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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to penalties in certain suits involving a groundwater |
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conservation district; increasing a penalty. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 36.102, Water Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (f) to read as |
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follows: |
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(b) Except as provided by Subsection (f), the [The] board by |
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rule may set reasonable civil penalties that the district may |
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recover from [against] any person for breach of any rule of the |
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district in an amount not to exceed $25,000 [$10,000] per day per |
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violation, and each day of a continuing violation constitutes a |
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separate violation. |
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(f) In an enforcement action brought by a district against a |
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person, the court may assess a penalty greater than the maximum |
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penalty authorized under Subsection (b) if the court determines |
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that the person gained an economic benefit as a result of the |
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violation that was greater than the maximum penalty under |
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Subsection (b). A penalty assessed under this subsection must be in |
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an amount determined by the court to be necessary and appropriate to |
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outweigh the economic benefit gained by the person as a result of |
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the violation and discourage future violations. |
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SECTION 2. Section 36.102, Water Code, as amended by this |
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Act, applies only to a suit involving a groundwater conservation |
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district that is filed on or after the effective date of this Act. A |
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suit filed before the effective date of this Act is subject to the |
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law in effect on the date the suit is filed, and that law is |
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continued in effect for that purpose. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |