By Turner of Harris, McClendon H.B. No. 2103
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the siting of solid waste facilities, the Texas Natural
1-3 Resource Conservation Commission's consideration of cumulative
1-4 risks in certain administrative proceedings, and notice of an
1-5 application for a municipal solid waste facility.
1-6 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-7 SECTION 1. Section 361.002, Health and Safety Code, is
1-8 amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
1-9 (c) It is the state's policy to ensure that new solid waste
1-10 facilities are not located disproportionately in preexisting
1-11 low-income, minority, or other communities and that the adverse
1-12 effects of solid waste facilities on the communities in which they
1-13 are located are minimized, while ensuring that the state has
1-14 adequate solid waste management capacity.
1-15 SECTION 2. Section 361.020(a), Health and Safety Code, is
1-16 amended to read as follows:
1-17 (a) The commission shall develop a strategic state solid
1-18 waste plan for all solid waste under its jurisdiction. The
1-19 commission shall develop a strategic plan for the reduction of
1-20 solid waste. The strategic plan shall include provisions to:
1-21 (1) ensure that new solid waste facilities are not
1-22 located disproportionately in low-income, minority, or other
1-23 communities to minimize the adverse effects of solid waste
1-24 facilities on those communities; and
2-1 (2) require the consideration of the effect the
2-2 presence of multiple sources of pollution and other nuisances may
2-3 have on the community surrounding a solid waste facility.
2-4 SECTION 3. Section 361.0201(b), Health and Safety Code, is
2-5 amended to read as follows:
2-6 (b) The plan shall:
2-7 (1) describe the capacity in the state to manage
2-8 municipal waste through existing treatment or disposal facilities
2-9 and identify all existing municipal solid waste management
2-10 facilities in the state, their capacity, and their projected
2-11 remaining useful life; [and]
2-12 (2) analyze the state's capacity requirements over the
2-13 planning periods specified in Section 361.020(c); and
2-14 (3) assess historical trends regarding the siting of
2-15 solid waste facilities in low-income, minority, and other
2-16 communities.
2-17 SECTION 4. Section 361.0216, Health and Safety Code, is
2-18 amended to read as follows:
2-19 Sec. 361.0216. OFFICE OF POLLUTION PREVENTION. The office
2-20 of pollution prevention is created in the executive office of the
2-21 commission to direct and coordinate all source reduction, [and]
2-22 waste minimization, and environmental justice activities of the
2-23 commission.
2-24 SECTION 5. Section 361.034(a), Health and Safety Code, is
2-25 amended to read as follows:
2-26 (a) The commission shall submit a report to the presiding
2-27 officers of the legislature and the governor not later than January
3-1 1 of each odd-numbered year. The report must include:
3-2 (1) a summary of a performance report of the imposed
3-3 industrial solid waste and hazardous waste fees authorized under
3-4 Subchapter D and related activities to determine the
3-5 appropriateness of the fee structures;
3-6 (2) an evaluation of progress made in accomplishing
3-7 the state's public policy concerning the preference of waste
3-8 management methods under Section 361.023;
3-9 (3) projections of the volume of waste by type of
3-10 waste, disposition of waste, and remaining capacity or capacity
3-11 used for the treatment and disposal of the waste;
3-12 (4) projections of the availability of adequate
3-13 capacity in this state for the management of all types of hazardous
3-14 waste generated within the state and a report of the amounts,
3-15 types, and sources of hazardous waste imported into and exported
3-16 from the state in the previous year;
3-17 (5) an evaluation of the progress made and activities
3-18 engaged in consistent with the state's municipal solid waste
3-19 management plan, in particular the progress toward meeting the
3-20 waste reduction goal established by Section 361.0201(d);
3-21 (6) an evaluation of the progress made by local
3-22 governments under the solid waste management plans;
3-23 (7) the status of state procurement under Section
3-24 361.426 of products made of recycled materials or that are
3-25 reusable, including documentation of any decision not to purchase
3-26 those products;
3-27 (8) the status of the governmental entity recycling
4-1 program established under Section 361.425, including the status of
4-2 collection and storage procedures and program evaluations required
4-3 by that section;
4-4 (9) the status of the public education program
4-5 described in Section 361.0202; [and]
4-6 (10) recommendations to the governor and to the
4-7 legislature for improving the management of municipal solid waste
4-8 in the state; and
4-9 (11) an evaluation of the implementation of the
4-10 state's policy of ensuring that new solid waste facilities are not
4-11 located disproportionately in low-income, minority, or other
4-12 communities and ensuring that the adverse effects of solid waste
4-13 facilities on the communities in which they are located are
4-14 minimized.
4-15 SECTION 6. Section 361.069, Health and Safety Code, is
4-16 amended to read as follows:
4-17 Sec. 361.069. Determination of Land Use Compatibility. (a)
4-18 The commission [in its discretion may], in processing a permit
4-19 application, shall determine whether the facility is compatible
4-20 with local land uses. In making the determination, the commission
4-21 shall consider:
4-22 (1) the character of the land uses within one mile of
4-23 the facility;
4-24 (2) the proximity of the facility to sensitive land
4-25 uses, residences, schools, churches, cemeteries, historic
4-26 structures and sites, and surface water and groundwater sources;
4-27 (3) growth trends in the area of the facility,
5-1 including the direction of major development;
5-2 (4) the adequacy of roads in the area of the facility;
5-3 (5) the volume of existing and expected vehicular
5-4 traffic on roads in the area of the facility; and
5-5 (6) the extent to which the facility will disrupt
5-6 normal traffic patterns on roads in the area of the facility [make
5-7 a separate determination on the question of land use compatibility,
5-8 and, if the site location is acceptable, may at another time
5-9 consider other technical matters concerning the application. A
5-10 public hearing may be held for each determination in accordance
5-11 with Section 361.088].
