TO: | Honorable Allan Ritter, Chair, House Committee on Natural Resources |
FROM: | John S. O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board |
IN RE: | HB4805 by Craddick (Relating to the creation of the West Texas Water Supply District; providing authority to impose a tax and issue bonds; granting the power of eminent domain.), As Introduced |
The Legislative Budget Board, in cooperation with the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), has determined that:
The bill amends Subtitle X, Title 6, Special District Local Laws Code by adding Chapter 11003 to create the West Texas Water Supply District (District) with the powers and duties provided by Water Code Chapters 30, 49, 51, 53, and 54, applicable to water control and improvement districts, fresh water supply districts, and municipal utility districts. The purpose of the District includes providing works and projects under powers conferred by Article XVI, Section 59 and Article III, Section 52, Texas Constitution to benefit the property within the District.
The District is not subject to confirmation election by the voters.
The bill names five temporary directors. If an initial director fails to qualify for office the remaining initial directors shall appoint a person to fill the vacancy. If at any time there are fewer than three directors, the TCEQ will appoint the necessary number of persons to fill the vacancies. If a location cannot be agreed upon for the location of the organizational meeting of the initial directors, the meeting shall be held at the Midland County Courthouse.
The bill becomes effective immediately with two-thirds vote of the members or on September 1, 2009.
1) Population – While the initial boundaries of the district include a small area in Midland County, the bill would authorize the district to annex any areas within 130 miles of the district, and specifically including Midland, Ector, Crane, Pecos, and Upton counties. For this reason, discussion of population and water use will encompass all of these counties, and the city of
Name |
2000 Population |
2010 Population |
2020 Population |
City of |
94,996 |
100,137 |
105,639 |
|
116,099 |
124,710 |
134,022 |
|
3,996 |
4,469 |
4,990 |
|
121,123 |
132,759 |
144,073 |
|
16,809 |
17,850 |
18,780 |
|
3,404 |
3,757 |
4,068 |
2) Location – The initial boundaries of the proposed district include 20 acres of land situated just west of the City of
4) Overlapping Services - The stated boundaries form an acceptable. An area map containing at least two reference points (major road names, road intersections) and the proposed district's geographic location mapped within
5) TCEQ's Supervision - The TCEQ supervision is limited to review of the District's bonds to finance water, wastewater, or drainage facilities and financial reports required by the Water Code; otherwise, the District is not subject to TCEQ supervision.
6) Water Use – As mentioned above, the initial boundaries of the district include a small area in Midland County, but the bill would authorize the district to annex any areas within 130 miles of the district, specifically including Midland, Ector, Crane, Pecos, and Upton counties. For this reason, discussion water use will encompass all of these counties.
Groundwater
Name |
% of Total Water Used that was Groundwater (2004) |
% of Groundwater used for Municipal Purposes (2004) |
Primary Aquifer Groundwater is pumped from (2003) |
|
49.5% |
21% |
Ogallala (61%) Edwards-Trinity Plateau (39%) |
|
59% |
28% |
Cenozoic |
|
35% |
42% |
Edwards-Trinity Plateau (80.4%) |
|
99.5% |
9% |
Edwards-Trinity Plateau (66%) Cenozoic |
|
99.4% |
8% |
Edwards-Trinity Plateau (99.9%) |
Surface Water
Name |
% of Total Water Used that was Surface Water (2004) |
% of Surface Water used for Municipal Purposes |
Primary Source |
|
50.5% |
99.5% |
Colorado River MWD system, O. H. Ivie reservoir |
|
41% |
0% |
Local supplies |
|
65% |
92% |
Colorado River MWD system |
|
0.5% |
0% |
n/a |
|
0.6% |
0% |
n/a |
The 2007 State Water Plan includes future water management strategies for three of the municipal users in the area:
Source Agencies: | 582 Commission on Environmental Quality, 580 Water Development Board
|
LBB Staff: | JOB, CL
|