By: Barrientos S.B. No. 1697
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the composition of an advisory committee to the Lower
1-3 Colorado River Authority's agricultural water conservation fund.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Section 27, Chapter 7, Acts of the 43rd
1-6 Legislature, 4th Called Session, 1934 (Article 8280-107, Vernon's
1-7 Texas Civil Statutes), is amended as follows:
1-8 Sec. 27. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
1-9 Act, the district:
1-10 (1) may purchase, construct, acquire, own, operate,
1-11 repair, improve, or extend any facility necessary or convenient to
1-12 provide water services in Williamson County in cooperation with
1-13 another special district, a municipality, or another governmental
1-14 entity;
1-15 (2) may not provide water services in the watershed of
1-16 the Brazos River unless the district obtains in writing the consent
1-17 of the Brazos River Authority before the services are provided; and
1-18 (3) may transfer surface water from the district to a
1-19 place in Williamson County that is outside the watershed of the
1-20 Colorado River only if the transfer is made to:
1-21 (A) a municipality that was a district water
1-22 customer on May 20, 1997, and located in the watersheds of both the
1-23 Colorado River and the Brazos River; or
1-24 (B) a person or entity that pays for the surface
1-25 water in an amount sufficient to pay both the district's applicable
2-1 water rate and an additional charge to pay the costs of mitigating
2-2 any adverse effects of the transfer of surface water to Williamson
2-3 County from the Colorado River watershed, and provided such
2-4 transfer results in no net loss of water to the Colorado River
2-5 watershed as determined by the district's board of directors.
2-6 Notwithstanding the amounts of surface water transferred by the
2-7 district to municipalities in accordance with Paragraph (A) of this
2-8 subdivision, the volume of surface water authorized for transfer by
2-9 the district in accordance with this paragraph shall not exceed
2-10 25,000 acre-feet per annum, it being the intent of the legislature
2-11 that the district shall not be the sole provider of surface water
2-12 to Williamson County.
2-13 (b) The district shall determine the amount of the
2-14 additional charge under Subsection (a)(3)(B) of this section. The
2-15 additional charge may not be less than 10 percent of the district's
2-16 applicable rate for surface water to be transferred. The district
2-17 shall deposit any money the district receives from the additional
2-18 charge, and may deposit any other money as the board of directors
2-19 determines, into a separate fund designated as the agricultural
2-20 water conservation fund. The district may use money from the
2-21 agricultural water conservation fund only for the development of
2-22 water resources or other water use strategies to replace or offset
2-23 the amount of surface water to be transferred to Williamson County,
2-24 including the development and implementation of methods, programs,
2-25 and strategies relating to groundwater resources, reuse,
2-26 conservation, and other opportunities to reduce the reliance on
3-1 surface water for agricultural irrigation, provided that the
3-2 methods, programs, and strategies take into consideration the
3-3 surface water and groundwater needs of the affected Colorado River
3-4 basin users.
3-5 (c) Prior to its determination of the use of money from the
3-6 agricultural water conservation fund, the district shall consult
3-7 with a six-member [an] advisory committee composed of:
3-8 (1) one member each from [representing agricultural
3-9 irrigation interests that is appointed by the county judges of]
3-10 Matagorda, Wharton, and Colorado counties, as appointed by the
3-11 county judges of those counties, to represent agricultural
3-12 irrigation interests; and
3-13 (2) one member each from Burnet, Llano, and Travis
3-14 counties, as appointed by the county judges of those counties, to
3-15 represent the interests of the Highland Lakes.
3-16 (d) The board of directors' determination of the additional
3-17 charge is not subject to review or modification by any regulatory
3-18 agency or authority. Water resources developed or conserved
3-19 through the additional charge may be acquired from any source
3-20 inside or outside the boundaries of the district and shall be used
3-21 to benefit the water service areas of the district's irrigation
3-22 operations.
3-23 SECTION 2. This Act shall take effect September 1, 2001.