By Puente                                       H.B. No. 1131

      75R4824 MI-F                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the creation by the attorney general of an

 1-3     environmental hotline.

 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Subchapter B, Chapter 402, Government Code, is

 1-6     amended by adding Section 402.029 to read as follows:

 1-7           Sec. 402.029.  ENVIRONMENTAL HOTLINE; PAYMENTS.  (a)  The

 1-8     attorney general, in coordination with the commission, shall

 1-9     establish and maintain a toll-free telephone line for receiving

1-10     reports concerning violations or suspected violations of

1-11     environmental laws.  The attorney general shall publicize the

1-12     availability of this telephone line.

1-13           (b)  The attorney general, in coordination and by joint

1-14     rulemaking with the commission, shall provide for payment to a

1-15     person who reports information that substantially contributes to

1-16     obtaining a criminal conviction or the assessment of a criminal,

1-17     civil, or administrative penalty for the violation of an

1-18     environmental law.  The payment shall be in an amount equal to 10

1-19     percent of the fine or civil or administrative penalty ordered or

1-20     agreed to by the alleged violator, if the fine or penalty is

1-21     attributable to information concerning a violation of an

1-22     environmental law reported to the state by the person through use

1-23     of the toll-free telephone line or otherwise.

1-24           (c)  The state or local attorney in charge of the criminal

 2-1     prosecution of an alleged violator or the action to recover a civil

 2-2     or administrative penalty from an alleged violator shall determine

 2-3     whether information concerning the violation substantially

 2-4     contributed to obtaining a criminal conviction, the assessment of a

 2-5     criminal, civil, or administrative penalty, or an agreement with

 2-6     the alleged violator for the payment of a fine or penalty.

 2-7           (d)  The attorney general by rule shall provide that an

 2-8     amount equal to not more than 10 percent of the total amount of

 2-9     fines or civil or administrative penalties assessed by the state or

2-10     agreed to by the alleged violator and collected by the state in a

2-11     fiscal year for an alleged violation of an environmental law shall

2-12     be deposited into a special account in the general revenue fund to

2-13     be used only for the maintenance of the toll-free telephone line

2-14     established under this section, the investigation of alleged

2-15     violations of environmental law, and for payments authorized under

2-16     this section.

2-17           (e)  In this section:

2-18                 (1)  "Commission" means the Texas Natural Resource

2-19     Conservation Commission.

2-20                 (2)  "Environmental law" means a state or local

2-21     statute, rule, order, ordinance, or other law that prohibits

2-22     conduct that may result in pollution of the environment.

2-23           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

2-24           SECTION 3.  Not later than December 1, 1997, the attorney

2-25     general shall adopt the rules required by Section 402.029(d),

2-26     Government Code, as added by this Act.

2-27           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the

 3-1     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

 3-2     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

 3-3     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 3-4     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.