BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 3810

By: Landgraf

Natural Resources

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

The safety, security, and reliability of the state's public water supply is paramount. The fallout from Winter Storm Uri and reviews by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency identifying various violations of water laws in Texas have made clear there are gaps in the communication and response protocols related to public water supply outages and advisories. H.B. 3810 seeks to address the issue of inadequate communication and coordination between public water supply systems, wastewater systems, and regulatory authorities during events that may disrupt the supply of safe drinking water by providing for timely notification when water supply outages or advisories are extant or foreseeable.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

H.B. 3810 amends the Health and Safety Code to require the person in charge of a public water supply system that furnishes water for public or private use or a wastewater system that provides wastewater services for public or private use to maintain internal procedures to notify the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) of a condition that has caused or could cause a public water supply outage or a public water supply system to issue a boil water notice, a do-not-use advisory, or a do-not-consume advisory immediately on determining that the condition may negatively impact the production or delivery of safe and adequate drinking water. The bill authorizes the TCEQ to collaborate with the Texas Division of Emergency Management in regulating the method of providing such notification.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2023.