Recapping the 89th Session of the Texas Legislature
By Adrian Shelley
Texas lawmakers returned home in early June at the end of the 89th regular session of the Texas Legislature, passing hundreds of pieces of legislation and sending them to the governor for his signature or veto. Here is Public Citizen’s assessment of how issues like energy and the environment fared during this year’s session.
Air Monitoring
We were pleased that the state budget bill, SB 1, included an additional $2 million for monitoring of particulate matter in areas of the state that are close to violating federal standards. This budget item, TCEQ Rider 7, was initially created to monitor ozone pollution. Several sessions ago, Public Citizen successfully collaborated with other air quality advocates to secure funding for particulate matter monitoring. During this session, we successfully increased the budget for particulate matter monitoring from $2.5 million to $4.5 million. Unfortunately, Governor Abbott has chosen to violate the Clean Air Act by refusing to designate any counties in Texas as nonattainment for the new fine particulate matter (PM2.5) standard. Although we don’t believe this illegal action will stand, for now, it creates uncertainty about whether and how these new monitoring funds can be used.
Energy Investments
The Texas Energy Fund received an additional allocation of $5 billion, bringing the total to $10 billion, for a fund that has yielded no results. While nearly all of this investment is for gas plants that are not close to being built, lawmakers did include a commitment to fund the $1.8 billion backup power program included in the original Texas Energy Fund statute.
Nuclear power also got a handout from lawmakers to develop unproven small modular reactors. Public Citizen opposed the use of taxpayer funds because we believe that advanced nuclear power is too expensive, too far from reality, and burdened by too many risks and unanswered questions, such as the handling and disposal of radioactive waste.
This session began with a budget bill allocating $750 million to a new nuclear power fund, with whispers that the number could go as high as $2 billion. In the end, the newly created Texas Nuclear Power Fund will get $350 million, with an additional $120 million for the reactor already in development at the Natura/Abilene Christian University.
More About Nuclear Power
HB 4112 by Rep. Brooks Landgraf paves the way for new nuclear energy facilities by allowing onsite storage of nuclear waste. We successfully supported an amendment to this bill to ensure that waste will not be transported between nuclear facilities in Texas, thereby eliminating unnecessary risk in waste management.
There is still no permanent solution for high-level radioactive waste in the United States. And it’s an open question whether Texas will become the nation’s high-level waste dumping ground on an “interim” basis. We are very concerned about the development of new nuclear energy resources in the absence of a solution to this ongoing problem.
Another new law in the nuclear energy space, SB 1061 by Sen. Tan Parker, will promote the mining of Texas’ abundant uranium resources. As with the development of any nonrenewable resource, we urge a balance between resource exploitation for private gain and the potential for public consequences.
Renewable Energy
Clean, renewable energy is saving Texans billions every year. Since Winter Storm Uri in 2021, 92 percent of new energy in Texas has come from wind, solar, and battery storage.
Public Citizen supported two bills, whose passage will promote energy company recycling of aging turbines: HB 3228 and HB 3229, by Rep. Stan Lambert.
Several bills will improve solar permitting in Texas: SB 1036 by Dean Zaffirini (residential solar permitting), SB 1202 by Sen. King (reducing red tape for solar permits) and SB 1252 by Sen. Schwertner (reducing red tape for energy storage permits). Two bills will improve the handling of battery energy storage systems by introducing new requirements for decommissioning (HB 3809, sponsored by Rep. Darby) and safety (HB 3824, sponsored by Rep. King).
This legislative session saw several attempts to hinder renewable energy development and prop up fossil fuels fail. These included SB 819 by Sen. Kolhorst (attacking clean energy through red tape), SB 715 by Sen. Sparks (a retroactive “firming” requirement for all energy resources), and SB 388 by Sen. King (setting an arbitrary target of 50% “dispatchable” energy). These bills were stopped. Significantly, SB 819, which made another appearance as the most significant, fossil-fuel industry-backed attack on clean energy for a second consecutive session, faced more opposition and was stopped earlier in the legislative process than in 2023. The bill was opposed by at least seventy speakers when it was heard in committee in the Senate—the most opposition testimony for an energy bill in recent memory. It did not receive a hearing in the House.
Legislation attacking offshore wind energy also failed. SB 383 by Sen. Mayes Middleton, which would have effectively banned offshore wind energy development, failed in the House. And HB 3556 by Rep. Vasut, which started as an attack on offshore wind, became a good bill when it was amended to simply require that wind companies consult with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to minimize the impact of offshore wind facilities on migrating birds. We are supportive of the version sent to the governor for his signature.
Rounding out the list of bad energy ideas was HJR 138 by Rep. Alders, a constitutional amendment prohibiting Texas from ever imposing a tax on carbon dioxide emissions. Although no one believes our notoriously fossil-fuel-friendly leadership in Texas will ever propose a carbon tax, the bill was seen as a test vote on the issue of climate change generally. It did not receive the required ⅔ vote for a constitutional amendment, failing 93-47.
