86R6273 SLB-F
 
  By: Hunter H.B. No. 1300
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to cultivated oyster mariculture; authorizing fees;
  creating a criminal offense.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 11.032(b), Parks and Wildlife Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         (b)  The department shall deposit to the credit of the game,
  fish, and water safety account all revenue, less allowable costs,
  from the following sources:
               (1)  all types of fishing licenses and stamps and
  shrimping licenses;
               (2)  all types of hunting licenses and stamps;
               (3)  trapping licenses and other licenses relating to
  the taking, propagation, and sale of fur-bearing animals or their
  pelts;
               (4)  sale of marl, sand, gravel, shell, and mudshell;
               (5)  oyster bed rentals and permits;
               (6)  federal funds received for fish and wildlife
  research, management, development and conservation, resource
  protection, and law enforcement, unless the funds are received for
  the specific purposes of Subchapter F, Chapter 77;
               (7)  sale of property, less advertising costs,
  purchased from this account or a special fund or account that is now
  part of this account;
               (8)  fines and penalties collected for violations of a
  law pertaining to the protection and conservation of wild birds,
  wild fowl, wild animals, fish, shrimp, oysters, game birds and
  animals, fur-bearing animals, alligators, and any other wildlife
  resources of this state;
               (9)  sale of rough fish by the department;
               (10)  fees for importation permits;
               (11)  fees from supplying fish for or placing fish in
  water located on private property;
               (12)  sale of seized pelts;
               (13)  sale or lease of grazing rights to and the
  products from game preserves, sanctuaries, and management areas;
               (14)  contracts for the removal of fur-bearing animals
  and reptiles from wildlife management areas;
               (15)  vessel registration fees;
               (16)  vessel manufacturer or dealer licensing fees;
               (17)  fines or penalties imposed by a court for
  violation of water safety laws contained in Chapter 31 of this code;
               (18)  alligator hunter's or alligator buyer's licenses;
               (19)  sale of alligators or any part of an alligator by
  the department;
               (20)  fees and revenue collected under Section
  11.027(b) or (c) of this code that are associated with the
  conservation of fish and wildlife;
               (21)  fees related to cultivated oyster mariculture
  [any other source provided by law]; [and]
               (22)  vessel and outboard motor titling fees; and
               (23)  any other source provided by law.
         SECTION 2.  Section 11.033(a), Parks and Wildlife Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         (a)  To the extent allowed by federal law, money in the game,
  fish, and water safety account may be used for the following
  purposes:
               (1)  enforcement of fish, shrimp, and oyster laws, game
  laws, and laws pertaining to sand, shell, and gravel;
               (2)  dissemination of information pertaining to marine
  life, wild animal life, wildlife values, and wildlife management;
               (3)  scientific investigation and survey of marine life
  for the better protection and conservation of marine life;
               (4)  establishment and maintenance of fish hatcheries,
  fish sanctuaries, tidal water fish passes, wildlife management
  areas, and public hunting grounds;
               (5)  propagation and distribution of marine life, game
  animals, and wild birds;
               (6)  protection of wild birds, fish, and game;
               (7)  purchase, repair, and operation of boats and
  dredges;
               (8)  research, management, and protection of the fish
  and wildlife resources of this state, including alligators and
  fur-bearing animals;
               (9)  salaries of employees and other expenses necessary
  to carry out the duties of the department under laws relating to
  fish, shrimp, oysters, game, water safety, and sand, shell, and
  gravel;
               (10)  expansion and development of additional
  opportunities of hunting and fishing in state-owned land and water;
               (11)  removing rough fish from public water;
               (12)  administration and enforcement of the water
  safety laws as set out in Chapter 31;
               (13)  purchasing all necessary forms and supplies,
  including reimbursement of the department for any material produced
  by its existing facilities or work performed by other divisions of
  the department;
               (14)  purchase, construction, and maintenance of boat
  ramps on or near public waters as provided in Chapter 31;
               (15)  resource protection activities; [and]
               (16)  the cleanup of illegal or abandoned cultivated
  oyster mariculture equipment and related debris in public water;
  and
               (17)  any other use provided by law.
         SECTION 3.  Section 47.0091, Parks and Wildlife Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         Sec. 47.0091.  PURCHASE OF AQUATIC PRODUCTS BY WHOLESALE
  FISH DEALERS. No wholesale fish dealer may purchase for resale or
  receive for sale, barter, exchange, or any other commercial purpose
  any aquatic product from any person or entity in this state unless
  he purchases the product from the holder of:
               (1)  a general commercial fisherman's license;
               (2)  a commercial oyster fisherman's license;
               (3)  a commercial oyster boat license;
               (4)  a wholesale fish dealer's license;
               (5)  a fish farmer's license;
               (6)  a commercial shrimp boat license;
               (7)  a commercial oyster boat captain's license;
               (8)  a commercial shrimp boat captain's license;
               (9)  a commercial crab fisherman's license;
               (10)  a commercial finfish fisherman's license; [or]
               (11)  a commercial gulf shrimp unloading license; or
               (12)  a cultivated oyster mariculture permit.
