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SECTION 1. Subtitle H, Title
6, Special District Local Laws Code, is amended by adding Chapter 8875 to
read as follows:
CHAPTER 8875. COMAL
TRINITY GROUNDWATER CONSERVATION DISTRICT
SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL
PROVISIONS
Sec. 8875.001.
DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Board"
means the board of directors of the district.
(2) "Commissioners
court" means the Comal County Commissioners Court.
(3) "Director"
means a member of the board.
(4) "District"
means the Comal Trinity Groundwater Conservation District.
(5) "Domestic use" means residential household use.
(6) "Exempt
well" means:
(A) a well incapable of producing
more than 10,000 gallons of groundwater
a day;
(B) a metered well that
produces not more than 10 acre-feet of groundwater
in a calendar year; or
(C) a well that is
drilled, completed, or equipped so that it is incapable of producing more
than 25,000 gallons of groundwater a day and produces water for domestic
use or for livestock or poultry, regardless of land lot size.
(7) "Existing well" means a well drilled into or through
the Trinity Aquifer on or before the effective date of the Act enacting
this chapter.
(8) "New well" means a well drilled into or through the
Trinity Aquifer after the effective date of the Act enacting this chapter.
(9) "Trinity
Aquifer" means the Trinity Group of aquifers, including the Upper
Trinity, consisting of the upper Glen Rose Limestone; the Middle Trinity,
consisting of the lower member of the
Glen Rose Limestone, the Hensell
Sand, and the Cow Creek Limestone; and the Lower Trinity, consisting of the
Sligo Limestone and Hosston Sand.
Sec. 8875.002. NATURE OF
DISTRICT.
Sec. 8875.003. INITIAL
DISTRICT TERRITORY. The initial boundaries of the district are coextensive
with the boundaries of Comal County, excluding any territory that is
included in the boundaries of the Trinity Glen Rose Groundwater Conservation
District.
Sec. 8875.004. CONFLICTS
OF LAW.
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SECTION 1. Subtitle H, Title
6, Special District Local Laws Code, is amended by adding Chapter 8875 to
read as follows:
CHAPTER 8875. COMAL
TRINITY GROUNDWATER CONSERVATION DISTRICT
SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL
PROVISIONS
Sec. 8875.001.
DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Board"
means the board of directors of the district.
(2) "Commission" means the Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality.
(3) "Commissioners
court" means the Comal County Commissioners Court.
(4) "Director"
means a member of the board.
(5) "District"
means the Comal Trinity Groundwater Conservation District.
(See Sec. 8875.106 below.)
(See Sec. 8875.105(a)(2)
below.)
(6) "Retail public utility" means a retail public
utility as defined by Section 13.002, Water Code, that is providing service
in the district.
Sec. 8875.002. NATURE OF
DISTRICT.
Sec. 8875.003. INITIAL
DISTRICT TERRITORY. The initial boundaries of the district are coextensive
with the boundaries of Comal County, Texas, except that the district does
not include any territory that is included in the boundaries of the Trinity
Glen Rose Groundwater Conservation District.
Sec. 8875.004. CONFLICTS
OF LAW.
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SUBCHAPTER B. BOARD OF
DIRECTORS
Sec. 8875.051.
APPOINTMENT OF DIRECTORS. (a) The district is governed by a board of
seven directors appointed by the commissioners court as follows:
(1) three directors from
the incorporated areas of Comal County; and
(2) four directors, one from
each of the four commissioners court precincts.
(b) The commissioners court shall, to the degree
possible, consider directors familiar with the use of water by
industry and commerce, municipal and rural utilities, agriculture, and
private wells.
(c) A person appointed as
a director must be a registered voter of Comal County.
(d) A vacancy on the
board shall be filled by the commissioners court. A qualified person to fill a vacancy shall
be appointed to serve for the remainder of the unexpired term.
(e) The commissioners
court shall appoint the district's initial directors not later than
December 31, 2015.
Sec. 8875.052. ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING OF DIRECTORS. (a) As soon
as practicable after all the directors have qualified under Section 36.055,
Water Code, a majority of the directors shall convene the organizational
meeting of the district at a location within the district agreeable to a
majority of the directors. At the meeting, the directors shall elect a
chair, vice chair, secretary, and treasurer from among the directors.
