| TO: | Honorable Kenneth Armbrister, Chair, Senate Committee on Natural Resources |
| FROM: | John S. O'Brien, Deputy Director, Legislative Budget Board |
| IN RE: | SB1629 by Wentworth (Relating to goals for and certification of groundwater management plans.), As Introduced |
This bill would modify the procedures and requirements for the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) review committee for groundwater conservation district (GCD) management plan certification. The bill provide that a comprehensive groundwater management plan shall contain a management goal describing the desired future condition for the aquifer in quantified terms. The bill also modifies the timeframe for the TWDB to certify a management plan from 60 days to 150 days, and it would require that, in addition to the plan having to be administratively complete, the new review committee must also have determined that a groundwater conservation district has met certain requirements.
The bill provides that the TWDB shall organize a review committee and requires that the review committee consist of various agencies. The bill allows the board to reimburse the person selected on the review committee for reasonable costs associated with travel, lodging and meals while serving on the committee.
Any costs to state agencies associated with implementing the provisions of the bill could be absorbed using existing resources.
| Source Agencies: | 580 Water Development Board, 582 Commission on Environmental Quality
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| LBB Staff: | JOB, WK, ZS, TL
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