Relating to the production and study of brackish groundwater.

89(R) SB 2658 - Engrossed version - Bill Text

By: Perry

S.B. No. 2658

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the production and study of brackish groundwater.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Sections 16.060(b) and (e), Water Code, are

amended to read as follows:

(b) The board shall prepare a biennial progress report on

the implementation of seawater or brackish groundwater

desalination activities in the state and shall submit it to the

governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker of the house of

representatives not later than December 1 of each even-numbered

year. The report shall include:

(1) results of the board's studies and activities

relative to seawater or brackish groundwater desalination during

the preceding biennium;

(2) identification and evaluation of research,

regulatory, technical, and financial impediments to the

implementation of seawater or brackish groundwater desalination

projects;

(3) evaluation of the role the state should play in

furthering the development of large-scale seawater or brackish

groundwater desalination projects in the state;

(4) the anticipated appropriation from general

revenues necessary to continue investigating water desalination

activities in the state during the next biennium; and

(5) identification and designation of local or

regional brackish groundwater production zones in areas of the

state with moderate to high availability and productivity of

brackish groundwater that can be used to reduce the use of fresh

groundwater and that:

(A) are separated by hydrogeologic barriers

sufficient to prevent significant impacts to water availability or

water quality in any area of the same or other aquifers,

subdivisions of aquifers, or geologic strata that have an average

total dissolved solids level of 1,000 milligrams per liter or less

at the time of designation of the zones; and

(B) are not located in:

(i) an area of the Edwards Aquifer subject

to the jurisdiction of the Edwards Aquifer Authority;

(ii) the boundaries of the:

(a) Barton Springs-Edwards Aquifer

Conservation District;

(b) Harris-Galveston Subsidence

District; or

(c) Fort Bend Subsidence District;
or

(iii) an aquifer, subdivision of an

aquifer, or geologic stratum that:

(a) has an average total dissolved

solids level of more than 1,000 milligrams per liter; and

(b) is serving as a significant source

of water supply for municipal, domestic, or agricultural purposes

at the time of designation of the zones[
; or

[
(iv)

an area of a geologic stratum that is

designated or used for wastewater injection through the use of

injection wells or disposal wells permitted under Chapter 27
].

(e) In designating a brackish groundwater production zone

under this section, the board shall:

(1) determine the amount of brackish groundwater that

the zone is capable of producing over a 30-year period and a 50-year

period without causing a significant impact to water availability

or water quality as described by Subsection (b)(5)(A); and

(2) include in the designation description:

(A) the amounts of brackish groundwater that the

zone is capable of producing during the periods described by

Subdivision (1); [
and
]

(B) recommendations regarding reasonable

monitoring to observe the effects of brackish groundwater

production within the zone
;

(C)

an allocation of the available amounts of

brackish groundwater identified in Paragraph (A) to each

groundwater conservation district and county located in the zone;

and

(D)

a description of any area of a geologic

stratum in the zone that is designated or used for wastewater

injection through the use of injection or disposal wells permitted

under Chapter 27
.

SECTION 2. Section 36.117, Water Code, is amended by

amending Subsections (b) and (d) and adding Subsections (e-1),

(e-2), (e-3), and (k-1) to read as follows:

(b) Except as provided by this section, a district shall

provide an exemption from the district requirement to obtain a

permit for:

(1) drilling or operating a well used solely for

domestic use or for providing water for livestock or poultry if the

well is:

(A) located or to be located on a tract of land

larger than 10 acres; and

(B) drilled, completed, or equipped so that it is

incapable of producing more than 25,000 gallons of groundwater a

day;

(2) drilling a water well used solely to supply water

for a rig that is actively engaged in drilling or exploration

operations for an oil or gas well permitted by the Railroad

Commission of Texas provided that the person holding the permit is

responsible for drilling and operating the water well and the water

well is located on the same lease or field associated with the

drilling rig;

(3) drilling a water well authorized under a permit

issued by the Railroad Commission of Texas under Chapter 134,

Natural Resources Code, or for production from the well to the

extent the withdrawals are required for mining activities

regardless of any subsequent use of the water; [
or
]

(4) drilling a water well for temporary use to supply

water for a rig that is actively engaged in drilling a groundwater

production well permitted by the district
; or

(5)

drilling or operating a well for the withdrawal of

groundwater from a designated brackish groundwater production

zone, as defined by Section 36.1015, if:

(A)

the operator of the well provides the

district with documentation:

