Texas Natural Resources Code 91.113 – Investigation, Assessment, or Cleanup by Commission
(a) If oil and gas wastes or other substances or materials regulated by the commission under Section 91.101 are causing or are likely to cause the pollution of surface or subsurface water, the commission, through its employees or agents, may use money in the oil and gas regulation and cleanup fund to conduct a site investigation or environmental assessment or control or clean up the oil and gas wastes or other substances or materials if:
(1) the responsible person has failed or refused to control or clean up the oil and gas wastes or other substances or materials after notice and opportunity for hearing;
(2) the responsible person is unknown, cannot be found, or has no assets with which to control or clean up the oil and gas wastes or other substances or materials; or
(3) the oil and gas wastes or other substances or materials are causing the pollution of surface or subsurface water.
(b) For purposes of this section, “responsible person” means any operator or other person required by law, rules adopted by the commission, or a valid order of the commission to control or clean up the oil and gas wastes or other substances or materials.
Terms Used In Texas Natural Resources Code 91.113
- Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Person: includes corporation, organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, and any other legal entity. See Texas Government Code 311.005
(c) The commission or its employees or agents, on proper identification, may enter the land of another for the purpose of conducting a site investigation or environmental assessment or controlling or cleaning up oil and gas wastes or other substances or materials under this section.
(d) The conducting of a site investigation or environmental assessment or the control or cleanup of oil and gas wastes or other substances or materials by the commission under this section does not prevent the commission from seeking penalties or other relief provided by law from any person who is required by law, rules adopted by the commission, or a valid order of the commission to control or clean up the oil and gas wastes or other substances or materials.
(e) The commission and its employees are not liable for any damages arising from an act or omission if the act or omission is part of a good-faith effort to carry out this section.
(f) If the commission conducts a site investigation or environmental assessment or controls or cleans up oil and gas wastes or other substances or materials under this section, the commission may recover all costs incurred by the commission from any person who was required by law, rules adopted by the commission, or a valid order of the commission to control or clean up the oil and gas wastes or other substances or materials. The commission by order may require the person to reimburse the commission for those costs or may request the attorney general to file suit against the person to recover those costs. At the request of the commission, the attorney general may file suit to enforce an order issued by the commission under this subsection. A suit under this subsection may be filed in any court of competent jurisdiction in Travis County. Costs recovered under this subsection shall be deposited to the oil and gas regulation and cleanup fund.