C.S.S.B. 1377 78(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


C.S.S.B. 1377
By: Armbrister
Natural Resources
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, a majority of states treat crop reserve program farms as
"active" farms for all purposes of farm program benefits. However, some
underground water districts in Texas are attempting to treat farms in
federal crop reserve programs as non-active farms for the purpose of water
allocations insofar as validation permits and exportation permits are
concerned. C.S.S.B. 1377 prohibits an underground water conservation
district from discriminating against farms within the district because the
farms are in federal crop reserve program. Furthermore, the bill provides
that this prohibition does not apply to the Edwards Aquifer Authority.  

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any
additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or
institution. 

ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Section 36.002, Water Code, to prohibit a rule
promulgated by a water district from discriminating against owners of land
or their lessees and assigns whose land is enrolled or participating in a
government program.  

SECTION 2. Amends Section 36.101(a), Water Code, to require the board of a
water district (board), during the rulemaking process, to develop rules
that do not discriminate between land in production and land enrolled or
participating in a federal conservation reserve program.  

SECTION 3. Amends Section 36.113, Water Code, by adding Subsection (h), to
provide that in issuing a permit for existing or historic use, a district
may not discriminate against land or wells on land enrolled or
participating in a federal conservation reserve program.  If a district
adopts rules related to the protection of existing or historic use, any
land in a federal conservation reserve program shall be treated as having
an existing and historic use.  

SECTION 4. (a) Effective date: September 1, 2003. (b) Provides that the
change in law made by this Act to Section 36.002, Section 36.101(a), and
Section 36.113, Water Code, applies to all rules adopted by a groundwater
conservation district on or after the effective date of this Act, except
as provided by Subsection (c) of this section. (c) Provides that the
change in law made by this Act to Section 36.002, Section 36.101(a), and
Section 36.113, Water Code, does not apply to rules adopted by the Edwards
Aquifer Authority. 

EFFECTIVE DATE
September 1, 2003
 



 


COMPARISON OF SUBSTITUTE TO ORIGINAL

The substitute removes language from the engrossed version of the bill
that provided that a district that adopts rules related to the protection
of existing or historic use which authorize a participant in the federal
conservation reserve program to establish existing or historic use based
on the participant's groundwater production during a period of time prior
to the participant entering the federal conservation reserve program shall
not be considered discriminatory against such a participant.  Rather, the
substitute provides that if a district adopts rules related to the
protection of existing or historic use, any land in a federal conservation
reserve program shall be treated as having an existing and historic use.