         SECTION 4.  Subtitle D, Title 5, Parks and Wildlife Code, is
  amended by adding Chapter 75 to read as follows:
  CHAPTER 75. CULTIVATED OYSTER MARICULTURE
         Sec. 75.0101.  DEFINITIONS.  In this chapter:
               (1)  "Broodstock oyster" means an oyster collected for
  the purpose of growing cultivated oysters.
               (2)  "Cultivated oyster" means an oyster grown at any
  point in the life cycle of the oyster in or on an artificial
  structure suspended in the water or resting on the bottom.
               (3)  "Cultivated oyster mariculture" means the process
  of growing cultivated oysters.
               (4)  "Natural oyster bed" has the meaning assigned by
  Section 76.001.
               (5)  "Oyster" means the Eastern oyster and the
  subspecies of the Eastern oyster.
         Sec. 75.0102.  APPLICABILITY; CONFLICT OF LAWS. (a) An
  oyster bed that is part of a cultivated oyster mariculture
  operation is not a natural oyster bed or a private oyster bed and is
  not subject to location requirements under Subchapter A, Chapter
  76.
         (b)  The licensing and permitting requirements of
  Subchapters B, C, and F, Chapter 76, do not apply to activity
  carried out under a cultivated oyster mariculture permit issued
  under this chapter.
         (c)  A regulation adopted under Section 76.301 does not apply
  to an activity carried out under a cultivated oyster mariculture
  permit issued under this chapter.
         (d)  A rule or proclamation issued under this section
  prevails to the extent of conflict over a rule or proclamation
  issued under:
               (1)  Chapter 61; or
               (2)  Chapter 76.
         (e)  Section 2001.0045, Government Code, does not apply to
  rules adopted under this chapter.
         Sec. 75.0103.  CULTIVATED OYSTER MARICULTURE PROGRAM. (a)
  The commission shall adopt rules to establish a program governing
  cultivated oyster mariculture.
         (b)  Rules adopted under this program may establish
  requirements for:
               (1)  the location and size of a cultivated oyster
  mariculture operation;
               (2)  the taking, possession, transport, movement, and
  sale of cultivated oysters;
               (3)  the taking, possession, transport, and movement of
  broodstock oysters;
               (4)  marking requirements for cultivated oyster beds;
               (5)  fees and conditions for use of public resources,
  including broodstock oysters and public water; and
               (6)  any other matter necessary to implement and
  administer this chapter.
         (c)  The department shall coordinate with the Department of
  Agriculture, the Department of State Health Services, the General
  Land Office, and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality in
  the adoption of rules under this section.
         Sec. 75.0104.  CULTIVATED OYSTER MARICULTURE PERMIT
  REQUIRED. (a) No person may engage in cultivated oyster
  mariculture without first having acquired a cultivated oyster
  mariculture permit.
         (b)  The commission shall adopt rules to implement this
  section. Rules adopted under this section may establish
  requirements for:
               (1)  permit applications and application fees;
               (2)  criteria for the approval, transfer, revocation,
  and suspension of permits; and
               (3)  procedures for hearings related to a permit.
         Sec. 75.0105.  DEPOSIT AND USE OF FEES; CULTIVATED OYSTER
  MARICULTURE CLEANUP SUBACCOUNT. (a) Except as provided by
  Subsection (c), fees collected under this chapter shall be
  deposited to the credit of the game, fish, and water safety account.
         (b)  The cultivated oyster mariculture cleanup subaccount is
  a subaccount in the game, fish, and water safety account. The
  subaccount consists of money deposited to the subaccount under this
  section.
         (c)  The department shall set aside 20 percent of the fees
  collected under this chapter. That money shall be deposited to the
  credit of the cultivated oyster mariculture cleanup subaccount in
  the game, fish, and water safety account and may be used only for
  the cleanup of illegal or abandoned cultivated oyster mariculture
  equipment and related debris in public water.
         Sec. 75.0106.  PROHIBITED ACTIONS. (a) No person may sell
  or barter, or offer to sell or barter, a cultivated oyster, except
  as authorized by this chapter.
         (b)  No person may place a cultivated oyster in a natural
  oyster bed or private oyster bed.
         Sec. 75.0107.  PENALTIES. (a) For purposes of this section,
  "final conviction" includes a plea of guilty or nolo contendere to
  or the imposition of deferred adjudication or deferred disposition
  for an offense.
         (b)  A person who violates Section 75.0104(a) or 75.0106 or a
  rule adopted under this chapter commits an offense that is a Class C
  Parks and Wildlife Code misdemeanor.
         (c)  A person who violates Section 75.0104(a) or 75.0106 or a
  rule adopted under this chapter commits an offense that is a Class B
  Parks and Wildlife Code misdemeanor if it is shown on the trial of
  the offense that the person has a previous final conviction of an
  offense under Section 75.0104(a) or 75.0106.
         SECTION 5.  Not later than August 21, 2020, the Parks and
  Wildlife Commission shall adopt rules to implement Chapter 75,
  Parks and Wildlife Code, as added by this Act.
         SECTION 6.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.