Bill Text: TX HB5279 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relating to a prohibition on interbasin transfers of state water.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-03-24 - Referred to Natural Resources [HB5279 Detail]

Download: Texas-2023-HB5279-Introduced.html

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88R14482 KBB-D
By: Wilson H.B. No. 5279

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to a prohibition on interbasin transfers of state water.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 11.085(a), Water Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) A [No] person may not take or divert any state water from
a river basin in this state and transfer such water to any other
river basin [without first applying for and receiving a water right
or an amendment to a permit, certified filing, or certificate of
adjudication from the commission authorizing the transfer].
SECTION 2. Section 11.0237(b), Water Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) This section does not alter the commission's
obligations under Section 11.042(a-1), (b), or (c), 11.046(b),
[11.085(k)(2)(F),] 11.134(b)(3)(D), 11.147, 11.1471, 11.1491,
11.150, 11.152, 16.058, 16.059, or 18.004.
SECTION 3. Section 16.053(e), Water Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(e) Each regional water planning group shall submit to the
development board a regional water plan that:
(1) is consistent with the guidance principles for the
state water plan adopted by the development board under Section
16.051(d);
(2) provides information based on data provided or
approved by the development board in a format consistent with the
guidelines provided by the development board under Subsection (d);
(2-a) is consistent with the desired future conditions
adopted under Section 36.108 for the relevant aquifers located in
the regional water planning area as of the most recent deadline for
the board to adopt the state water plan under Section 16.051 or, at
the option of the regional water planning group, established
subsequent to the adoption of the most recent plan; provided,
however, that if no groundwater conservation district exists within
the area of the regional water planning group, the regional water
planning group shall determine the supply of groundwater for
regional planning purposes; the Texas Water Development Board shall
review and approve, prior to inclusion in the regional water plan,
that the groundwater supply for the regional planning group without
a groundwater conservation district in its area is physically
compatible, using the board's groundwater availability models,
with the desired future conditions adopted under Section 36.108 for
the relevant aquifers in the groundwater management area that are
regulated by groundwater conservation districts;
(3) identifies:
(A) each source of water supply in the regional
water planning area, including information supplied by the
executive administrator on the amount of modeled available
groundwater in accordance with the guidelines provided by the
development board under Subsections (d) and (f);
(B) factors specific to each source of water
supply to be considered in determining whether to initiate a
drought response;
(C) actions to be taken as part of the response;
(D) existing major water infrastructure
facilities that may be used for interconnections in the event of an
emergency shortage of water; and
(E) unnecessary or counterproductive variations
in specific drought response strategies, including outdoor
watering restrictions, among user groups in the regional water
planning area that may confuse the public or otherwise impede
drought response efforts;
(4) has specific provisions for water management
strategies to be used during a drought of record;
(5) includes but is not limited to consideration of
the following:
(A) any existing water or drought planning
efforts addressing all or a portion of the region and potential
impacts on public health, safety, or welfare in this state;
(B) approved groundwater conservation district
management plans and other plans submitted under Section 16.054;
(C) all potentially feasible water management
strategies, including but not limited to improved conservation,
reuse, and management of existing water supplies, conjunctive use,
acquisition of available existing water supplies, and development
of new water supplies;
(D) protection of existing water rights in the
region;
(E) opportunities for and the benefits of
developing regional water supply facilities or providing regional
management of water supply facilities;
(F) appropriate provision for environmental
water needs and for the effect of upstream development on the bays,
estuaries, and arms of the Gulf of Mexico and the effect of plans on
navigation;
(G) [provisions in Section 11.085(k)(1) if
interbasin transfers are contemplated;
[(H)] voluntary transfer of water within the
region using, but not limited to, regional water banks, sales,
leases, options, subordination agreements, and financing
agreements;
(H) [(I)] emergency transfer of water under
Section 11.139, including information on the part of each permit,
certified filing, or certificate of adjudication for nonmunicipal
use in the region that may be transferred without causing
unreasonable damage to the property of the nonmunicipal water
rights holder; and
(I) [(J)] opportunities for and the benefits of
developing large-scale desalination facilities for:
(i) marine seawater that serve local or
regional entities; and
(ii) brackish groundwater that serve local
or regional brackish groundwater production zones identified and
designated under Section 16.060(b)(5);
(6) identifies river and stream segments of unique
ecological value and sites of unique value for the construction of
reservoirs that the regional water planning group recommends for
protection under Section 16.051;
(7) assesses the impact of the plan on unique river and
stream segments identified in Subdivision (6) if the regional water
planning group or the legislature determines that a site of unique
ecological value exists;
(8) describes the impact of proposed water projects on
water quality;
(9) includes information on:
(A) projected water use and conservation in the
regional water planning area; and
(B) the implementation of state and regional
water plan projects, including water conservation strategies,
necessary to meet the state's projected water demands;
(10) if the regional water planning area has
significant identified water needs, provides a specific assessment
of the potential for aquifer storage and recovery projects to meet
those needs;
(11) sets one or more specific goals for gallons of
water use per capita per day in each decade of the period covered by
the plan for the municipal water user groups in the regional water
planning area; and
(12) assesses the progress of the regional water
planning area in encouraging cooperation between water user groups
for the purpose of achieving economies of scale and otherwise
incentivizing strategies that benefit the entire region.
SECTION 4. Section 16.403(e), Water Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(e) Data included in a water conservation plan or report
required under this code and submitted to the board or commission
must be interpreted in the context of variations in local water
use. [The data may not be the only factor considered by the
commission in determining the highest practicable level of water
conservation and efficiency achievable in the jurisdiction of a
municipality or water utility for purposes of Section 11.085(l).]
SECTION 5. Sections 11.085(b) through (v), Water Code, are
repealed.
SECTION 6. (a) This Act does not apply to an application
for a water right or an amendment to a permit, certified filing, or
certificate of adjudication authorizing an interbasin transfer of
water that is accepted for filing before the effective date of this
Act.
(b) An application for a water right or an amendment to a
permit, certified filing, or certificate of adjudication
authorizing an interbasin transfer of water that is accepted for
filing before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law
in effect at the time the application is accepted for filing, and
the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.