Honorable Patricia Harless, Chair, House Committee on Environmental Regulation
FROM:
Ursula Parks, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB3678 by Farney (Relating to the land application of Class B sludge.), As Introduced
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
The bill would expand and revise the definition of "Class B sludge" in the Health and Safety Code to include septage, the waste from septic tanks.
The bill would take effect September 1, 2013.
According to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), the bill would effectively require domestic septage land application sites, which are currently authorized under a registration program, to obtain individual permits and be subjected to additional technical requirements (laboratory testing, etc.), public notice, fees, commercial liability and environmental impairment insurance requirements, and the opportunity for contested case hearings. The TCEQ reports that there are 47 domestic septage land application registrations currently authorized by TCEQ. Upon expiration of the current registration terms, existing domestic septage land application sites would be required to file applications for individual permits and submit the required information for these types of applications. Some additional technical review by the TCEQ is expected to be required for these applications. The additional costs and workload added by the bill is not anticipated to be significant, and this analysis assumes such costs could be absorbed using existing agency resources.
Local Government Impact
No fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.