(i)

from an environmental testing

laboratory accredited under commission rules for water quality

analysis in permitting decisions demonstrating that the well

produces water with a total dissolved solids concentration of at

least 3,000 milligrams per liter; and

(ii)

showing that the operator has acquired

a real property interest in the groundwater described by this

paragraph underlying each tract of land within the spacing area

assigned to the well or the spacing distances required for the

drilling of other wells, as applicable, under the well spacing

rules of the district; and

(B)

total brackish groundwater production from

the area of the designated brackish groundwater production zone

located in the district would not exceed the applicable estimated

withdrawal amounts allocated to the district by the Texas Water

Development Board pursuant to Section 16.060(e)(2)(C)
.

(d) A district may cancel a previously granted exemption and

may require an operating permit for or restrict production from a

well and assess any appropriate fees if:

(1) the groundwater withdrawals that were exempted

under Subsection (b)(1) are no longer used solely for domestic use

or to provide water for livestock or poultry;

(2) the groundwater withdrawals that were exempted

under Subsection (b)(2) are no longer used solely to supply water

for a rig that is actively engaged in drilling or exploration

operations for an oil or gas well permitted by the Railroad

Commission of Texas;

(3) the groundwater withdrawals that were exempted

under Subsection (b)(3) are no longer necessary for mining

activities or are greater than the amount necessary for mining

activities specified in the permit issued by the Railroad

Commission of Texas under Chapter 134, Natural Resources Code; [
or
]

(4) the groundwater withdrawals that were exempted

under Subsection (b)(4) are no longer used solely to supply water

for a rig that is actively engaged in drilling a groundwater

production well permitted by the district
; or

(5)

for groundwater withdrawals that were exempted

under Subsection (b)(5):

(A)

the withdrawals are no longer from a

designated brackish groundwater production zone, as defined by

Section 36.1015; or

(B)

the groundwater produced no longer has an

average total dissolved solids concentration of 3,000 milligrams

per liter or more
.

(e-1)

A person owning or operating a well withdrawing water

from a brackish groundwater production zone that is exempt from the

requirement to obtain a permit under Subsection (b)(5) shall:

(1)

implement a monitoring system approved by the

district that accomplishes the purposes of Sections 36.1015(e)(4)

and (5); and

(2)

submit an annual report to the district that

contains the information required by Section 36.1015(e)(6).

(e-2)

Before approving a proposed monitoring system under

Subsection (e-1), the district shall consult with the Texas Water

Development Board to ensure that the proposed monitoring system

aligns with the recommendations provided under Section

16.060(e)(2)(B) and with Sections 36.1015(e)(4) and (5). The

district shall provide each report required under Subsection

(e-1)(2) to the development board.

(e-3)

A district may cancel a previously granted exemption

granted in accordance with Subsection (b)(5) and may require an

operating permit for or restrict production from a well if:

(1) the person who owns or operates the well fails to:

(A)

implement and maintain the monitoring system

required under Subsection (e-1)(1); or

(B)

submit an annual report as required under

Subsection (e-1)(2); or

(2)

the district finds by a preponderance of the

evidence, based on data from the monitoring system required under

Subsection (e-1)(1), that the production of water from the brackish

groundwater production zone:

(A)

is negatively impacting or is likely to

negatively impact water quality in an adjacent aquifer, subdivision

of an aquifer, or geologic stratum; or

(B) is causing or is likely to cause subsidence.

(k-1)

Notwithstanding Subsection (k) or any other law, a

district may not subject water withdrawn from a well exempted from a

permit requirement by Subsection (b)(5) to a transport or export

fee greater than 10 cents per thousand gallons of transported or

exported water.

SECTION 3. Section 36.205, Water Code, is amended by adding

Subsection (h) to read as follows:

(h)

A district may not assess a production fee under this

section for any water produced under an exemption under Section

36.117(b)(5).

SECTION 4. The Texas Water Development Board shall make any

identifications of, redesignations of, or adjustments to brackish

groundwater production zones as necessary to comply with the

changes in law made by this Act in Section 16.060, Water Code, using

staff, contractors, equipment, and data acquired by the board

before September 1, 2025.

SECTION 5. Sections 36.117(k-1) and 36.205(h), Water Code,

as added by this Act, apply only to water withdrawn from a well on or

after the effective date of this Act. Water withdrawn from a well

before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in

effect on the date the water is withdrawn, and the former law is

continued in effect for that purpose.

SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.