BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 5348

By: Kitzman

Natural Resources

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Under current law, entities constructing reservoirs on unique reservoir sites must attempt to do environmental mitigation by offering landowners the option of placing a conservation easement on their land. A landowner may reject an offer of easement on their land, but if agreement on the terms of an easement cannot be reached by the parties after a good faith attempt and offer is made, the party constructing the project may obtain the fee title of the land through voluntary or unvoluntary means. The bill author has informed the committee that it is important to implement safeguards into statute to ensure environmental mitigation with or without an easement, as increased environmental mitigation is anticipated in some reservoirs, such as the Marvin Nichols Reservoir which is estimated to need up to 130,000 acres of mitigation. H.B. 5348 seeks to provide accountability for construction projects by requiring a person who does not mitigate future adverse environmental effects arising from the construction or operation of an applicable project or its related facilities by an easement to submit an explanatory report to the Texas Water Development Board that provides the reasons the person was not able to utilize an easement for mitigation. The bill would also expand the applicability of the requirement to make an easement offer for environmental mitigation purposes to include additional types of water development projects.

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 this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

H.B. 5348 amends the Water Code to make applicable to all projects under statutory provisions generally applicable to water development the following provisions that currently apply only with respect to a reservoir whose site has been designated by the legislature as unique for the construction of a reservoir:

· the requirement for a person proposing to construct an applicable project who is required to mitigate future adverse environmental effects arising from the construction or operation of the project or its related facilities, if authorized by the applicable regulatory authority, to attempt to mitigate those effects by offering to contract with and pay an amount of money to an owner of real property to maintain the property through an easement instead of acquiring the fee simple title to the property for that purpose; and

· the provisions that authorize an owner of real property to reject such an offer and authorize the party constructing the project to obtain fee title to the property through voluntary or involuntary means if agreement on the terms of an easement cannot be reached by the parties after a good faith attempt and offer is made.

The bill removes the specification that the owner of real property to which an offer is made is an owner of real property located outside of the reservoir site. The bill requires a person who does not mitigate future adverse environmental effects arising from the construction or operation of a project or its related facilities by an easement instead of acquiring the fee simple title to the property to submit an explanatory report to the Texas Water Development Board that provides the reasons the person was not able to utilize an easement for mitigation.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2025.