5-12 (b) In making a determination on the question of land use
5-13 compatibility, the commission may [shall] not consider the position
5-14 of a state or federal agency unless the position is fully supported
5-15 by credible evidence from that agency during the public hearing.
5-16 (c) The commission shall adopt rules to implement this
5-17 section.
5-18 SECTION 7. Subchapter D, Chapter 5, Water Code, is amended
5-19 by adding Section 5.123 to read as follows:
5-20 Sec. 5.123. CONSIDERATION OF CUMULATIVE RISKS. (a) In an
5-21 administrative proceeding involving the siting, expansion, or
5-22 operation of a facility in the local area in which other facilities
5-23 are located, an affected party may offer, and the commission shall
5-24 consider, evidence relating to cumulative risks, including:
5-25 (1) the effect of releases, emissions, or discharges
5-26 from the facility and from other facilities in the area;
5-27 (2) the potential for exposure to a particular
6-1 substance by means of multiple pathways; and
6-2 (3) the combined level of noise, odor, and other
6-3 impacts from the facility and other facilities in the area.
6-4 (b) The commission shall:
6-5 (1) develop and implement policies to protect the
6-6 public from cumulative risks, particularly in:
6-7 (A) low-income or minority communities; and
6-8 (B) communities in which permitted facilities
6-9 are concentrated; and
6-10 (2) give priority to monitoring and enforcement in
6-11 areas in which permitted facilities are concentrated.
6-12 (c) The commission shall adopt rules as necessary to
6-13 accomplish the purposes of this section.
6-14 SECTION 8. Subchapter C, Chapter 361, Health and Safety
6-15 Code, is amended by adding Section 361.0695 to read as follows:
6-16 Sec. 361.0695. PUBLIC MEETING AND NOTICE FOR SOLID WASTE
6-17 FACILITIES. (a) An applicant for a new facility that accepts
6-18 municipal solid wastes shall hold a public meeting in the county in
6-19 which the proposed facility is to be located. The meeting must be
6-20 held before the 45th day after the date the application is filed.
6-21 (b) The applicant shall publish notice of the public meeting
6-22 at least once each week during the three weeks preceding the
6-23 meeting. The notice must be published in the newspaper of the
6-24 largest general circulation that is published in the county in
6-25 which the proposed facility is to be located. If a newspaper is
6-26 not published in the county, the notice must be published in a
6-27 newspaper of general circulation in the county. The applicant
7-1 shall also publish notice at least once in a publication that is
7-2 circulated in the area in which the facility is located or is
7-3 proposed to be located and that is published in the primary
7-4 language of any population group that:
7-5 (1) speaks primarily a language other than English;
7-6 and
7-7 (2) constitutes five percent or more of the population
7-8 that resides one mile or less from the facility or proposed
7-9 facility.
7-10 (c) The applicant shall present to the commission an
7-11 affidavit certifying that the notice was published as required by
7-12 Subsection (b). The commission's acceptance of the affidavit
7-13 raises a presumption that the applicant has complied with
7-14 Subsection (b).
7-15 (d) The published notice may not be smaller than 96.8 square
7-16 centimeters or 15 square inches with the shortest dimension not
7-17 less than 7.5 centimeters or 3 inches. The notice must contain at
7-18 least the following information:
7-19 (1) the permit application number;
7-20 (2) the applicant's name;
7-21 (3) the proposed location of the facility; and
7-22 (4) the location and availability of copies of the
7-23 application.
7-24 (e) The applicant shall pay the cost of the notice required
7-25 under this section. The commission by rule may establish a
7-26 procedure for payment of those costs.
7-27 (f) The meeting shall include a discussion of:
8-1 (1) the compatibility of the proposed facility with
8-2 relevant state or regional solid waste management plans;
8-3 (2) other sites considered for the proposed facility
8-4 and the process for selecting the site identified in the
8-5 application;
8-6 (3) potential benefits to the local community of
8-7 constructing the proposed facility, including:
8-8 (A) employment opportunities and related job
8-9 training to ensure that residents of the host community can compete
8-10 for skilled and semiskilled employment at the facility;
8-11 (B) contributions by the facility to the
8-12 community infrastructure, including road maintenance, park
8-13 development, and litter control; and
8-14 (C) fair and reasonable compensation to owners
8-15 of real property less than 2,640 feet from the facility for any
8-16 decrease in the assessed value of the property attributable to the
8-17 siting of the facility; and
8-18 (4) effects the facility may have on local residents,
8-19 places of worship, schools, day-care centers, or surface water
8-20 bodies used to supply public drinking water.
8-21 (g) The applicant shall mail to the commission a report of
8-22 the proceedings of the meeting, including summaries of the
8-23 information discussed and input received at the meeting. The
8-24 report must be postmarked not later than the 30th day after the
8-25 date the meeting concludes.
8-26 SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.
8-27 SECTION 10. The importance of this legislation and the
9-1 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
9-2 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
9-3 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
9-4 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.