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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to water well recordkeeping and reporting requirements, |
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including the production, use, and withdrawal of groundwater. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 36.111, Water Code, is amended to read as |
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follows: |
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Sec. 36.111. RECORDS AND REPORTS. (a) The district shall |
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[may] require that records be kept and reports be made of the |
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drilling, equipping, and completing of water wells and of the |
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production and use of groundwater. |
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(b) In implementing Subsection (a), a district may adopt |
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rules, consistent with rules adopted by the Texas Water Development |
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Board under Subsection (c), that require an owner or operator of a |
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water well that is required to be registered with or permitted by |
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the district[, except for the owner or operator of a well that is
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exempt from permit requirements under Section 36.117(b)(1),] to |
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report groundwater withdrawals [using reasonable and appropriate
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reporting methods and frequency]. |
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(c) The Texas Water Development Board, after consulting |
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with representatives of districts regarding reasonable and |
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appropriate reporting methods and frequency of reporting, shall |
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adopt rules requiring the owner or operator of a well to report |
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groundwater withdrawals to the district in which the well is |
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located. In adopting rules under this subsection, the Texas Water |
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Development Board: |
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(1) must consider all methods of tracking groundwater |
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withdrawals, including metering and formulas; |
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(2) must provide for the exemption of a well that is |
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exempt from permit requirements under Section 36.117(b)(1); |
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(3) may not discriminate based on well type, but may |
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provide for the exemption of: |
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(A) domestic wells; |
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(B) livestock wells; |
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(C) wells that have a capacity of less than 100 |
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gallons per minute; and |
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(D) wells that produce less than 10 acre feet |
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annually; and |
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(4) regarding wells that are not located in a |
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district, must require the owner or operator of the well to report |
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groundwater withdrawals to the Texas Water Development Board. |
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SECTION 2. The Texas Water Development Board shall adopt |
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the rules required by Subsection (c), Section 36.111, Water Code, |
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as added by this Act, as soon as practicable after the effective |
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date of this Act. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013. |