Bill Text: TX HB3744 | 2017-2018 | 85th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to the regulation of the retention, storage, transportation, and disposal of used or scrap tires; providing a civil penalty; creating a criminal offense.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-04-27 - Failed to receive affirmative vote in comm. [HB3744 Detail]
Download: Texas-2017-HB3744-Introduced.html
85R4833 SLB-D | ||
By: Walle | H.B. No. 3744 |
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relating to the regulation of the retention, storage, | ||
transportation, and disposal of used or scrap tires; providing a | ||
civil penalty; creating a criminal offense. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. The heading to Section 361.112, Health and | ||
Safety Code, is amended to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 361.112. STORAGE[ |
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USED OR SCRAP TIRES. | ||
SECTION 2. Section 361.112, Health and Safety Code, is | ||
amended by adding Subsection (n) to read as follows: | ||
(n) A used or scrap tire generator, including a tire dealer, | ||
junkyard, or fleet operator, who stores used or scrap tires | ||
outdoors on its business premises shall store the used or scrap | ||
tires in a secure manner that locks the tires during nonbusiness | ||
hours. | ||
SECTION 3. Subchapter C, Chapter 361, Health and Safety | ||
Code, is amended by adding Sections 361.1121 and 361.1122 to read as | ||
follows: | ||
Sec. 361.1121. DISPOSITION OF TIRE REMOVED FROM VEHICLE | ||
DURING PURCHASE OF TIRE. (a) In this section: | ||
(1) "Scrap tire" has the meaning assigned by Section | ||
361.112. | ||
(2) "Seller" means a person who is engaged in the | ||
business of selling or otherwise placing tires in the stream of | ||
commerce for use on a vehicle, trailer, or piece of equipment. | ||
(3) "Used tire" means a tire that: | ||
(A) has been used as a tire on a vehicle, trailer, | ||
or piece of equipment; | ||
(B) has tire tread at least one-sixteenth inch | ||
deep; | ||
(C) can still be used for its original intended | ||
purpose; and | ||
(D) has been inspected visually and meets the | ||
visual and tread depth requirements for used tires established by | ||
the Department of Public Safety. | ||
(b) A customer may not retain a scrap tire removed from the | ||
customer's vehicle during the purchase of a tire from a seller. | ||
(c) A seller who takes possession of a scrap tire from a | ||
customer during a transaction described by Subsection (b) shall | ||
store or dispose of the scrap tire according to local and state | ||
laws, including Section 361.112. | ||
(d) A customer may retain a used tire removed from the | ||
customer's vehicle during the purchase of a tire only if the | ||
customer certifies on a form prescribed by the commission that the | ||
customer assumes liability for the disposal of the tire. | ||
(e) A seller shall maintain in a manner accessible to local | ||
law enforcement agencies and the commission a record of a | ||
customer's retention of a used tire until at least the third | ||
anniversary of the date the tire was removed. | ||
(f) The commission shall develop the form described by | ||
Subsection (d) and make that form available on the commission's | ||
Internet website. | ||
(g) A seller may contract for the transportation of used or | ||
scrap tires only with a transporter or tire processor who: | ||
(1) is registered as described by Section 361.1122(b); | ||
and | ||
(2) has filed evidence of financial assurance | ||
according to Sections 361.1122(d) and (e). | ||
(h) A seller who contracts for the transportation of used or | ||
scrap tires with a transporter the seller knows to be unregistered | ||
is: | ||
(1) jointly and severally liable for any civil penalty | ||
imposed on the transporter under Subchapter D, Chapter 7, Water | ||
Code, for the illegal disposal of the tires; and | ||
(2) criminally responsible, under Chapter 7, Penal | ||
Code, for an offense involving the tires under Section 365.012 of | ||
this code committed by the transporter. | ||
(i) Notwithstanding Sections 7.102 and 7.103, Water Code, | ||
the amount of a civil penalty for a violation of this section may | ||
not be less than $1,000 a day for each violation. A separate | ||
penalty may be imposed for each day a violation occurs. | ||
(j) The attorney general or the appropriate district or | ||
county attorney may bring an action against a person under this | ||
section in the name of the state in a district court in the county in | ||
which: | ||
(1) the person resides; or | ||
(2) the person's principal place of business is | ||
located. | ||
Sec. 361.1122. USED OR SCRAP TIRE TRANSPORTERS AND CERTAIN | ||
TIRE PROCESSORS. (a) In this section: | ||
(1) "Scrap tire" and "used tire" have the meanings | ||
assigned by Section 361.1121. | ||
(2) "Transporter" means a person who collects used or | ||
scrap tires from another person for the purpose of removal to a used | ||
tire dealer, scrap tire processor, end user, or disposal facility. | ||
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), a person shall | ||
register annually with the commission if the person is: | ||
(1) a transporter; or | ||
(2) a tire processor that is not required to register | ||
as a storage site under Section 361.112. | ||
(c) The following persons are not required to register under | ||
this section: | ||
(1) a person who ships used or defective tires back to | ||
the manufacturer or the manufacturer's representative for | ||
adjustment, provided that the person retains, until the third | ||
anniversary of the shipment date, written records of the shipments | ||
indicating the date of shipment, the destination, and the number of | ||
