TO:	Honorable Lyle Larson, Chair, House Committee on Natural Resources
FROM:	John McGeady, Assistant Director     Sarah Keyton, Assistant Director Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:	HB2660 by Calanni (Relating to the creation of the Richfield Ranch Water Control and Improvement District of Harris County, Texas; granting a limited power of eminent domain; providing authority to issue bonds; providing authority to impose assessments, fees, and taxes.), As Introduced

The Legislative Budget Board, in cooperation with the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), has determined that:

This bill creates Richfield Ranch Water Control and Improvement District of Harris County, Texas (District) with the powers and duties of a standard water control and improvement district under Water Code Chapters 49 and 51.

Population - The very specific description of the proposed boundaries does not allow staff to develop precise population estimates.
     
Population growth in the specific area since the 2010 census is unknown. The 2010 population estimate for areas of Harris County served by small water systems or private wells (County-Other) was 35,856. The Harris County-Other population projections adopted for the 2022 State Water Plan projects the population to grow to 119,216 in 2020 and 153,437 in 2030.
 
Location - The proposed district's initial boundaries are described with a combination of Original Texas Land Surveys, Official Public Records of Real Property of Harris County and metes and bounds. Due to the complexity of these boundaries for the various subareas of the district, staff is only able to determine the general location of the proposed district.
 
The proposed district's area is approximately 0.8 square miles in northwest Harris County, located northwest of the City of Houston near the intersection of U.S Highway 290 and Grand Parkway.
 
Comments on Powers/Duties Different from Similar Types of Districts:
The District must receive consent to the creation of the District from each municipality in whose corporate limits or extraterritorial jurisdiction the District is located prior to holding a confirmation election; the bill requires the TCEQ to appoint the five initial temporary directors upon receipt of a petition from the owners of a majority of the assessed value of the real property in the District; the bill grants the District authority for road projects; the District may not exercise the power of eminent domain outside the District to acquire a site or easement for: a recreational facility as defined by Section 49.462, Water Code; or a road project; the bill specifies that at the time of issuance, the total principal amount of bonds or other obligations issued or incurred to finance road projects and payable from ad valorem taxes may not exceed one-fourth of the assessed value of real property in the District; the District may develop recreational facilities and issue bonds for recreational facilities regardless of whether the District's territory overlaps with the territory of a political subdivision that is authorized to develop recreational facilities and issue bonds for recreational facilities; the authority of the District does not limit the authority of another political subdivision whose territory the territory of the District may overlap to develop recreational facilities and issue bonds for recreational facilities; if the bill does not receive a two-thirds vote of all members elected to each house, the District may not exercise the power of eminent domain.

Overlapping Services: TCEQ does not have mapping information for water and/or wastewater providers because this function was transferred from the TCEQ to the Public Utility Commission on September 1, 2014. As a result, TCEQ is unaware of possible overlapping service providers.

TCEQ's Supervision: As with general law districts, the TCEQ will have general supervisory authority, including bond review authority and review of financial reports.
 
Water Use - Within Harris County, 77% of the total water use was supplied by surface water, and municipal was the largest volume water use category comprising 70% of the county total water use in 2016. The water source the proposed district might pursue is unknown.