89R2217 JDK-F

By: Johnson S.B. No. 729

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the operation of rock crushing facilities.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 382.05101, Health and Safety Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 382.05101. DE MINIMIS AIR CONTAMINANTS. The commission may develop by rule the criteria to establish a de minimis level of air contaminants for facilities or groups of facilities below which the following types of permits are not required:

(1) a permit under Section 382.0518 or 382.0519;

(2) a standard permit under Section 382.05195, 382.05198, [or] 382.051985, or 382.0651; or

(3) a permit by rule under Section 382.05196.

SECTION 2. Section 382.0511(c), Health and Safety Code, is amended to read as follows:

(c) The commission may authorize changes in a federal source to proceed before the owner or operator obtains a federal operating permit or revisions to a federal operating permit if:

(1) the changes are de minimis under Section 382.05101; or

(2) the owner or operator:

(A) has obtained a preconstruction permit or permit amendment required by Section 382.0518; or

(B) is operating under:

(i) a standard permit under Section 382.05195, 382.05198, [or] 382.051985, or 382.0651;

(ii) a permit by rule under Section 382.05196; or

(iii) an exemption allowed under Section 382.057.

SECTION 3. Subchapter C, Chapter 382, Health and Safety Code, is amended by adding Sections 382.0651, 382.0652, and 382.0653 to read as follows:

Sec. 382.0651. STANDARD PERMIT FOR CERTAIN ROCK CRUSHING FACILITIES. (a) The commission shall issue a standard permit for a rock crushing facility that:

(1) is located at an aggregate production operation required to be registered under Section 28A.051, Water Code;

(2) processes not more than 1,500 tons of rock per hour; and

(3) meets the requirements of this section.

(b) The standard permit issued under this section must require that an owner or operator of a facility authorized to use the permit, in addition to any other applicable requirements of this chapter:

(1) install and operate for the first 12 consecutive months of operation under the standard permit equipment to monitor:

(A) water quality in mining pits and sedimentation ponds at the aggregate production operation for the presence of contaminants related to aggregate extraction;

(B) the seismicity of extraction activities, including blasting along active extraction areas; and

(C) emissions of air contaminants, if the facility is located within 440 yards of two or more other aggregate production operations;

(2) maintain records of monitoring data from the monitoring equipment required by Subdivision (1) until the second anniversary of the date on which the data was collected;

(3) establish a plan for providing notice of emergencies to:

(A) owners and tenants of adjacent real property and the property owners' association of each adjacent residential subdivision, as applicable; and

(B) each member of the board of trustees of a school district that serves the geographic area in which the facility is located;

(4) implement best management practices for:

(A) conserving water;

(B) minimizing visible dust from active extraction areas at the aggregate production operation, including those areas not immediately revegetated;

(C) removing noncommercial material and old and unused extraction equipment from the facility site; and

(D) cleaning and mowing of on-site equipment yards; and

(5) submit to the commission a post-extraction land use plan that includes:

(A) provisions for permanent removal of extraction equipment;

(B) provisions for revegetation, including the use of appropriate local vegetation types that are adequate for post-extraction uses of land, as determined by the owner or operator;

(C) slope and grading standards to allow for traversing of livestock; and

(D) proposed land reuse options, such as agricultural, natural, open space, or redevelopment uses or the creation of a pond or lake.

(c) The commission by rule shall adopt best management practices for the purposes of Subsection (b)(4). Before the commission proposes a rule under this subsection, the commission must use negotiated rulemaking procedures under Chapter 2008, Government Code.

(d) The commission shall make each post-extraction land use plan submitted under Subsection (b)(5) available on the commission's Internet website.

(e) If the land on which the facility to be permitted is located is owned by a person other than the owner or operator of the facility, the owner or operator of the facility may submit to the commission an agreement made between the landowner and the facility owner or operator for post-extraction land uses instead of the post-extraction land use plan required under Subsection (b)(5).

(f) The commission shall inspect a facility for compliance with this section during regular inspections under this chapter and Chapter 28A, Water Code.

