1-1     By:  Zaffirini                                        S.B. No. 1412
 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed March 12, 1999; March 15, 1999, read
 1-3     first time and referred to Special Committee on Border Affairs;
 1-4     April 9, 1999, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
 1-5     Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 6, Nays 0; April 9, 1999,
 1-6     sent to printer.)
 1-7     COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1412               By:  Zaffirini
 1-8                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-9                                   AN ACT
1-10     relating to allowing the provision of plumbing services without a
1-11     plumbing license for certain projects in certain geographic areas.
1-12           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-13           SECTION 1.  Section 3, The Plumbing License Law (Article
1-14     6243-101, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), is amended to read as
1-15     follows:
1-16           Sec. 3.  ACTS PERMITTED WITHOUT A LICENSE.  The following
1-17     acts, work and conduct shall be expressly permitted without
1-18     license:
1-19                 (a)  Plumbing work done by a property owner in a
1-20     building owned or occupied by him as his homestead;
1-21                 (b)  Plumbing work done outside the municipal limits of
1-22     any organized city, town or village in this state, or within any
1-23     such city, town or village of less than five thousand (5,000)
1-24     inhabitants, unless required by ordinance in such city, town or
1-25     village of less than five thousand (5,000) inhabitants;
1-26                 (c)  Plumbing work done by anyone who is regularly
1-27     employed as or acting as a maintenance man or maintenance engineer,
1-28     incidental to and in connection with the business in which he is
1-29     employed or engaged, and who does not engage in the occupation of a
1-30     plumber for the general public;  construction, installation and
1-31     maintenance work done upon the premises or equipment of a railroad
1-32     by an employee thereof who does not engage in the occupation of a
1-33     plumber for the general public; and plumbing work done by persons
1-34     engaged by any public service company in the laying, maintenance
1-35     and operation of its service mains or lines to the point of
1-36     measurement and the installation, alteration, adjustment, repair,
1-37     removal and renovation of all types of appurtenances, equipment and
1-38     appliances, including doing all that is necessary to render the
1-39     appliances useable or serviceable;  appliance installation and
1-40     service work done by anyone who is an appliance dealer or is
1-41     employed by an appliance dealer, and acting as an appliance
1-42     installation man or appliance service man in connecting appliances
1-43     to existing piping installations;  water treatment installations,
1-44     exchanges, services, or repairs.  Provided, however, that all work
1-45     and service herein named or referred to shall be subject to
1-46     inspection and approval in accordance with the terms of all local
1-47     valid city or municipal ordinances;
1-48                 (d)  Plumbing work done by a licensed irrigator or
1-49     licensed installer when working and licensed under Chapter 197,
1-50     Acts of the 66th Legislature, Regular Session, 1979 (Article 8751,
1-51     Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes).  A person holding a valid license
1-52     from the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners shall not be
1-53     required to be licensed by any other board or agency when
1-54     installing or working on a lawn irrigation system;
1-55                 (e)  Plumbing work done by an LP Gas installer when
1-56     working and licensed under Chapter 113, Natural Resources Code, as
1-57     amended;
1-58                 (f)  Plumbing work, limited to the provision of a
1-59     residential potable water supply or residential sanitary sewer
1-60     connections for a project in a geographic area that is located in a
1-61     county any part of which is within 50 miles of an international
1-62     border, that is done by an organization that:
1-63                       (1)  is certified by the Texas Natural Resource
1-64     Conservation Commission to provide "self-help" project assistance;
 2-1     and
 2-2                       (2)  provides the board with the following
 2-3     information before the 30th day before the date the project begins:
 2-4                             (A)  a specific project location;
 2-5                             (B)  the intended duration of the project;
 2-6     and
 2-7                             (C)  other information the board may
 2-8     require.
 2-9           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
2-10           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
2-11     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-12     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-13     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-14     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
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