Texas Water Code 26.0291 – Water Quality Fee
(a) An annual water quality fee is imposed on:
(1) each wastewater discharge permit holder, including the holder of a permit issued under § 18.005, for each wastewater discharge permit held; and
(2) each user of water in proportion to the user’s water right, through permit or contract, as reflected in the commission‘s records, provided that the commission by rule shall ensure that no fee shall be assessed for the portion of a municipal or industrial water right directly associated with a facility or operation for which a fee is assessed under Subdivision (1) of this subsection.
(b) The fee is to supplement any other funds available to pay expenses of the commission related to:
(1) inspecting waste treatment facilities; and
(2) enforcing the laws of the state and the rules of the commission governing:
(A) waste discharge and waste treatment facilities, including any expenses necessary to administer the national pollutant discharge elimination system (NPDES) program;
(B) the water resources of this state, including the water quality management programs under § 26.0135; and
(C) any other water resource management programs reasonably related to the activities of the persons required to pay a fee under this section.
Terms Used In Texas Water Code 26.0291
- Commission: means the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission. See Texas Water Code 26.001
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- NPDES: means the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System under which the Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency can delegate permitting authority to the State of Texas in accordance with Section 402(b) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. See Texas Water Code 26.001
- Permit: means an order issued by the commission in accordance with the procedures prescribed in this chapter establishing the treatment which shall be given to wastes being discharged into or adjacent to any water in the state to preserve and enhance the quality of the water and specifying the conditions under which the discharge may be made. See Texas Water Code 26.001
- Pollutant: means dredged spoil, solid waste, incinerator residue, sewage, garbage, sewage sludge, filter backwash, munitions, chemical wastes, biological materials, radioactive materials, heat, wrecked or discarded equipment, rock, sand, cellar dirt, and industrial, municipal, and agricultural waste discharged into any water in the state. See Texas Water Code 26.001
- Rule: includes regulation. See Texas Government Code 311.005
- Treatment facility: means any plant, disposal field, lagoon, incinerator, area devoted to sanitary landfills, or other facility installed for the purpose of treating, neutralizing, or stabilizing waste. See Texas Water Code 26.001
- United States: includes a department, bureau, or other agency of the United States of America. See Texas Government Code 311.005
- Year: means 12 consecutive months. See Texas Government Code 311.005
(c) The fee for each year is imposed on each permit or water right in effect during any part of the year. The commission may establish reduced fees for inactive permits.
(d) Irrigation water rights are not subject to a fee under this section.
(e) The commission by rule shall adopt a fee schedule for determining the amount of the fee to be charged. Beginning September 1, 2009, the maximum amount of a fee under this section is $100,000. On September 1 of each subsequent year, the commission shall adjust the maximum fee amount as necessary to reflect the percentage change during the preceding year in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), U.S. City Average, published monthly by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, or its successor in function. Notwithstanding any adjustment for inflation under this subsection, the amount of the fee may not exceed $150,000 for each permit or contract and the maximum annual fee under this section for a wastewater discharge or waste treatment facility that holds a water right for the use of water by the facility is $150,000. In determining the amount of a fee under this section, the commission may consider:
(1) waste discharge permitting factors such as flow volume, toxic pollutant potential, level of traditional pollutant, and heat load;
(2) the designated uses and segment ranking classification of the water affected by discharges from the permitted facility;
(3) the expenses necessary to obtain and administer the NPDES program;
(4) the reasonable costs of administering the water quality management programs under § 26.0135; and
(5) any other reasonable costs necessary to administer and enforce a water resource management program reasonably related to the activities of the persons required to pay a fee under this section.
(f) The fees collected under this section shall be deposited to the credit of the water resource management account, an account in the general revenue fund.
(g) The commission may adopt rules necessary to administer this section.
(h) A fee collected under this section is in addition to any other fee that may be charged under this chapter.