by the recipient.
85	85	(c) The commission by rule shall establish criteria for
86	86	prioritizing projects eligible to receive a grant under the
87	87	program.
88	88	Sec. 28.107. RESTRICTION ON USE OF GRANT. (a) A recipient
89	89	of a grant provided under the program may use the grant only to pay
90	90	the cost of the project for which the grant is provided. A recipient
91	91	may not use the grant to pay administrative costs associated with
92	92	the project.
93	93	(b) A leaking water well plugged under the program must be
94	94	permanently plugged. The commission, in consultation with the
95	95	Railroad Commission of Texas, shall establish criteria for ensuring
96	96	that a well is permanently plugged.
97	97	(c) The amount of a grant provided under the program that is
98	98	not spent for the completion of a project must be returned to the
99	99	commission for deposit to the credit of the fund.
100	100	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
101	101	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
102	102	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
103	103	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
104	104	Act takes effect September 1, 2023.
105	105	______________________________ ______________________________
106	106	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
107	107	I certify that H.B. No. 4256 was passed by the House on April
108	108	27, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 131, Nays 17, 1 present, not
109	109	voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B.
110	110	No. 4256 on May 25, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 123, Nays 17,
111	111	2 present, not voting.
112	112	______________________________
113	113	Chief Clerk of the House
114	114	I certify that H.B. No. 4256 was passed by the Senate, with
115	115	amendments, on May 23, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays
116	116	1.
117	117	______________________________
118	118	Secretary of the Senate
119	119	APPROVED: __________________
120	120	Date
121	121	__________________
122	122	Governor