(b) The initial directors shall draw lots to determine which two
directors shall serve a four-year term, which two directors shall serve a
three-year term, which two directors shall serve a two-year term, and which
director shall serve a one-year term. Subsequent directors shall serve
staggered four-year terms.
Sec. 8875.053. RULES AND FEES. The board may adopt rules and
assess fees to manage and operate the district.
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SUBCHAPTER B. BOARD OF
DIRECTORS
Sec. 8875.051. COMPOSITION
OF BOARD. The district is governed by a board of seven appointed
directors.
Sec. 8875.052. TERMS AND
APPOINTMENT OF DIRECTORS. (a) Directors
serve staggered four-year terms. Directors are appointed by the
commissioners court as follows:
(1) three directors shall
be appointed from the incorporated areas of Comal County; and
(2) four directors shall
be appointed with one director appointed from each of the four
commissioners court precincts.
(b) To be appointed under this section, a person:
(1) must be a registered
voter of Comal County; and
(2) to the extent practicable, should be familiar with the
use of water by industry and commerce, municipal and rural utilities,
agriculture, and private wells.
Sec. 8875.053.
VACANCIES. If there is a vacancy on the board, the commissioners court
shall appoint a person to fill the vacancy for the remainder of the term in a manner that meets the representational
requirements of Section 8875.052.
(See SECTION 2 below.)
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SUBCHAPTER C. POWERS AND
DUTIES
Sec. 8875.101. DISTRICT
POWERS AND DUTIES.
Sec. 8875.102.
CONTRACTS. The district may contract with a state agency or political
subdivision, including, but not limited to,
a county, municipality, river authority, or another district, to carry out
any function of the district.
Sec. 8875.103. BEST
MANAGEMENT PRACTICES.
Sec. 8875.104.
LIMITATIONS ON DISTRICT POWERS. (a) The district may not:
(1) require the owner of
an exempt well to install a meter or measuring device on the well;
(2) except as provided by Subdivision (3), and notwithstanding
Section 36.122, Water Code, allow the sale, transport, or export of
groundwater produced from a well inside the district to a person or
location outside the district;
(3) prohibit the sale, transport, or export of groundwater
produced from a well inside the district to a person located inside the
territory covered by the well owner's certificate of public convenience and
necessity if the owner of a well with a certificate of public convenience
and necessity obtains a permit from the district; or
(4) assess and collect a
production fee on an exempt well.
(b) The district does not
have the authority granted by Sections 36.020 and 36.201-36.204, Water
Code, relating to taxes.
Sec. 8875.105. PERMITS.
(See Sec. 8875.001(9)
above.)
Notwithstanding Section
36.117(j), Water Code:
(1) an existing nonexempt well shall have its annual groundwater
production permitted at the well's maximum production capacity and shall
not be required to obtain a production permit; and
(2) a new nonexempt well shall obtain a permit from the district.
(See Sec. 8875.001(6)
above.)
Sec. 8875.106. MEASURING
DEVICES. (a) The owner of an existing or
new well that is not an exempt well shall install and maintain a
water-well meter, or alternative measuring device or method approved by the
district, designed to indicate the flow rate and cumulative amount of water
withdrawn by that well, on each individual well no later than 36 months
after the effective date of the Act enacting this chapter.
(b) A well owner is
responsible for the costs of installing, operating, and maintaining
measuring devices.
Sec. 8875.107. NO EMINENT
DOMAIN.
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SUBCHAPTER C. POWERS AND
DUTIES
Sec. 8875.101.
GROUNDWATER CONSERVATION DISTRICT POWERS AND DUTIES.
Sec. 8875.102.
CONTRACTS. The district may contract with a state agency or political
subdivision, including a municipality, a county, a river authority, or
another district, to carry out any function of the district.
Sec. 8875.103. BEST
MANAGEMENT PRACTICES.
Sec. 8875.104.
LIMITATIONS ON DISTRICT POWERS. (a) The district may not:
(1) require the owner of
a well exempt from permitting to
install a meter or measuring device on the well; or
(2) assess and collect a
production fee on wells exempt from
permitting.
(b) The district does not
have the authority granted by Sections 36.020 and 36.201-36.204, Water
Code, relating to taxes.
Sec. 8875.105. PRODUCTION
LIMITS AND PERMITS FOR CERTAIN WELLS. (a)
In this section:
(1) "Maximum production capacity" means the production
capacity of a well that is based on a 36-hour pump test conducted at the
time the well was initially constructed or placed into service.