Energy Efficiency
This session saw slight gains in energy efficiency, which remains the cheapest and easiest to deploy grid stabilization strategy. SB 783 by Sen. Menéndez will allow the State Energy Conservation Office to make rules to promote energy and water conservation in new building codes. We are also encouraged by the creation of the Texas Energy Waste Advisory Committee in HB 5323 by Rep. King. However, we note the failure of the stronger Texas Energy Efficiency Council in HB 3826/SB 2717 (Rep. Hernandez/Sen Menéndez).
The legislature declined to support strong energy efficiency goals (such as the 1% goal suggested by SB 1915/HB 4374 by Sen. Eckhardt and Rep. Turner) or even the moderate compromise goals that were being developed in SB 2994 (Sen. Johsnon).
Other good bills that failed:
- HB 1359 by Rep. Hernandez, an income-based bill pay assistance fund, passed the House and failed to move in the Senate.
- HB 1483/HJR 102 by Rep. Gervin-Hawkins, which would have provided tax breaks for home energy efficiency upgrades, was not voted out of committee.
- HB 3237 by Rep. Turner, energy consumption goals for political subdivision, institution of higher education, or state agency, passed the House. However, its companion, SB 1514 by Sen. Johnson, did not move in the Senate.
Aggregate Production Operations
Yet another session passes without meaningful reform of Aggregate Production Operations, including concrete batch plants, cement crushers, and quarries.
Two bills by Sen. Alvarado that passed into law make minor improvements in concrete plant permitting. SB 763 will require the TCEQ to conduct a protectiveness review of the concrete batch plant standard permit every ten years (a task the agency was already undertaking approximately every 11 years). SB 2351 will revise the standard permit for concrete batch plants to apply to any plants that have not yet begun construction after requesting an extension. While these bills are fine, they don’t amount to real reform of this industry that will benefit communities dealing with pollution from concrete plants. We would like to recognize the consistent effort across sessions to reform this industry by lawmakers such as Sen. Alvarado, Sen. Borris Miles, Rep. Armando Walle, Rep. Terry Wilson, Rep. Nicole Collier, Rep. Senfronia Thompson, and others. This work is not done.
We counted a strategic victory in the defeat of SB 1757 by Sen. Birdwell. This bill aimed to enhance environmental permitting for concrete crushers operating at rock quarries, but it fell short with weak provisions and significant losses to public rights. It would have expanded the size of a crusher that could get a standard permit by more than eight times, and it would have taken away the public’s right to a contested case hearing challenge to new crusher permits. Opposition from Public Citizen, Texans for Responsible Aggregate Mining, and others prevented the bill, which had passed the Senate, from advancing far in the House.
We were very disappointed with the failure of HB 1823/SB 2082 by Rep. Thompson/Sen. Miles. This bill targeted a situation specific to Houston, where a concrete crusher wants to locate next to LBJ hospital, placing a significant source of air pollution near a facility that treats children, the elderly, and individuals with respiratory illnesses. State lawmakers continue to claim that Houston can solve its problems through zoning. We agree that the lack of zoning in Houston is a significant burden on poor communities that live in the shadow of industry. Still, it isn’t a reason for state lawmakers to refuse to act to help our vulnerable neighbors.
Lawmakers might be fine with a concrete crusher next to a hospital, but they said “enough is enough” when a cement kiln tried to locate a few miles from a semiconductor manufacturer. SB 1758 prevented a cement kiln in Grayson County from being built until the completion of a multi-year study of the potential impacts of the cement kiln on the semiconductor manufacturer. The governor allowed the bill to pass without his signature, but told lawmakers to improve it during a 30-day special session set to begin on July 21. We hope lawmakers will come to see that, just as industrial facilities don’t belong near high-tech manufacturers, they also don’t belong near hospitals, schools, and communities.
Rep. Armando Walle of Houston has carried concrete bills for many sessions. His HB 573, which would have provided for unannounced inspections of concrete plants at the request of a legislator, passed the House but did not move in the Senate. This is a good bill that we hope to see again next session.
HB 1726/SB 885 by Rep. Collier/Sen. Eckhardt is another bill that has been filed again and again–it would allow schools, places of worship to request a contested case hearing on a concrete batch plant. This bill should have passed several sessions ago, but it made less progress this session than in several prior sessions–it didn’t receive a hearing in either chamber. Perhaps its time will come in another two years.
Texas Emissions Reduction Plan
Texas’ popular program to combat air pollution by replacing old, polluting vehicles will not receive any updates from the 89th legislature. HB 3868, by House Environmental Regulations Committee Chairman Brooks Landgraf, died on the House Calendar. This bill could have been the vehicle for other substantial TERP bills, including HB 4519 by Rep. Ordaz (streamlining specific TERP programs) and HB 4841 by Rep. Anchia (creating a network of older vehicle owners who could benefit from TERP programs).
