Bill Text: TX SB1587 | 2017-2018 | 85th Legislature | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Relating to lead in drinking water at public schools.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-05-16 - Not again placed on intent calendar [SB1587 Detail]
Download: Texas-2017-SB1587-Comm_Sub.html
| By: Garcia | S.B. No. 1587 | |
| (In the Senate - Filed March 9, 2017; March 21, 2017, read | ||
| first time and referred to Committee on Agriculture, Water & Rural | ||
| Affairs; May 10, 2017, reported adversely, with favorable | ||
| Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 4, Nays 3; | ||
| May 10, 2017, sent to printer.) | ||
| COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1587 | By: Rodríguez | |
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| relating to lead in drinking water at public schools. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Section 341.040, Health and Safety Code, is | ||
| amended to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 341.040. DEFINITIONS [ |
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| subchapter: | ||
| (1) "Commission"[ |
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| Commission on Environmental Quality. | ||
| (2) "Drinking water outlet" means any water fountain, | ||
| faucet, or tap regularly used for drinking or food preparation, | ||
| including ice-making and hot drink machines. | ||
| (3) "Elevated lead level" means a lead concentration | ||
| in drinking water that exceeds the actionable standard set by the | ||
| guidelines of the Environmental Protection Agency. | ||
| (4) "Executive director" means the executive director | ||
| of the commission. | ||
| (5) "Lead service line" means a pipe and its fittings, | ||
| which are not lead free as defined by the federal Safe Drinking | ||
| Water Act (42 U.S.C. Section 300g-6), that connect a drinking water | ||
| main to a drinking water outlet. | ||
| (6) "Public school" includes an open-enrollment | ||
| charter school as defined by Section 5.001, Education Code. | ||
| (7) "Public water system" has the meaning assigned by | ||
| Section 15.602, Water Code. | ||
| SECTION 2. Subchapter C, Chapter 341, Health and Safety | ||
| Code, is amended by adding Sections 341.051, 341.052, 341.053, | ||
| 341.054, and 341.055 to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 341.051. PUBLIC SCHOOL DRINKING WATER: LEAD SERVICE | ||
| LINE INFORMATION. A public water system shall provide each public | ||
| school that the public water system serves any information in its | ||
| possession relating to the location of lead service lines. Each | ||
| public school shall determine which of the school's buildings | ||
| receive drinking water through lead service lines and report the | ||
| information to the commission. | ||
| Sec. 341.052. PUBLIC SCHOOL DRINKING WATER: TESTING. A | ||
| public school may undertake periodic testing of the drinking water | ||
| outlets in each school building for the presence of lead. Each test | ||
| for lead, if conducted, must be conducted: | ||
| (1) by a laboratory certified for that purpose by the | ||
| executive director; and | ||
| (2) in accordance with: | ||
| (A) the sampling and testing methods specified by | ||
| the Environmental Protection Agency; and | ||
| (B) any applicable technical guidance issued by | ||
| the commission under Section 341.054. | ||
| Sec. 341.053. PUBLIC SCHOOL DRINKING WATER: TRANSPARENCY | ||
| AND PUBLIC RIGHT TO KNOW. (a) A public school that performs | ||
| testing under Section 341.052 shall: | ||
| (1) submit to the commission and the Texas Education | ||
| Agency a report that includes information on the testing, | ||
| including: | ||
| (A) the date the testing was completed; | ||
| (B) the location and type of each drinking water | ||
| outlet tested; | ||
| (C) the complete results of each test; | ||
| (D) any measures being taken to remediate a | ||
| drinking water outlet found to have an elevated lead level; and | ||
| (E) confirmation that the sampling and testing | ||
| were conducted in accordance with federal and state standards; | ||
| (2) maintain copies of information submitted under | ||
| Subdivision (1) in a suitable location for inspection by the public | ||
| and on the Internet website of the school; | ||
| (3) notify parent, teacher, and employee | ||
| organizations of the availability of the submitted information; and | ||
| (4) designate a person to serve as the contact person | ||
| for communications with the commission and the public regarding the | ||
| lead testing and any remediation activities. | ||
| (b) The commission shall adopt rules regarding the format | ||
| for the submission of information under Subsection (a). | ||
| Sec. 341.054. PUBLIC SCHOOL DRINKING WATER: TECHNICAL | ||
| GUIDANCE. The commission shall post technical guidance for lead | ||
| testing on the commission's Internet website, including: | ||
| (1) information relating to: | ||
| (A) the implementation of the federal Lead | ||
| Contamination Control Act of 1988 in this state; | ||
| (B) the implementation of the Environmental | ||
| Protection Agency's technical guidance for reducing lead in | ||
| drinking water in schools; and | ||
| (C) testing and sampling protocols; | ||
| (2) a list of laboratories certified to conduct lead | ||
| testing; and | ||
| (3) resources for best practices for remediation. | ||
| Sec. 341.055. PUBLIC SCHOOL DRINKING WATER: COMMISSION | ||
| BIENNIAL REPORT. Not later than December 1 of each even-numbered | ||
| year, the executive director shall submit to the governor, the | ||
| lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, | ||
| and each member of the legislature a report that includes a summary | ||
| of the information submitted under Section 341.053(a) in the | ||
| preceding two-year period. | ||
| SECTION 3. (a) Not later than October 1, 2017, each public | ||
| water system shall provide public schools that it serves with | ||
| information relating to the location of lead service lines, as | ||
| required by Section 341.051, Health and Safety Code, as added by | ||
| this Act. | ||
| (b) Not later than November 1, 2017, each public school | ||
| shall inform the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality which | ||
| buildings are served by lead service lines as required by Section | ||
| 341.051, Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act. | ||
| (c) Not later than October 15, 2017, the Texas Commission on | ||
| Environmental Quality shall post the technical guidance required by | ||
| Section 341.054, Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act, on | ||
| the commission's Internet website. | ||
| SECTION 4. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality is | ||
| required to implement Sections 341.053, 341.054, and 341.055, | ||
| Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act, only if the | ||
| legislature appropriates money specifically for those purposes. If | ||
| the legislature does not appropriate money specifically for those | ||
| purposes, the commission may, but is not required to, implement | ||
| those sections using other appropriations available to the | ||
| commission for those purposes. | ||
| SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives | ||
| a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as | ||
| provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this | ||
| Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this | ||
| Act takes effect September 1, 2017. | ||
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