Bill Text: TX SB733 | 2017-2018 | 85th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to the sanitation and safety requirements for certain artificial bodies of water maintained for public recreational purposes.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-04-11 - Left pending in committee [SB733 Detail]
Download: Texas-2017-SB733-Introduced.html
85R6683 JG-F | ||
By: Hancock | S.B. No. 733 |
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relating to the sanitation and safety requirements for certain | ||
artificial bodies of water maintained for public recreational | ||
purposes. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. The heading to Section 341.064, Health and | ||
Safety Code, is amended to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 341.064. SWIMMING POOLS, ARTIFICIAL SWIMMING LAGOONS, | ||
AND BATHHOUSES. | ||
SECTION 2. Sections 341.064(a), (b), (c), (e), (f), (g), | ||
(i), (j), (k), (l-1), (m), (n), and (o), Health and Safety Code, are | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
(a) An owner, manager, operator, or other attendant in | ||
charge of a public swimming pool or an artificial swimming lagoon | ||
shall maintain the public swimming pool or artificial swimming | ||
lagoon in a sanitary condition. | ||
(b) The bacterial content of the water in a public swimming | ||
pool or in an artificial swimming lagoon may not exceed the safe | ||
limits prescribed by department standards. A minimum free | ||
residual chlorine of 2.0 parts for each one million units of water | ||
in a public spa and a minimum free residual chlorine of 1.0 part for | ||
each one million units of water in other public swimming pools or in | ||
artificial swimming lagoons, or any other method of disinfectant | ||
approved by the department, must be maintained in a public swimming | ||
pool in use or in an artificial swimming lagoon in use. | ||
(c) Water in a public swimming pool or in an artificial | ||
swimming lagoon [ |
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to a standard pH test. | ||
(e) Facilities shall be provided in a public swimming pool | ||
or in an artificial swimming lagoon for adequate protection of | ||
bathers against sputum contamination. | ||
(f) A person known to be or suspected of being infected with | ||
a transmissible condition of a communicable disease shall be | ||
excluded from a public swimming pool and from an artificial | ||
swimming lagoon. | ||
(g) The construction and appliances of a public swimming | ||
pool and of an artificial swimming lagoon must be such as to reduce | ||
to a practical minimum the possibility of drowning or of injury to | ||
bathers. The construction after September 4, 1945, of a public | ||
swimming pool or the construction after September 1, 2017, of an | ||
artificial swimming lagoon must conform to good public health | ||
engineering practices. | ||
(i) Dressing rooms of a public swimming pool or of an | ||
artificial swimming lagoon shall contain shower facilities. | ||
(j) A comb or hairbrush used by two or more persons may not | ||
be permitted or distributed in a bathhouse of a public swimming pool | ||
or of an artificial swimming lagoon. | ||
(k) The operator or manager of a public swimming pool or of | ||
an artificial swimming lagoon shall provide adequate and proper | ||
approved facilities for the disposal of human excreta by the | ||
bathers. | ||
(l-1) Rules adopted under this chapter may not prohibit the | ||
consumption of food or beverages in a public swimming pool or in an | ||
artificial swimming lagoon that is privately owned and operated. | ||
(m) In this section: | ||
(1) "Artificial swimming lagoon" means an artificial | ||
body of water open to the public for recreational purposes with more | ||
than 20,000 square feet of surface area, an artificial liner, and a | ||
disinfection system. The term includes only the portion of the body | ||
of water that is designated for swimming. | ||
(2) "Public[ |
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artificial body of water, including a spa, maintained expressly for | ||
public recreational purposes, swimming and similar aquatic sports, | ||
or therapeutic purposes. The term does not include an artificial | ||
swimming lagoon. | ||
(n) A county or municipality may: | ||
(1) require that the owner or operator of a public | ||
swimming pool or of an artificial swimming lagoon within the | ||
jurisdiction of the county or municipality obtain a permit for | ||
operation of the public swimming pool or artificial swimming | ||
lagoon; | ||
(2) inspect a public swimming pool or an artificial | ||
swimming lagoon within the jurisdiction of the county or | ||
municipality for compliance with this section; and | ||
(3) impose and collect a reasonable fee in connection | ||
with a permit or inspection required under this subsection provided | ||
the following are met: | ||
(A) the auditor for the county shall review the | ||
program every two years to ensure that the fees imposed do not | ||
exceed the cost of the program; and | ||
(B) the county refunds the permit holders any | ||
revenue determined by the auditor to exceed the cost of the program. | ||
(o) A county or municipality may by order close, for the | ||
period specified in the order, a public swimming pool or an | ||
artificial swimming lagoon within the jurisdiction of the county or | ||
municipality if the operation of the public swimming pool or | ||
artificial swimming lagoon violates this section or a permitting or | ||
inspection requirement imposed by the county or municipality under | ||
Subsection (n). | ||
SECTION 3. Section 341.0645(a), Health and Safety Code, is | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
(a) An owner, manager, operator, or other attendant in | ||
charge of a public swimming pool as defined by Section 341.064, | ||
wading pool, baby pool, hot tub, in-ground spa, water park, spray | ||
fountain, or other artificial body of water typically used for | ||
recreational swimming, bathing, or play shall comply with pool | ||
safety standards adopted under this section. | ||
SECTION 4. Section 481.134(a), Health and Safety Code, is | ||
amended by adding Subdivision (4-a) to read as follows: | ||
(4-a) "Public swimming pool" has the meaning assigned | ||
by Section 341.064. | ||
SECTION 5. As soon as practicable after the effective date | ||
of this Act, the executive commissioner of the Health and Human | ||
Services Commission shall adopt rules necessary to implement the | ||
changes in law made by this Act. | ||
SECTION 6. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to | ||
an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. An | ||
offense committed before the effective date of this Act is governed | ||
by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, and the | ||
former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of | ||
this section, an offense was committed before the effective date of | ||
this Act if any element of the offense occurred before that date. | ||
SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |