Honorable Dennis Bonnen, Chair, House Committee on Environmental Regulation
FROM:
John S. O'Brien, Deputy Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB1053 by Hope (Relating to the location of municipal solid waste landfills.), As Introduced
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
The bill would prohibit the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) from issuing permits for new municipal solid waste landfills or areal expansion of an existing municipal solid waste landfill unless: 1) the landfill is located at least 1000 feet from any part of an established residence, place of worship, school, day-care center, or dedicated public park; and 2) the property boundary of the landfill site is located at least 75 feet from the landfill unit, as it is proposed to be constructed or expanded. Any additional workload resulting from the bill's passage could be absorbed using existing TCEQ staff and resources.
Local Government Impact
Units of local government that own municipal solid waste landfills would be affected by the additional buffer area. The requirements of the bill would increase landfill development costs for new landfills and increase the costs for expansion of existing landfills. For new municipal solid waste landfills, it will be increasingly more difficult to find suitable landfill space that could accommodate the requirements of the bill. Cost to units of local government could be significant depending upon the size of the municipal solid waste landfill. It is estimated that to increase the areal size of an existing municipal solid waste landfill, it would cost an additional $25,000 to purchase the additional land required to be in compliance with the bill. This estimate makes the assumption that the landfill in question is an average size of 300 acres and assumes that it is currently more than 1,000 feet from an established residence, place of worship, school, day-care center, or dedicated public park.