BILL ANALYSIS S.B. 1660 By: Ratliff (Yost) May 11, 1995 Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND Historically, environmental enforcement cases were commonly settled by the entry of agreed orders that only recited the allegations of the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission. A respondent made no admission that the respondent had violated any commission rule. More recently, however, the commission has been insisting that Texas law requires the commission to make substantive findings of fact and conclusions of law in agreed orders. A respondent who signs such an agreed order is vulnerable to tort actions by private parties. Texas considers a violation of statutes or regulations to be negligence, and recognizes a cause of action in negligence per se. Thus, plaintiffs in tort litigation may try to use the commission's recitation of adverse findings and conclusions against a respondent. PURPOSE As proposed, S.B. 1660 authorizes the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission to limit its findings of fact and conclusions of law in agreed orders to jurisdictional findings. The bill also authorizes an agreed order to include a reservation that the order is not an admission of wrongdoing or intended for use in private litigation. 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. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 26.136, Water Code, by adding Subsections (p) and (q), as follows: (p) Declares that the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (commission) is not required to make findings of fact or conclusions of law, other than an uncontested finding that the commission has jurisdiction, in an agreed order compromising or settling an alleged violation of this chapter. Authorizes an agreed order to include a reservation that the order is not an admission of a violation of this chapter or a rule adopted under this chapter, the occurrence of a violation is in dispute, or the order is not intended to become part of a party's or a facility's compliance history. (q) Provides that an agreed order issued by the commission shall not be admissible against a party to that order in a civil proceeding, unless the proceeding is brought by the attorney general's office to (1) enforce the terms of that order, or (2) pursue violations of the Water Code or Health and Safety Code. SECTION 2. Amends Section 361.251, Health and Safety Code, by adding Subsections (v) and (w), to make a conforming change. SECTION 3. Amends Section 361.252, Health and Safety Code, by adding Subsections (r) and (s), to make a conforming change. SECTION 4. Amends Section 382.088, Health and Safety Code, by adding Subsections (k) and (l), to make a conforming change. SECTION 5. Effective date: September 1, 1995. SECTION 6. Emergency clause. SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION S.B.1660 was considered by the committee in a formal meeting on May 11, 1995. No testimony was received. The bill was reported favorably without amendment, with the recommendation that it do pass and be printed, by a record vote of 7 ayes, 0 nays, 0 pnv, 2 absent.