The bill would amend and add several sections to the Health and Safety Code and the Water Code. It would continue the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) for twelve years and set the next Sunset review date for the TCEQ to be in 2035. The bill would repeal the abolishment clauses for the Environmental Flows Advisory Group and Science Advisory Committee.
The bill would require TCEQ to update its board member training manual and require board members to annually attest to receiving and reviewing the manual; leave the public comment period open for 36 hours following a public hearing on air permit applications; post permit applications, revisions, amendments, and associated materials at the time the application becomes administratively complete but allows the agency to exclude supporting materials too large to post online; include certain applicant information on each public notice including the applicant's name, the type of permit, and the location of the proposed or existing permitted facility; and send notice to state representatives and senators of an application for a new municipal utility district or other type of district proposed in an area they represent.
The bill would require TCEQ to consider the number of minor, moderate, and major violations when setting the criteria for an entity to be classified as a repeat violator and would allow TCEQ's Executive Director to review, suspend, or reclassify permitted entities' compliance history if the Executive Director finds that exigent circumstances exist. The bill would increase the maximum administrative penalty from $25,000 to $40,000 per day for each violation that involves a release of a harmful level of pollutants or an actual unlawful diversion of water.
The bill would add statute authorizing TCEQ to hold public meetings virtually and to publish notices of permit applications on its website and through other means. Under the provisions of the bill, the commission would be required to consider and accommodate individuals in the affected area who do not have access to the internet. The bill would not authorize TCEQ to utilize its online website to post notifications of permits online if that does not comply with federally required posting notices.
The bill would create a diversion program for small business and local governments. The bill would require that the program include compliance assistance training, technical assistance and training. The bill would prohibit TCEQ from pursing enforcement action against a small business or local government after the entity has completed the diversion program.
The bill would require that entities with a temporary or open-ended permit annually confirm the operational status of the permitted facility. The bill would require that all temporary or open-ended permit holders confirm their operation status by December 31, 2024.
The bill would create a new type of permit for temporary concrete batch plant operations related to a public works project. The newly created permit would be governed by the existing environmental regulations applied to permanent concrete batch plants. The bill would set a limit of 180 days or to supply material for a single project but not for other unrelated projects. The bill creates requirements for providing notice of the permitting of a temporary concrete batch plant.
The bill would require the Environmental Flows Advisory Group to adopt a biennial statewide work plan for updating environmental flow standards and require the Advisory Group to submit the work plan to TCEQ.