Bill Text: TX HB1479 | 2019-2020 | 86th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to the transfer of certain permitted irrigation water rights related to a certain portion of the Edwards Aquifer.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-03-12 - Left pending in committee [HB1479 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-HB1479-Introduced.html
86R7356 SLB-F | ||
By: King of Uvalde | H.B. No. 1479 |
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relating to the transfer of certain permitted irrigation water | ||
rights related to a certain portion of the Edwards Aquifer. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Section 1.34, Chapter 626, Acts of the 73rd | ||
Legislature, Regular Session, 1993, is amended to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 1.34. TRANSFER OF RIGHTS. (a) In this section: | ||
(1) "Development" means: | ||
(A) actual construction on and physical | ||
alteration of land caused by the installation of utilities, the | ||
construction of roads, parking lots, driveways, foundations, | ||
structures, buildings, stormwater collection systems, public | ||
parks, athletic fields, or similar improvements, and the rezoning | ||
of the land so that it can no longer be used for agricultural | ||
purposes; and | ||
(B) that: | ||
(i) the owner of the land no longer seeks to | ||
designate the land as qualified open-space land or for agricultural | ||
use in accordance with Subchapters C and D, Chapter 23, Tax Code; | ||
and | ||
(ii) the chief appraiser in the county in | ||
which the land is located has made a determination that a change in | ||
land use has occurred under Section 23.46 or 23.55, Tax Code. | ||
(2) "Irrigated land" means the lands irrigated during | ||
the historical period, as described by Section 1.16, that provided | ||
the basis for the issuance of an initial regular permit for | ||
irrigation use and identified as the place of use in the initial | ||
regular permit. | ||
(b) Water withdrawn from the aquifer must be used within the | ||
boundaries of the authority. | ||
(c) [ |
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which a person who installs water conservation equipment may sell | ||
the water conserved. | ||
(d) [ |
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a permit for irrigation use may not lease more than 50 percent of | ||
the irrigation rights initially permitted. The user's remaining | ||
irrigation water rights must be used in accordance with the | ||
original permit and must pass with transfer of the irrigated land. | ||
(e) Except as provided by Subsection (f), the owner of the | ||
irrigated land may sever the remaining water rights for use in | ||
irrigation in the same proportion as the proportion of developed | ||
and undeveloped land. Water rights used for irrigation tied to | ||
portions of land that cannot be developed due to location within a | ||
floodplain or are impractical to develop due to shape or topography | ||
may be included in the proportion of land considered developed. | ||
Water rights for use in irrigation severed under this subsection | ||
may change in use, so long as the use is in the same county as the | ||
original use and consistent with authority rules. Rules adopted to | ||
implement this subsection may not expand the type of land | ||
considered developed. | ||
(f) The authority may adopt rules to provide for a holder of | ||
an initial regular permit for use in irrigation to lease the full | ||
amount of the water rights for use in irrigation granted in the | ||
initial permit to another person for irrigating land located in the | ||
authority. | ||
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |