Bill Text: TX SB471 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Introduced

Texas Senate Bill 471

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

Bill Title: Relating to the investigation by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality of certain complaints.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)

Status: (Passed) 2023-06-18 - Effective on 9/1/23 [SB471 Detail]

Download: Texas-2023-SB471-Introduced.html

	88R4617 JXC-D

	By: Springer	S.B. No. 471



	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
	AN ACT
	relating to the imposition of a fee by the Texas Commission on
	Environmental Quality for the investigation of certain complaints.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1. Subchapter E, Chapter 5, Water Code, is amended
	by adding Section 5.1774 to read as follows:
	Sec. 5.1774. FEES FOR MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS. (a) The
	commission shall charge a person who files a complaint a fee before
	the commission investigates the complaint if, in the same calendar
	year in which the complaint is filed, the person has filed at least
	three complaints with the commission for which neither the
	commission nor a local enforcement official took enforcement action
	before closing the file on the complaint.
	(b) The commission by rule shall establish for each type of
	complaint a fee amount to be charged under Subsection (a) that the
	commission estimates is less than or equal to the cost to the
	commission of investigating most complaints of that type.
	(c) The commission may waive the fee required by Subsection
	(a) for good cause.
	SECTION 2. (a) The Texas Commission on Environmental
	Quality shall adopt the rules required by Section 5.1774, Water
	Code, as added by this Act, as soon as practicable after the
	effective date of this Act.
	(b) Section 5.1774, Water Code, as added by this Act,
	applies only to a complaint filed on or after the effective date of
	the rules adopted under that section. The Texas Commission on
	Environmental Quality may not consider a complaint filed before the
	effective date of the rules for the purposes of determining whether
	to charge a fee under Section 5.1774(a), Water Code, as added by
	this Act.
	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.