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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to judicial review of certain permitting decisions made by |
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the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 5.354, Water Code, is amended to read as |
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follows: |
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Sec. 5.354. VENUE. (a) Except as provided by Subsection |
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(b), a [A] suit instituted under Section 5.351 or 5.352 [of this |
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code] must be brought in a district court in Travis County. |
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(b) A suit instituted under Section 5.351 that relates to |
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the issuance of a permit under Chapter 26 must be brought in a |
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county in which the permitted point of discharge of waste is located |
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or proposed to be located. |
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SECTION 2. Subchapter I, Chapter 5, Water Code, is amended |
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by adding Section 5.3541 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 5.3541. SCOPE OF JUDICIAL REVIEW OF CHAPTER 26 PERMIT. |
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(a) This section applies only to a suit instituted under Section |
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5.351 that relates to the issuance of a permit under Chapter 26. |
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(b) The scope of review by the court is limited to: |
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(1) an argument brought before the commission during |
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consideration of the ruling, order, decision, or other act that is |
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the subject of the suit; and |
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(2) an allegation of the commission's violation of |
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this code or a commission rule committed during consideration of |
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the ruling, order, decision, or other act that is the subject of the |
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suit. |
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(c) The petition submitted under Section 5.351 must |
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include: |
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(1) a citation to each specific section of the |
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statutes and rules involved in the matter under review; and |
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(2) a citation to the administrative record to support |
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each allegation in the petition. |
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(d) The court shall give deference to the actions of the |
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commission consistent with applicable law and may find an action |
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unlawful only if: |
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(1) no evidence supports the commission's action; or |
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(2) the commission's action was not based on a |
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permissible construction of the statute. |
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(e) The court may not substitute its judgment for a judgment |
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of the commission on water quality degradation. |
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SECTION 3. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to |
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a suit instituted under Section 5.351, Water Code, on or after the |
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effective date of this Act. A suit instituted under Section 5.351, |
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Water Code, before the effective date of this Act is governed by the |
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law in effect at the time the suit was instituted, and the former |
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law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |