The document linked below summarizes some of the more
significant bills passed into law during the 78th Regular Session
of the Texas Legislature. The bills listed are only a subset of the
many bills passed that affect or involve the TCEQ. These are the
more significant measures, however, either in their degree of
impact to the agency or its stakeholders, or because of their
significant policy implications. In all, approximately 124 bills
passed by the 78th Legislature will be implemented by the TCEQ.
Legislative Summaries: 78th
Legislature
Details on legislative implementation, including proposed
rulemaking, will be made available from this page in the near
future.
Overview
Despite the challenge of balancing a very difficult budget and
addressing a number of other major policy issues, the 78th
Legislature was focused on a significant number of natural resource
and environmental quality subjects -- And this, despite the fact
the previous legislature had conducted an extensive Sunset review
of the agency and made several substantial changes in the agency's
authority in response to both legislative findings and public
input.
Budget Issues
As the summary of House Bill 1, the General Appropriations Act,
will indicate, the TCEQ faced significant budget reductions as its
share of the statewide effort to live within the revenues available
to the state. On the whole, while substantial reductions were made,
the core functions of the agency are supported at levels for the
2004-05 biennium that will maintain productivity with minimal
reductions in staffing.
Environmental Management Issues
The scope of the legislation summarized is also indicative of
the range of environmental and natural resource management issues
that continue to challenge a state that is faced with the growth
and development pressures that are present in Texas today.
Air Issues
One of the most significant of these is the need to improve air
quality to meet federal ambient standards. Efforts of the 77th
Legislature helped with the passage of the Texas Emissions
Reduction Plan (SB 5) in 2001, however, funding issues prevented
the measure from having the complete benefits on air quality
intended. This legislature has addressed that problem by passing HB
1365 which changes the funding structure of the program and makes
other improvements intended to ensure that the air quality
implementation plans for the urban areas of the state are
successful.
Water Issues
Water resource issues also continue to be topics of much public
debate and concern to anyone aware of the critical need to ensure
an adequate water supply for a rapidly growing region. The 78th
Legislature addressed many of these issues, including surface water
rights, water conservation, and both local and statewide
groundwater management issues. At the same time, the need for
ongoing discussion of water resource policy was recognized and a
number of committees and task forces were established to review and
make recommendations on these matters, including policies related
to instream flows in surface water rights and water conservation
goals.
Solid Waste Issues
A state with a growing population has an obviously expanding
problem with management of solid wastes. At the same time, the
effects of an expanding waste collection, transportation and
disposal infrastructure are more readily apparent to the
population. A logical result is increased concern from the public
about the location, operation and regulation of every type of waste
management facility. Much of the environmental legislation
initiated this past session was intended to increase oversight of
facilities and strengthen regulations related to siting, technical
requirements, recordkeeping and financial responsibility.
