Honorable Kip Averitt, Chair, Senate Committee on Natural Resources
FROM:
John S. O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
SB359 by Williams (Relating to a Texas Commission on Environmental Quality water quality protection area pilot program aplicable to portions of the San Jacinto River. ), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
The bill would establish a pilot program for quarry operations in portions of the East Fork and West Fork of the San Jacinto River and Spring Creek. The pilot program would address permitting, financial responsibility, inspections, water quality sampling, enforcement, cost recovery, and interagency cooperation with regard to quarries.
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) would be required to complete rulemaking to establish a pilot program for quarries within the affected portions of the East Fork and West Fork of the San Jacinto River and Spring Creek. The TCEQ would develop and issue a general permit for discharges from quarries located within the affected portions of the East Fork and West Fork of the San Jacinto River and Spring Creek. The TCEQ would coordinate with the San Jacinto River Authority and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to increase monitoring and inspection efforts. In addition, the TCEQ would have an increase in enforcement responsibilities due to the increased field inspection efforts for quarries located within the affected San Jacinto River and Spring Creek watersheds.
The TCEQ anticipates that approximately 22 facilities would be required to obtain coverage under a new general permit.Compared with the total number of permits issued by the TCEQ, this number is not considered significant. The overall impact of rulemaking efforts, general permit processing, inspections, and enforcement for the small number of facilities affected by the bill is expected to absorbed within current agency resources.
Local Government Impact
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.