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The bill of major interest to members of the Texas Desalination community, SB 28 (Perry) was finally passed on the 28th of May, sent to the Governor on the 29th and signed on June 9th. The earliest effective date for the majority of SB 28 is September 1 of this year. The funding mechanism for SB 28 is contained within SJR 75 which finally passed on May 28th as well. This constitutional amendment (SJR 75) must be voted on by the voters of the state and that election occurs on November 7th, later this year. If the amendment passes the funding portion of SB 28 will go into effect on January 1 of 2024.
A significant portion of the other bills tracked by the Texas Desalination Association died, while a few became law without the Governor’s signature, or were vetoed. As of 6 p.m. June 19th there were 250 bills that the Governor had taken no action on. The delay seems to have had more to do with the larger picture, (property taxes and vouchers) and the bill’s author and sponsor than the actual merits of the legislation. If you have followed the press over the past several days, the contention and lack of civility does not bode well for a fast resolution to our current legislative impasse.
In total the Governor vetoed 73 bills. That is his record on vetoes since he became Governor. 52 of those bills were senate bills. Included within those vetoes was SB 1080 by Senator Kolkhorst dealing with mitigation fees for Lost Pines GCD. 3 additional bills that were being tracked, SB 2379 (Schwertner) dealing with Edwards Aquifer storage and recovery and SB 2052 (Nichols) dealing with permit fees for SE Tx GCD, and HB 2416 (Paul) dealing with the Gulf Coast Protection Trust were also vetoed. The Governor did sign a number of bills we were tracking as well. HB 3731 (Murr) Dealing with the Bandera River Authority and GCD, HB 3278 (Price) dealing with joint planning for DFC in certain GMAs, HB 2443 (Harris) dealing with the ability to petition GCDs, HB 1565 (Canales) TWDB Sunset bill, HB 1971 (Ashby) dealing with GCD Board members, SB 1047 (Perry) increased funding for the Produced Water Consortium and SB 2440 (Perry) regulating the platting of subdivisions and taking into consideration groundwater availability. Two other bills we were tracking, HB 1699 (King) was allowed to become law without the Governor’s signature as was HB 3059 (King) dealing with GCD export fees.
The discussion regarding what to do with approximately $18B and what your property taxes will look like going forward continues to be the current focus. The end of the first called session is fast approaching. The next called session is not an “if” but a “when”. That “when” will occur very quickly. Leadership does not appear to be any closer now than they were at the end of May. Today it’s 104 degrees in Austin. It’s going to be a long hot summer.