tires in each shipment and makes those records available to the | ||
commission on request; | ||
(2) an on-site sewage facility installer who is | ||
registered with the commission and who transports used or scrap | ||
tires or tire pieces for construction of an on-site sewage disposal | ||
system, provided that the installer complies with the commission's | ||
manifest and recordkeeping requirements; | ||
(3) a retreader who hauls tires from customers for the | ||
purpose of retreading the tires or who returns tires to customers | ||
after retreading or recapping, provided that the retreader does not | ||
haul tires to an authorized facility for used or scrap tire | ||
collection; | ||
(4) a person who owns or operates a truck for municipal | ||
solid waste collection or commercial route collection and handles | ||
incidental loads of used or scrap tires or tire pieces as part of | ||
normal household or commercial collection activities; | ||
(5) a municipality, county, or other governmental | ||
entity that owns or operates a transport vehicle used to transport | ||
used or scrap tires to an authorized facility or to a facility used | ||
by a governmental entity to collect used or scrap tires, provided | ||
that each load of used or scrap tires is manifested as required by | ||
the commission; | ||
(6) a person transporting five or fewer used or scrap | ||
tires; and | ||
(7) a person exempt from registration requirements | ||
under commission rules. | ||
(d) A transporter or tire processor who is required to | ||
register with the commission shall provide financial assurance by | ||
filing with the commission: | ||
(1) a surety bond obtained from a surety company | ||
authorized to transact business in this state; | ||
(2) evidence of an established trust account; or | ||
(3) an irrevocable letter of credit. | ||
(e) The bond, trust account, or irrevocable letter of credit | ||
described by Subsection (d) must be in favor of the state and: | ||
(1) for a transporter, in an amount of $25,000 or more; | ||
and | ||
(2) for a tire processor, in an amount adequate to | ||
ensure proper cleanup and closure of the site. | ||
(f) Money that the commission receives from a bond, trust | ||
account, or letter of credit obtained by a transporter to meet the | ||
requirements of Subsections (d) and (e) must be used for the cleanup | ||
of abandoned tire storage sites. | ||
(g) The commission shall require a transporter to maintain | ||
records and use a manifest or other appropriate system to assure | ||
that tires are transported to a storage site that is registered or | ||
to a site or facility authorized by the commission. The commission | ||
shall require a transporter to submit to the commission in an | ||
electronic format an annual report on the records maintained by the | ||
transporter under this subsection. | ||
(h) A transporter who fails to submit an annual report under | ||
Subsection (g) is not eligible to renew the transporter's | ||
registration. | ||
(i) The commission shall annually issue a registration | ||
insignia to each transporter. The transporter shall display the | ||
insignia on each vehicle used to transport tires under the | ||
registration. The insignia expires on the first anniversary of the | ||
date of issuance. The commission may adopt rules for issuing | ||
duplicate and multiple insignia. | ||
(j) A county by order may require a transporter to register | ||
with the county. Registration requirements adopted under this | ||
subsection must be compatible with and not less stringent than | ||
rules adopted by the commission under this section. | ||
SECTION 4. Subchapter E, Chapter 7, Water Code, is amended | ||
by adding Section 7.1855 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 7.1855. VIOLATIONS RELATING TO USED OR SCRAP TIRES. | ||
(a) A person commits an offense if the person recklessly violates | ||
Section 361.1121, Health and Safety Code. An offense under this | ||
subsection is punishable for an individual under Section | ||
7.187(a)(1)(B) or 7.187(a)(2)(D) or both. An offense under this | ||
subsection is punishable for a person other than an individual | ||
under Section 7.187(a)(1)(C). | ||
(b) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally | ||
or knowingly violates Section 361.1121, Health and Safety Code. An | ||
offense under this subsection is punishable for an individual under | ||
Section 7.187(a)(1)(C) or Section 7.187(a)(2)(E) or both. An | ||
offense under this subsection is punishable for a person other than | ||
an individual under Section 7.187(a)(1)(D). | ||
SECTION 5. Section 7.303(a), Water Code, is amended to read | ||
as follows: | ||
(a) This section applies to a license, certificate, or | ||
registration issued: | ||
(1) by the commission under: | ||
(A) Section 26.0301; | ||
(B) Chapter 37; | ||
(C) Section 361.0861, 361.092, [ |
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361.1122, Health and Safety Code; | ||
(D) Chapter 366, 371, or 401, Health and Safety | ||
Code; or | ||
(E) Chapter 1903, Occupations Code; | ||
(2) by a county under Subchapter E, Chapter 361, | ||
Health and Safety Code; or | ||
(3) under a rule adopted under any of those | ||
provisions. | ||
SECTION 6. Sections 361.112(g) and (k), Health and Safety | ||
Code, are repealed. | ||
SECTION 7. Not later than March 1, 2018, the Texas | ||
Commission on Environmental Quality shall adopt rules necessary to | ||
implement the changes in law made by this Act. | ||
SECTION 8. Notwithstanding Section 361.1122, Health and | ||
Safety Code, as added by this Act, a person is not required to | ||
register under that section until September 1, 2018. | ||
SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |