84R23715 JRR-F

By: Pickett H.B. No. 1642

Substitute the following for H.B. No. 1642:

By: Rodriguez of Travis C.S.H.B. No. 1642

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the rights, remedies, and liability of certain owners and operators of environmentally contaminated property in certain counties.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 16.003(a), Civil Practice and Remedies Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) Except as provided by Sections 16.010, 16.0031, 16.0032, and 16.0045, a person must bring suit for trespass for injury to the estate or to the property of another, conversion of personal property, taking or detaining the personal property of another, personal injury, forcible entry and detainer, and forcible detainer not later than two years after the day the cause of action accrues.

SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 16, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, is amended by adding Section 16.0032 to read as follows:

Sec. 16.0032. ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINATION OF PROPERTY IN CERTAIN COUNTIES. (a) This section applies only to property that is:

(1) less than 10 acres in size; and

(2) located in a county on the international border with a population of 800,000 or more.

(b) In an action for trespass for injury to the estate or to the property of another resulting from environmental contamination, the cause of action accrues for purposes of Section 16.003 on the 365th day after the date that a final remedial action report is approved by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality or United States Environmental Protection Agency fully delineating and documenting the planned course of remediation as required under the applicable rule governing cleanup for the release.

(c) A person must bring suit for damages arising from an injury to property caused by environmental contamination originating from a source not located on or at the property not later than 25 years after the date the party responsible for the contamination is identified.

(d) Subsection (c) is a statute of repose and is independent of any other limitations period.

SECTION 3. Section 361.752, Health and Safety Code, is amended by adding Subsections (e) and (f) to read as follows:

(e) On the request of an innocent owner or operator of property described by Subsection (f), a court shall determine the amount of reasonable compensation under Subsection (c)(2) if the innocent owner or operator and the designated person are unable to agree on the compensation to be paid.

(f) Subsection (e) applies only to property that is:

(1) less than 10 acres in size; and

(2) located in a county on the international border with a population of 800,000 or more.

SECTION 4. Section 361.753, Health and Safety Code, is amended by adding Subsections (h) and (i) to read as follows:

(h) This subsection applies only to property described by Subsection (i). For purposes of Subsection (a), contamination originating from a pipeline transporting oil, gas, refined products, or other materials across the property does not make an applicant ineligible for a certificate unless:

(1) the applicant is also the owner or operator of the pipeline; or

(2) the commission determines that both the owner and operator of the pipeline are financially nonviable.

(i) Subsection (h) applies only to property that is:

(1) less than 10 acres in size; and

(2) located in a county on the international border with a population of 800,000 or more.

SECTION 5. Subchapter V, Chapter 361, Health and Safety Code, is amended by adding Section 361.755 to read as follows:

Sec. 361.755. RIGHTS OF PROPERTY OWNER REGARDING CONTAMINATION FROM OFF-SITE SOURCE IN CERTAIN COUNTIES. (a) This section applies only to property that is:

(1) less than 10 acres in size; and

(2) located in a county on the international border with a population of 800,000 or more.

(b) If property described by Subsection (a) has been contaminated from an off-site source for more than 15 years and cleanup has not been achieved under the governing cleanup requirements for the release, the party or parties responsible for the cleanup shall compensate the property owner for the reduced property value, cleanup costs, and any other damages resulting from the contamination.

SECTION 6. (a) Section 16.003, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, as amended by this Act, and Section 16.0032, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, as added by this Act, apply only to a cause of action that accrues on or after the effective date of this Act. A cause of action that accrues before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect immediately before that date, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.

(b) Section 361.752, Health and Safety Code, as amended by this Act, applies only to an agreement for reasonable access entered into on or after the effective date of this Act. An agreement for reasonable access entered into before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect when the agreement was entered into, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.

(c) Section 361.753, Health and Safety Code, as amended by this Act, applies only to an application to obtain a certificate confirming that the person is an innocent owner or operator submitted on or after the effective date of this Act. An application submitted before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect when the application was submitted, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.

(d) Section 361.755, Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act, applies to property that has been contaminated from an off-site source regardless of whether the contamination occurred on, before, or after the effective date of this Act.

SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.