Bill: HB 1642, 84(R) - 2015

Committee

House Environmental Regulation

Vote Recommendation

Vote Recommendation Economic Freedom Property Rights Personal Responsibility Limited Government Individual Liberty
Yes Neutral Positive Neutral Neutral Neutral

Author(s)

Joe Pickett

Bill Caption

Relating to the rights, remedies, and liability of certain owners and operators of environmentally contaminated property; authorizing a fee.

Fiscal Notes

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

Bill Analysis

HB 1642, if passed, would amend the Civil Practices and Remedies Code (Subchapter A, Chapter 16) by modifying the rights, remedies, and liabilities, associated with environmental contamination. (All changes apply only to property less than ten acres in size, located on a county with an international border with a population of 800,000 or more.)

HB 1642 would require that the parties responsible for the cleanup of environmental contamination from an off site source, complete said cleanup, and relevant compensation to the property owner within 15 years of the contamination being brought to the attention of the Texas Commission.

Vote Recommendation Notes

The motivation behind HB 1642 is to offer protection to property owners on a particular piece of property in El Paso. Though we tend to oppose bracketing to favor certain parties, and though we would prefer that the term "off site source" be more clearly defined, we believe the intent of this bill is helpful. We support HB 1642 under our Property Rights liberty principle.

Organizations Supporting

Centerpoint Energy 
Texas Association of Business

Organizations Opposed

Texas Association of Manufacturers

Source URL (retrieved on 03/29/2024 10:03 AM): http://reports.texasaction.com/bill/84r/hb1642?print_view=true