| 1 | 1 | | 89R71 LRM-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Swanson H.B. No. 516 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | |
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| 6 | 6 | | |
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| 7 | 7 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 8 | 8 | | AN ACT |
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| 9 | 9 | | relating to notice of a water service interruption provided by |
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| 10 | 10 | | public water systems in unincorporated areas of certain counties. |
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| 11 | 11 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 12 | 12 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 341, Health and Safety |
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| 13 | 13 | | Code, is amended by adding Section 341.03561 to read as follows: |
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| 14 | 14 | | Sec. 341.03561. REQUIRED NOTICE OF WATER SERVICE |
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| 15 | 15 | | INTERRUPTION PROVIDED BY CERTAIN PUBLIC WATER SYSTEMS TO FIRE |
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| 16 | 16 | | DEPARTMENTS. (a) In this section: |
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| 17 | 17 | | (1) "Fire department" has the meaning assigned by |
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| 18 | 18 | | Section 795.001. |
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| 19 | 19 | | (2) "Hydrant" has the meaning assigned by Section |
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| 20 | 20 | | 341.03571. |
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| 21 | 21 | | (3) "Public safety answering point" has the meaning |
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| 22 | 22 | | assigned by Section 772.001. |
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| 23 | 23 | | (4) "Regulatory authority" means the Texas Commission |
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| 24 | 24 | | on Environmental Quality or the Public Utility Commission of Texas. |
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| 25 | 25 | | (b) This section applies only to a public water system |
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| 26 | 26 | | located in the unincorporated area of a county that contains a |
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| 27 | 27 | | municipality in which the governing body of the municipality or |
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| 28 | 28 | | another regulatory authority has adopted standards to require the |
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| 29 | 29 | | installation and maintenance of a hydrant in accordance with |
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| 30 | 30 | | Section 341.0358, 341.03585, or 341.0359. |
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| 31 | 31 | | (c) The regulatory authority of a public water system to |
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| 32 | 32 | | which this section applies shall by rule require the public water |
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| 33 | 33 | | system to provide to each fire department providing fire |
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| 34 | 34 | | suppression services in the area where the hydrant is located |
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| 35 | 35 | | notice of a water service interruption that renders the hydrant |
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| 36 | 36 | | temporarily unavailable for use in a fire emergency. The notice |
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| 37 | 37 | | must be provided: |
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| 38 | 38 | | (1) for a planned water service interruption, before |
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| 39 | 39 | | the interruption begins; and |
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| 40 | 40 | | (2) for an unplanned water service interruption of |
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| 41 | 41 | | three hours or more, as soon as practicable but not later than 24 |
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| 42 | 42 | | hours from the time the authority is first notified or otherwise |
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| 43 | 43 | | becomes aware of the interruption. |
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| 44 | 44 | | (d) A public water system to which this section applies |
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| 45 | 45 | | shall provide to each fire department notified of a water service |
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| 46 | 46 | | interruption under Subsection (c) notice of the water service's |
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| 47 | 47 | | resumption not later than two hours after the time the water service |
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| 48 | 48 | | is resumed. |
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| 49 | 49 | | (e) For purposes of this section, a hydrant unavailable for |
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| 50 | 50 | | pumping directly from the hydrant is unavailable for use in a fire |
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| 51 | 51 | | emergency. |
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| 52 | 52 | | (f) For purposes of providing the required notices under |
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| 53 | 53 | | Subsections (c) and (d), the regulatory authority of a public water |
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| 54 | 54 | | system may approve the use of: |
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| 55 | 55 | | (1) a dynamic information database described by |
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| 56 | 56 | | Section 418.192, Government Code; and |
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| 57 | 57 | | (2) the public water system's Internet website or a |
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| 58 | 58 | | social media platform, as defined by Section 120.001, Business & |
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| 59 | 59 | | Commerce Code, that allows fire departments to subscribe to or |
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| 60 | 60 | | otherwise receive notices from the website or platform. |
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| 61 | 61 | | (g) The regulatory authority of a public water system may |
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| 62 | 62 | | delegate the system's duty to provide notice under Subsection (c) |
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| 63 | 63 | | or (d) to a public safety answering point that relays information to |
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| 64 | 64 | | fire departments providing fire suppression services in the area |
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| 65 | 65 | | where the affected hydrant is located. A public safety answering |
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| 66 | 66 | | point delegated the duty to provide notice under Subsection (c) or |
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| 67 | 67 | | (d) must provide that notice in accordance with the applicable time |
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| 68 | 68 | | for notice under those subsections. |
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| 69 | 69 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 70 | 70 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 71 | 71 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 72 | 72 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 73 | 73 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |
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