Protecting our water wells
The Texas Legislature mandates the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District (HTGCD) protect the longterm reliability of groundwater in Western Hays County — one of the top-five fastest growing counties in the US, where the population’s drinking water supply is served almost entirely by groundwater. Family homes, businesses, schools, livestock, vineyards, orchards, businesses such as concrete production and breweries all rely on the same limited groundwater supply originating in the Trinity Aquifer.
As the population in western Hays County continues to grow and water supplies become further strained, the District’s mandate becomes increasingly important to protect the limited and strained groundwater supplies. HTGCD needs your support of House Bill 4618 — let your elected officials, your neighbors, and the community know how much you rely on the water from your well or your water provider who pumps groundwater from the Trinity Aquifer. HTGCD’s charge is to ensure that groundwater is used efficiently and at sustainable rates, to gather data and conduct scientific studies needed for sound management decisions, and to provide that information to the community through education, outreach, and access to the State’s long-range water planning processes. HTGCD is the only entity with the mandate to protect your family, business, and agriculture water wells.
HTGCD is asking our Legislators for revisions to our enabling legislation through HB 4618, which will allow the District to protect the aquifer and water wells more effectively. The proposed legislative revisions represent an honest attempt at establishing consensus on these issues and incorporating feedback from a variety of stakeholders including exempt well owners, groundwater well permit holders, water utilities, County Commissioners, and Legislators.
These revisions improve data collection capabilities, conform with national utility standards, and protect HTGCD’s long-term stability. These changes would not affect exempt users — residential and agricultural wells would remain exempt from any permit requirements. The changes do, however, help us protect your groundwater.
HTGCD is not requesting a tax or a large funding boost. After lengthy stakeholder input, HTGCD is focusing on two main changes that would apply to non-exempt use wells, meaning those with operating permits such as concrete plants and water utilities. The first change updates the current connection fee for multiunit developments such as housing developments and apartment buildings to align the fee with the American Water Works Association meter size standards; the larger the meter, the higher the groundwater use and resulting connection fee. The other change would allow the HTGCD to consider instating a production fee of twenty-five cents per 1000 gallons for groundwater from non-exempt (permitted) wells. Production fees are used by water districts across the State and provide both a funding source and a tool to manage groundwater withdrawals. The combination of these two changes will allow the district to move away from its growth-based fee structure and into a more predictable and sustainable future.
Protecting groundwater property rights is critical for the health of our community. As the Board President, I ask you to join our county commissioners in asking our local legislators to help protect your groundwater supply and your water wells by supporting your local groundwater conservation district and HB 4816. The full HTGCD Board has deliberated the value this legislation brings to the management of our groundwater and voted in full support of the proposed legislative changes.
Show your support by contacting our local legislators by phone or email at:
Representative Erin Zwiener: (512) 463-0647, erin. zwiener@house.texas.gov
Senator Donna Campbell: (512) 463-0125, donna. campbell@senate.texas.gov
