89R10218 JRR-F
By: Gerdes H.B. No. 4815
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the liability of owners or operators of certain sources
or facilities for unauthorized emissions caused by the criminal act
of another.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 382.085, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
(c) The prohibitions under Subsections (a) and (b) relating
to the emission of an air contaminant do not apply to the owner or
operator of a source or facility that belongs to a Standard
Industrial Classification Code described in Section 382.051961(a),
and the owner or operator is not subject to civil, administrative,
or criminal liability under Chapter 7, Water Code, for the
emission, if the emission was caused by a criminal act committed by
a person other than the owner or operator of the source or facility.
SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to the emission of an air contaminant that occurs on or after the
effective date of this Act. An emission of an air contaminant that
occurs before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law
in effect on the date the emission occurred, and the former law is
continued in effect for that purpose.
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, 2025.