BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 1680

By: Smith

Environmental Regulation

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers manages the federal land along Lake Texoma in Grayson County. Different tracts of this land are leased out to various entities who all have septic systems on their individual leases. The structures on these leases are decades old and most pre-date current state regulations regarding on-site sewage disposal systems. 

Under current law, all of this managed land is treated as one property and is therefore subject to a certain daily water use limit. Since current law does not recognize the leases as individual properties, none of the septic systems can be replaced since the cumulative production of all of the septic systems on the property exceeds the daily water use limit.  

C.S.H.B. 1680 seeks to address this issue by establishing that each separately leased individual part of a tract of certain land is considered a separate tract of land in order to allow the lessees to update or replace their existing septic systems. 

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that rulemaking authority is expressly granted to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality in SECTION 1 of this bill.

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 1680 amends the Health and Safety Code to establish that each separately leased individual part of a tract of land owned by the federal government is considered a separate tract of land for purposes of statutory provisions governing on-site sewage disposal systems or a rule adopted under such provisions. The bill authorizes the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to adopt rules as necessary to administer the bill's provisions.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2021.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE

While C.S.H.B. 1680 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.

The substitute includes a provision authorizing TCEQ to adopt rules as necessary to administer the bill's provisions.