View My Stats

Thursday, July 21, 2011

GEAA Score Card for the recent 82nd Legislative Session



Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance Releases Score Card for the 82nd Legislative Session

The Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance (GEAA) has tabulated results of key votes related to its Legislative Agenda for the 82nd Legislature. GEAA counts twenty-five House members and eight State Senators among its legislative delegation, representing an area that covers twenty-one counties in Central and South Texas – the Edwards and Trinity aquifer regions. Check out our Score Card here.

GEAA tracked a total of 82 bills filed during the 82nd Session. Since several of the bills that were high on GEAA’s agenda were supported unanimously by GEAA’s legislative delegation in both the House and Senate, scores for this session are higher than they have been for past sessions. These bills include:

Eminent Domain ReformSB 18 (Estes, et al.) / HB 279 (Geren) passed unanimously and has been signed into law! This bill makes the “taking” of private land through eminent domain a fairer process for the property owner. The bill restricts eminent domain to “taking” for public use only, stipulates additional requirements for initiating a taking, and requires the acquiring entity to make an offer at least equal to the value of the land established by a certified appraiser.

Conservation Easements - SB 1044 (Watson, et al.) has been signed into law, providing counties with additional options for financing conservation easements and removing the current requirement that an agricultural conservation easement holder contribute a 50-percent match to receive a grant from the Texas Farm and Ranch Land Conservation Fund.

Watershed Stewardship SB 449 (Watson, Estes) passed by unanimous vote and signed into law, these bills create a property tax incentive for watershed stewardship activities by private property owners. The structure of the incentive is similar to current agriculture and wildlife management tax incentives. Property must first qualify for the existing open space property tax valuation in order to be eligible. The legislation includes seven potential activities for watershed stewardship; landowners must engage in a minimum of three to qualify. SJR 16 and HJR 107 are the companion constitutional amendments.

Groundwater Contamination SB 430 (Nichols) signed into law, effective 9/1/11, requires the TCEQ executive director to notify a groundwater conservation district if groundwater contamination occurs within the district’s boundaries, giving the GCD critical information for managing water quality.

Historic Corridor Designation HB 1499 (Larson) designates part of the Old Spanish Trail highway in Bexar County as a historic corridor. The corridor will be known as the Scenic Loop Road-Boerne Stage Road-Toutant Beauregard Road Historic Corridor.

Water Use Measurement SB 181 (Shapiro) / HB 1319 (Laubenberg) signed into law, effective immediately, establishes a uniform method for calculated gallons per capita per day (GPCD), a way to measure the effectiveness of water conservation efforts. The State Water Plan directs that by 2060 thirty percent of new water should come from conservation. Texas now has State metrics that tell the whole story of water use, including sector breakdowns of GPCD amount that would reveal trends in water use to aid municipalities in achieving maximum conservation.

Rainwater Harvesting HB 3391 (Miller, Doug) requires rainwater harvesting systems on certain new state buildings for potable and non-potable indoor and outdoor use. The bill also encourages cities, counties, and school districts to promote rainwater harvesting through incentives. Requires the Texas Water Development Board to provide rainwater harvesting training for local government permitting staffs.

No comments: