Honorable Charles Perry, Chair, Senate Committee on Agriculture, Water & Rural Affairs
FROM:
Ursula Parks, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB801 by King, Ken (relating to planning for the use of and liability resulting from prescribed burns by the Parks and Wildlife Department.), Committee Report 2nd House, Substituted
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
The bill would amend portions of the Parks and Wildlife Code relating to prescribed burns on state land managed by the Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD). The bill would require TPWD to develop a general plan for prescribed burns and specific plans for each burn site. Additionally, TPWD would be required to provide advanced notice of a planned burn to neighboring landowners and publish advanced notice in a newspaper in the county or counties in which the burn would be conducted.
The bill would require TPWD to purchase liability insurance or establish a self-insurance fund. The bill would limit TPWD's liability to pay money damages in a claim to the required amount of insurance coverage.
This analysis assumes the costs for purchasing liability insurance could be absorbed within existing appropriations from the Game, Fish, and Water Safety Account No. 9 and the State Parks Account No. 64.
Local Government Impact
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.
Source Agencies:
582 Commission on Environmental Quality, 802 Parks and Wildlife Department