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House Bill 3987 |
House Author: Larson et al. |
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Effective: Vetoed |
Senate Sponsor: Hinojosa |
House Bill 3987, the Texas State Water Investment Fund Act, amends the Water Code to require the comptroller of public accounts to establish a subaccount in the Texas Water Development Fund II state participation account to be known as the state participation account II. The bill authorizes the Texas Water Development Board to use the state participation account II to provide financial assistance for the development of a desalination or aquifer storage and recovery facility to meet existing or projected future water needs by acquiring such a facility or an ownership interest in such a facility and sets out related provisions.
Governor's Reason for Veto: "House Bill 3987 would have created a new state account to provide taxpayer funding for the acquisition and development of certain water facilities. These facilities are already eligible for state funding under the Texas Water Development Fund II state participation account, provided that they cannot be adequately funded with local resources. The purpose of that requirement is to ensure that state resources are used in an efficient manner by denying funding for local projects that already have access to sufficient financial resources. House Bill 3987 exempts desalination and aquifer facility projects from meeting this financial requirement. Additionally, because current law already authorizes the Texas Water Development Board to provide funding for desalination and aquifer storage and recovery facilities, House Bill 3987 is largely unnecessary. The next Legislature should seek to promote desalination and aquifer projects more effectively."