(2) "Trinity
Aquifer" means the Trinity group of aquifers, including the:
(A) Upper Trinity,
consisting of the Upper Glen Rose Limestone;
(B) Middle Trinity,
consisting of the Lower Glen Rose
Limestone, the Hensall Sand, and the
Cow Creek Limestone; and
(C) Lower Trinity,
consisting of the Sligo Limestone and the Hosston Sand.
(b) Notwithstanding
Section 36.117(j), Water Code, the district
shall issue to an applicant a permit for a well that is not exempt from
permitting and that was drilled into or through the Trinity Aquifer on or
before the effective date of the Act enacting this chapter that authorizes
the production of the well at an amount not less than the maximum
production capacity of the well.
(c) Notwithstanding
Section 36.117(j), Water Code, a well that
is not exempt from permitting and that was drilled into or through the
Trinity Aquifer after the effective date of the Act enacting this chapter
requires a permit from the district.
Sec. 8875.106. WELL
EXEMPTION. A well is exempt from the
requirement to obtain a withdrawal permit provided that the well:
(1) is used solely for domestic use or for providing
water for livestock or poultry regardless of land lot size and is drilled,
completed, or equipped so that it is incapable of producing more than
25,000 gallons of groundwater a day;
(2) is not capable of
producing more than 10,000 gallons of water
a day; or
(3) is metered and does
not produce more than 10 acre-feet of water
in a calendar year.
Sec. 8875.107. MEASURING
DEVICES. (a) The owner of a nonexempt well
shall install and maintain a water well meter, or alternative measuring
device or method approved by the district, designed to indicate the flow
rate and cumulative amount of water withdrawn by that well, on each
individual well no later than 36 months after the effective date of the Act
enacting this chapter.
(b) A well owner is
responsible for the costs of installing, operating, and maintaining
measuring devices.
Sec. 8875.108. NO EMINENT
DOMAIN.
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SUBCHAPTER D. GENERAL
FINANCIAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 8875.151. FEES.
(a) The district may set fees for administrative acts of the district such as filing applications. Fees set by the
district may not unreasonably exceed the cost to the district of performing
the administrative function for which the fee is charged. The
district may set fees for administrative management on domestic and livestock exempt wells with a
cap of $15 per year per well and a cap of $50 per year per well on other exempt wells.
(b) The district may
impose reasonable production fees, based on the amount of groundwater actually produced, on both new and
existing nonexempt wells. The district may not impose a production
fee in an amount greater than:
(1) $1 per acre-foot for
groundwater used for agricultural purposes; or
(2) $40 per acre-foot for
groundwater used for any other purpose.
(c) The district may use money collected from fees:
(1) in any manner necessary for the management and operation of
the district;
(2) to pay all or part of the principal of and interest on district
bonds or notes; and
(3) for any purpose consistent with the district's approved water
management plan.
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SUBCHAPTER D. GENERAL
FINANCIAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 8875.151. FEES.
(a) The district may set a reasonable
fee for administrative management on a per well
basis.
The district may set a fee
for administrative management on:
(1) a well used solely for domestic or livestock
purposes in an amount not greater than $15 per well, per year; and
(2) a well that is exempt from permitting and that is
not used solely for domestic or livestock purposes in an amount not
greater than $50 per well, per year.
(b) The district may
impose reasonable production fees on each
well that is not exempt from permitting based on the amount of water actually withdrawn from the well.
The district may not impose a production fee under
this subsection in an amount greater than:
(1) $1 per acre-foot for
groundwater used for agricultural purposes; or
(2) $40 per acre-foot for
groundwater used for any other purpose.
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SECTION 2. (a) The legal
notice of the intention to introduce this Act, setting forth the general
substance of this Act, has been published as provided by law, and the
notice and a copy of this Act have been furnished to all persons, agencies,
officials, or entities to which they are required to be furnished under
Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution, and Chapter 313, Government
Code.
(b) The governor, one of the
required recipients, has submitted the notice and Act to the Texas
Commission on Environmental Quality.
(c) The Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality has filed its recommendations relating to this Act
with the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of
representatives within the required time.
(d) All requirements of the
constitution and laws of this state and the rules and procedures of the
legislature with respect to the notice, introduction, and passage of this
Act are fulfilled and accomplished.
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SECTION 3. Same as introduced
version.
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