Wildfires
After Texas saw the largest wildfire in its history in February 2024, lawmakers knew they had to act. An investigative committee of the House, chaired by state Rep. Ken King, identified falling electric infrastructure at oil and gas facilities as the leading cause of wildfires in Texas. Public Citizen followed the committee’s work and made recommendations for next steps.
Chairman King followed through on the work of his committee by filing three bills that have been passed and sent to the governor. HB 143 empowers the Railroad Commission to identify unsafe conditions in electrical equipment and refer them to the Public Utility Commission. HB 144 requires electric utilities to develop a plan to manage and inspect distribution poles and gives the Public Utility Commission oversight of the plans. HB 145 requires utilities to produce wildfire mitigation plans. SB 34 by Sen. Sparks commissions a study of wildfires in the state, creates a state database of firefighting equipment, and increases funding to volunteer fire departments. SB 767 by Sen. Sparks, which the governor signed in May, also creates a new state database.
Artificial Intelligence
Regulation of artificial intelligence and the creation of AI “deepfakes” was a new issue for Public Citizen’s Texas office–part of an effort by our national office to track state legislation regulating AI. Two such bills were signed into law. HB 581 by Rep. Mary González takes a new approach to the problem of intimate deepfakes of minors by attaching civil liability to the owner of the Internet website or application used to create deepfakes of minors. SB 441 by Sen. Chuy Hinojosa expands the crime of creating intimate deepfakes without the victim’s consent to apply to all media, not just videos, and it criminalizes threatening to create an intimate deepfake to coerce, extort, harass, or intimidate another person.
Oil & Gas and Miscellaneous Bills
A few other things we were following included oil and gas legislation. HB 49 by Rep. Darby, which has been sent to the Governor, expands the use of wastewater produced from oil and gas operations. We’re concerned that this legislation goes too far in limiting liability for the use of this produced wastewater. SB 1150 by Sen. Middleton requires operators to clean up inactive wells within 15 years. Although this bill should have gone farther, it is a start and will apply to thousands of wells across Texas.
SB 2321 by Sen. King codifies the current practice of giving waivers to air pollution regulations for energy-generating facilities during periods of high energy demand or grid instability. Although we’ve never agreed with the premise that pollution laws somehow hinder energy generation, we supported the bill because it codifies what is already common practice. We worked hard to include public disclosure of pollution reports in the bill, but were unsuccessful in achieving this goal. The bill has been sent to the Governor, and we intend to seek public disclosure in follow-up legislation next session.
SB 3074 by Sen. Birdwell passed the Senate at breakneck speed, having been filed on a Tuesday near the end of the session and passed out of that chamber by Friday. Fortunately, the bill, which would have allowed currently illegal “ex parte” communication between lawmakers and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, did not move in the House.
We counted more defensive victories in the defeat of HB 4313 and HB 4314 by Rep. Cecil Bell. The first of these targeted local programs aimed at combating air pollution, while the second banned the use of ESG criteria in local contracting. Coordinated opposition to these bills slowed them down in the House until the end of the session, when they ran out of time.
No legislation addressing the problem of PFAS, or “forever chemicals,” was passed into law this session. Rep. Kerwin tried to combat PFAS contamination of fertilizer with HB 1674. Sen. Johnson tried to limit PFAS use in firefighter training with SB 1898. We were especially dismayed by the failure of HB 1730 by Rep. Morales Shaw—a simple study of the health effects of PFAS on Texans. These forever chemicals will live up to their name and aren’t going away, but Texans will have to wait at least two more years for any attempt to address them.
There are several other good bills we were disappointed to see fail. These include:
- SB 1179 by Sen. Alvarado, which would have addressed benzene pollution in Channelview, did not get a hearing.
- HB 826 by Rep. Lalani would have placed the first regulatory air monitor in Fort Bend County, home to one of the most polluting coal plants in Texas. It was not heard in the Environmental Regulation Committee.
- HB 2048 by Rep. Lujan, which would promote beverage container recycling, ran out of time on the House calendar..
- SB 2050 by Sen. Birdwell, which would have promoted recycling of batteries by consumers, passed the Senate and ran out of time in the House.
- HB 1904 by Rep. Canales, which would have made releasing balloons a crime like littering, passed the House but did not move in the Senate.
- HB 1341/SB 2350 by Rep. Reynolds/Sen. Alvarado would have established a stricter pollution limit for hydrogen sulfide, which is deadly and has killed several people in Texas in recent years. The bill was heard in the House Committee but did not move in either chamber.
- HB 457 by Rep. Christina Morales, which would have created an emergency alert system for toxic chemical releases.