Sec. 382.0652. STANDARD PERMIT FOR CERTAIN ROCK CRUSHING FACILITIES: NOTICE AND HEARING. (a) A person may not begin construction of a new or modification of an existing rock crushing facility under a standard permit issued under Section 382.0651 unless the commission authorizes the person to use the permit as provided by this section. The notice and hearing requirements of this section apply only to an application for authorization to use a standard permit issued under Section 382.0651. An applicant for a permit for a rock crushing facility that does not meet the requirements of a standard permit issued under Section 382.0651 must comply with:

(1) Section 382.058 to obtain authorization to use a standard permit issued under Section 382.05195 or a permit by rule adopted under Section 382.05196; or

(2) Section 382.056 to obtain a permit issued under Section 382.0518.

(b) An applicant for an authorization to use a standard permit issued under Section 382.0651 must publish notice under this section not later than the earlier of:

(1) the 30th day after the date the applicant receives written notice from the executive director that the application is technically complete; or

(2) the 75th day after the date the executive director receives the application.

(c) The applicant must publish notice at least once in a newspaper of general circulation in the municipality in which the facility is located or proposed to be located or in the municipality nearest to the location or proposed location of the facility. If the elementary or middle school nearest to the location or proposed location of the facility provides a bilingual education program as required by Subchapter B, Chapter 29, Education Code, the applicant must also publish the notice at least once in an additional publication of general circulation in each municipality or county in which the facility is located or proposed to be located that is published in the language taught in the bilingual education program. This requirement is waived if such a publication does not exist or if the publisher refuses to publish the notice.

(d) The notice must include:

(1) a brief description of the location or proposed location and nature of the facility;

(2) a description, including a telephone number, of the manner in which the executive director may be contacted for further information;

(3) a description, including a telephone number, of the manner in which the applicant may be contacted for further information;

(4) the location and hours of operation of the commission's regional office at which a copy of the application is available for review and copying; and

(5) a brief description of the public comment process, including the time and location of the public hearing, and the mailing address and deadline for filing written comments.

(e) The public comment period begins on the first date notice is published under Subsection (b) and extends to the close of the public hearing.

(f) Not later than the 30th day before the date of the public hearing, the commission shall notify the following entities of the date, time, and place of the hearing:

(1) each municipality and county in which the facility is located or proposed to be located;

(2) the Texas Department of Transportation;

(3) each groundwater conservation district with jurisdiction over the area in which the facility is located or proposed to be located; and

(4) each state representative and state senator representing the area in which the facility is located or proposed to be located.

(g) Section 382.056 of this code and Chapter 2001, Government Code, do not apply to a public hearing held under this section. A public hearing held under this section is not an evidentiary proceeding. Any person may submit an oral or written statement concerning the application at the public hearing. The applicant may set reasonable limits on the time allowed for oral statements at the public hearing.

(h) The applicant, in cooperation with the executive director, must hold the public hearing not less than 30 days and not more than 45 days after the first date notice is published under Subsection (b). The public hearing must be held in the county in which the facility is located or proposed to be located.

(i) Not later than the 35th day after the date the public hearing is held, the executive director shall approve or deny the application for authorization to use the standard permit. The executive director shall base the decision on whether the application meets the requirements of Section 382.0651. The executive director shall consider all comments received during the public comment period and at the public hearing in determining whether to approve the application. If the executive director denies the application, the executive director shall state the reasons for the denial and any modifications to the application that are necessary for the facility to qualify for the authorization.

(j) The executive director shall issue a written response to any relevant and material public comments received related to the issuance of an authorization to use the standard permit at the same time as or as soon as practicable after the executive director grants or denies the application. Issuance of the response after the granting or denial of the application does not affect the validity of the executive director's decision to grant or deny the application. The executive director shall:

(1) mail the response to each person who filed a comment; and

(2) make the response available to the public.

Sec. 382.0653. CITIZEN ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR ROCK CRUSHING FACILITIES. (a) This section applies only to a permit issued under this chapter, or an authorization to use a permit issued under this chapter, to operate a rock crushing facility.

(b) The commission shall establish a citizen advisory committee to act as a liaison between the commission, an applicant for a permit or an authorization to use a permit, and neighboring communities during the application process to identify community concerns. Section 2110.008, Government Code, does not apply to the citizen advisory committee.

SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.