By Saunders H.B. No. 1385
74R5668 MI-F
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the limitation and termination of annual cost recovery
1-3 fees for regional water quality assessments.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Section 26.0135(h), Water Code, as amended by
1-6 Section 1, Chapter 53, by Section 1, Chapter 316, by Section 1.01,
1-7 Chapter 564, and by Section 4, Chapter 746, Acts of the 73rd
1-8 Legislature, Regular Session, 1993, is amended to read as follows:
1-9 (h) The commission shall apportion, assess, and recover the
1-10 reasonable costs of administering the water quality management
1-11 programs under this section through the fiscal year ending August
1-12 31, 1998, from users of water and wastewater permit holders in the
1-13 watershed according to the records of the commission generally in
1-14 proportion to their right, through permit or contract, to use water
1-15 from and discharge wastewater in the watershed. The cost to river
1-16 authorities and others to conduct regional water quality assessment
1-17 shall be subject to prior review and approval by the commission as
1-18 to methods of allocation and total amount to be recovered. The
1-19 commission shall adopt rules to supervise and implement the water
1-20 quality assessment and associated costs. The rules shall ensure
1-21 that water users and wastewater dischargers do not pay excessive
1-22 amounts, that a river authority may recover no more than the actual
1-23 costs of administering the water quality management programs called
1-24 for in this section, and that no municipality shall be assessed
2-1 cost for any efforts that duplicate water quality management
2-2 activities described in Section 26.177 of this chapter. The rules
2-3 concerning the apportionment and assessment of reasonable costs
2-4 shall provide for a recovery of not more than $5,000,000 annually
2-5 through the <for> fiscal year ending August 31, 1998 <years 1994
2-6 and 1995>. Costs recovered by the commission are to be deposited
2-7 to the water quality fund. The commission may apply not more than
2-8 10 percent of the costs recovered annually toward the commission's
2-9 overhead costs <and are appropriated to the commission> for the
2-10 administration of this section and the implementation of regional
2-11 water quality assessments. The commission shall file a final
2-12 written report accounting for the costs recovered under this
2-13 section with the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the speaker
2-14 of the house of representatives on or before December 31, 1998.
2-15 This subsection expires January 1, 1999.
2-16 SECTION 2. The importance of this legislation and the
2-17 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-18 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-19 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-20 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
2-21 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
2-22 passage, and it is so enacted.